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Coinbase has filed notice registration documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as a first regulatory step toward offering equity perpetual futures to U.S. investors. The products would still need to complete the applicable Commodity Futures Trading Commission review and approval process before Coinbase could launch them.
Coinbase Starts SEC Registration Process
Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad said on Sept. 3 that the company had submitted the documents to bring equity perpetuals to its U.S. derivatives exchange. The filings do not mean the products have received final regulatory approval.
Coinbase Derivatives filed a Form 1-N, while Coinbase Financial Markets filed a Form BD-N, according to the filings described by the company. SEC rules use Form 1-N for notice registration of an exchange trading security futures products and Form BD-N for certain brokers handling those products. Shirzad wrote:
“Equity perps have proven demand internationally, and we’re excited at the prospect of a regulated pathway for U.S. investors.”
Equity Perpetuals Require SEC and CFTC Oversight
Equity perpetuals are derivatives designed to track stocks without requiring traders to own the underlying shares. Unlike conventional futures, perpetual contracts have no fixed expiration date and use funding mechanisms to help keep prices aligned with their reference assets.
Because Coinbase’s proposed equity perpetuals would be security futures tied to individual stocks, they fall under joint SEC and CFTC oversight. That differs from futures on broad-based security indexes, which generally fall under the CFTC’s exclusive jurisdiction.
Coinbase Already Offers Stock Perpetuals Overseas
Coinbase already provides stock perpetual futures to eligible users through its international platform. The USDC-settled contracts track publicly listed equities and equity baskets without giving traders ownership of the underlying shares.
The international products trade 24/7 and use funding payments similar to crypto perpetuals. Coinbase says pricing during regular market hours relies on equity-market data, while additional pricing inputs are used during weekends and some off-hours.
CFTC Process Remains Before U.S. Launch
Shirzad said Coinbase will next work with the CFTC as it moves through the remaining regulatory process. The company has not announced which individual stocks would be included in a U.S. launch or when trading could begin.
Coinbase already offers perpetual-style crypto futures to U.S. customers through Coinbase Derivatives. Adding equity perpetuals would extend that derivatives offering into contracts tied to individual stocks, subject to completing the required regulatory steps.
