Kalshi Seeks CFTC Approval to Launch Perpetual Crude Futures

Prediction-market platform Kalshi is seeking to launch perpetual futures tied to crude oil prices. If approved, it would be the first crude-linked perpetual futures product traded on a platform authorized by US regulators.

Bloomberg reported on October 7 that Kalshi submitted a proposal to the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission for perpetual futures contracts based on West Texas Intermediate crude. The CFTC must decide within 45 days whether to approve the product. Kalshi designed the contract to trade 24 hours a day, five days a week, with no expiration date.

Perpetual futures are derivatives that allow traders to maintain positions without settling contracts at maturity or rolling them into the next month. They are widely traded in crypto markets as perpetuals. Unlike standard event contracts, the product cannot be launched through exchange self-certification and requires a separate regulatory review.

Kalshi is targeting an oil market that has grown more volatile since the Iran war. WTI futures have swung by about $60 a barrel this year. The larger price moves have also increased speculative trading demand from institutional and retail investors.

Rival CME Group recently dropped plans to extend oil trading hours. The decision came after industry opposition and CFTC pushback over concerns that weekend trading could undermine stable benchmark pricing in the physical crude market. Kalshi's proposed product would not trade on weekends and would eliminate contract expiry.

The two companies have also clashed over the regulation of perpetual futures. CME sued earlier this year after the CFTC allowed Kalshi to offer crypto-linked perpetual futures trading. Kalshi said trading volume in its commodities market was about $400 million as of early September, roughly four times the level of its crypto market at a comparable stage of growth.