Prediction market exchange Kalshi is reportedly preparing to expand into cryptocurrency trading by introducing perpetual futures, marking a major shift beyond its core event-based derivatives business.
In Tuesday’s report, The Information quoted people familiar with the matter say Kalshi plans to offer perpetual futures contracts – commonly known as “perps” – on cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC).
Perpetual futures are a type of derivative contract that allows investors to speculate on price movements without an expiration date.
Unlike time-honored futures contracts, which must be rolled over periodically, perps allow for continuous exposure and are typically coupled with leverage. The structure was popularized in cryptocurrency markets by BitMEX, helping to fuel the rapid growth of derivatives trading.
The planned launch of Kalshi would mark a shift away from binary event contracts towards continuous financial markets, potentially increasing its attractiveness to both retail and institutional investors.
Kalshi is regulated in the United States by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which could position it as a regulatory-compliant alternative to foreign cryptocurrency derivatives platforms.
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig indicated that these products could become available in the United States in the near future as regulators seek to raise trading volumes in the domestic market.
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The reported move comes amid intensifying competition in both forecast markets and the fast-growing perpetual futures segment, with U.S. platforms increasingly seeking to offer this trading to non-U.S. residents.
Cryptocurrency exchanges have been pulled in this direction, with Coinbase recently launching 24/7 equity-linked perpetual futures contracts for non-US investors, moving beyond its time-honored cryptocurrency derivatives offering.
Kraken has also introduced tokenized perpetual stock futures contracts for users outside the United States, targeting exposure to U.S. stock indices, precious metals and individual company stocks.
Related: S&P Dow Jones Licenses S&P 500 Index Perpetual Futures to Hyperliquid
