Coinbase is making significant waves in the U.S. cryptocurrency market, ushering in a new era of regulated derivatives trading. The exchange has just launched CFTC-compliant perpetual-style futures trading, initially offering nano Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) contracts. This move marks a crucial step for the adoption of regulated crypto derivatives in the United States.
These new perpetual-style contracts boast features designed to appeal to both retail and institutional traders: 24/7 trading availability, leverage up to 10x, no quarterly expiration, and competitive fees as low as 0.02%.
This latest launch builds upon Coinbase's earlier successes in the derivatives space. The exchange introduced 24/7 standard futures trading in May, breaking away from the fixed market hours and contract expiration policies that historically limited U.S.-based traders. That initial offering expanded beyond BTC and ETH to include SOL, XRP, and ADA. These standard futures are USD-settled, with XRP contracts representing 10,000 XRP each, and nano SOL contracts having already seen strong trading volume, exceeding 23,000 contracts daily.
The newly introduced perpetual-style futures differ from the dominant offshore perpetuals, which are not approved for trading in the U.S. Coinbase's CFTC-compliant instruments are structured as long-dated futures with five-year expirations. They also incorporate a funding rate mechanism that accrues hourly and settles twice daily, mimicking the price dynamics of perpetual swaps common in global crypto derivatives markets.
For now, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has indicated that perpetual-style futures trading is limited to Bitcoin and Ethereum, hinting at potential expansion to other cryptocurrencies like SOL and XRP in the future.
Coinbase's expansion into perpetual-style futures comes at a pivotal time for the crypto market. Hopes of lighter regulation and a renewed risk appetite are bolstering markets, encouraging exchanges to introduce more complex financial products.
Adding to the momentum, two Wall Street powerhouses, Morgan Stanley and Charles Schwab, are reportedly gearing up to offer their clients direct access to crypto trading.
Morgan Stanley is reportedly planning to enable spot crypto trading on its E*Trade platform by 2026 and is actively exploring partnerships with crypto-native companies to support this integration. The firm already provides crypto ETF exposure to its high-net-worth clients, but this development would broaden access to a wider base of retail investors.
Charles Schwab is also making moves into the direct spot crypto trading space. During an earnings call, CEO Rick Wurster suggested that the firm is working towards enabling direct spot crypto trading for its users. He stated,
"We’re confident we will be a great destination for investors interested in crypto. Our expectation is that with the changing regulatory environment, we are hopeful and likely to be able to launch direct spot crypto and our goal is to do that in the next 12 months and we’re on a great path to be able to do that.”
The combined efforts of established crypto exchanges like Coinbase and traditional financial institutions signal a maturing U.S. crypto market with increasing accessibility and regulatory clarity.
July 2025, Cryptoniteuae