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- Kalshi is seeking U.S. approval for 60 single-stock perpetual futures that would trade 24/7.
- The proposal sparked a regulatory jurisdiction battle between the CFTC and SEC, drawing opposition from Citadel.
Known for its prediction markets, Kalshi plans to seek U.S. regulatory approval for about 60 perpetual futures tied to stocks and exchange-traded funds, including Tesla, Apple and Nvidia, a move that would create the first regulated single-stock perpetual futures in the country if approved.
The proposal matters beyond a new product launch because it opens a fresh jurisdiction fight between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission. It also would bring crypto-style, around-the-clock derivatives trading closer to U.S. equity ets.
Kalshi pushes beyond bitcoin perpetuals
Perpetual futures, or perps, let traders make leveraged bets without expiration dates. According to the source report, Kalshi wants the new contracts to trade 24/7, meaning a Tesla-linked perp could continue trading overnight and on weekends even while Tesla shares on Nasdaq are closed.
Kalshi already secured CFTC approval in May for a bitcoin perpetual contract. But the regulator said at the time that while the bitcoin perp qualified as a futures contract, the structure might not work for every asset class and that perps tied to other assets should be reviewed individually.
That makes the next step important: Kalshi still needs regulatory approval for the proposed stock- and ETF-linked contracts, and it is not yet clear whether those products would ultimately fall under CFTC or SEC oversight.
Citadel warns of a “parallel shadow market”
The proposal has already drawn opposition from Citadel Securities, which argued in a letter to the SEC and CFTC that products tied to U.S. public companies should remain under SEC supervision.
Citadel said shifting those products elsewhere could create a “parallel shadow market” with weaker surveillance and safeguards. The concern, as framed in the source material, is that around-the-clock trading in equity-linked perps could raise market oversight issues, including questions around manipulation and insider trading controls.
The article also notes that perpetual futures have been a long-standing crypto derivatives product, with BitMEX introducing them in 2016. Kalshi’s proposal would effectively test whether that structure can be carried into regulated U.S. markets for individual stocks and ETFs.
What comes next
For now, the key unknowns are whether Kalshi wins approval, which regulator takes the lead, and which specific names will be included across the roughly 60 planned contracts.
If regulators sign off, the products would mark a significant expansion for Kalshi and a notable shift for U.S. markets by allowing regulated, single-stock perpetual futures to trade around the clock.
Source: As reported by Shaurya Malwa.
