Coinbase officially launched perpetual futures trading services yesterday, claiming full compliance with the regulatory requirements of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). This move allows U.S. retail investors to participate for the first time in this globally significant leveraged cryptocurrency derivatives market on a compliant platform, symbolizing an important institutional breakthrough in the U.S. crypto market.
Breaking through regulatory barriers: Coinbase launches perpetual futures trading in the U.S.
In recent years, American investors could only watch as overseas traders freely used perpetual futures on major offshore exchanges like Binance or Bybit to hedge risks and amplify returns with leverage, but were kept out due to domestic regulatory restrictions. Now, Coinbase has become the first U.S. exchange approved by the CFTC to allow retail investors to participate in cryptocurrency perpetual futures.
The wait is over – Perpetual futures have arrived in the U.S.
→ No monthly expirations → Trade with up to 10x leverage → Fees as low as 0.02%
Now you can trade perpetual-style futures on Coinbase Financial Markets, a secure and CFTC-regulated platform. pic.twitter.com/627ZOPTTzG
— Coinbase Futures (@cbFutures) July 21, 2025
This new service is launched by Coinbase Financial Markets (CFM), emphasizing compliance, safety, and retail-friendliness, and users can now quickly enable derivatives features through their existing Coinbase accounts.
(Coinbase is about to launch perpetual futures trading in the U.S., emphasizing compliance with CFTC standards)
Product design targeting retail investors: low threshold, high flexibility, easy to use
Coinbase initially launched two contract products: the nano BTC-PERP based on Bitcoin and the nano ETH-PERP based on Ethereum, designed with smaller units to lower the capital threshold, helping retail investors participate in leveraged trading of mainstream crypto assets with less capital.
The announcement states that these contract products have three main features:
No monthly expiration dates: contracts are designed with a '5-year long duration,' simulating an indefinite holding logic, eliminating the hassle of rolling over traditional futures, and making trading strategies more flexible.
Up to 10x leverage: supports leveraged operations, enhancing capital efficiency. For metals futures such as silver and gold, it can even offer leverage up to 20x.
Transaction fees as low as 0.02%: creating the most competitive entry threshold and trading costs in the market.
Competition between Coinbase and Kraken is becoming increasingly intense
Coinbase is not the only player entering the U.S. compliant contract market. In April this year, Kraken launched its own CFTC-regulated forex perpetual futures contracts through the Kraken Pro platform. It is clear that both companies are eager to compete for a share of this large but long-restricted market in the derivatives field.
The competition between these two established U.S. exchanges goes beyond this. From one-stop wallet applications to tokenized stock markets, Kraken first collaborated with Backed's xStocks product to launch tokenized U.S. stock trading, and then released the payment application 'Krak App,' focusing on instant payments, asset management, and yield accounts.
(Kraken launches Krak App: one-click cross-border crypto payments, idle funds can earn 10% yield)
Subsequently, Coinbase indicated that it is seeking approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to provide tokenized stock services; and its Coinbase Wallet has integrated with the Base L2 ecosystem for brand repositioning, upgraded to 'Base App,' combining various application scenarios including social media, instant trading, AI assistants, and USDC payments.
(From Wallet to Super App: Coinbase launches Base App, integrating new entry points for on-chain social and payment features)
Now, perpetual futures are gradually landing in the U.S., allowing local retail investors to finally have a safe and legal channel for derivatives trading, which represents a key step in the cryptocurrency market moving from the 'gray area' into an institutional framework.
This article: U.S. retail investors have been waiting! Coinbase launches perpetual futures market, emphasizing compliance with CFTC regulations. First appeared in Chain News ABMedia.
