Coinbase Files With SEC to Bring Leveraged Stock Bets to US
Exchanges
”Coinbase Global Inc. is taking the first regulatory step toward letting US investors make leveraged, round-the-clock bets on stocks without owning them, seeking to bring one of crypto’s most popular forms of trading onshore. The push is part of a broader effort to bring the crypto trading playbook onshore just as digital-asset venues are expanding beyond crypto itself. Kalshi Inc. won CFTC approval for Bitcoin perpetual futures and is filing for similar contracts tied to equity indexes and other traditional markets. The next step is potentially much bigger: giving US retail traders regulated access to the sort of stock-linked contracts that have helped turn offshore venues such as Hyperliquid into some of the biggest winners of the latest speculative trading boom.”
Source: Bloomberg
SoFi, Payward Agree to Link Banking Network With Kraken Infrastructure
Infrastructure
”SoFi Technologies and Payward agreed to link SoFi's banking network with Kraken's trading infrastructure in a deal that expands the fintech's real-time settlement system to the digital-asset platform. Payward will join SoFi Exchange Network, or SEN, SoFi’s real-time settlement network, and list SoFiUSD on Kraken, the companies said in a statement shared with The Block on Thursday. As part of the deal, SoFi will use Kraken Prime as an additional source of digital-asset liquidity for trades made through its app. The partnership extends SoFi's real-time settlement network, which is currently available to its enterprise banking clients, to institutional customers of Kraken. Under the arrangement, users on both platforms can move dollars and manage liquidity outside traditional banking hours.”
Source: The Block
Polymarket Launches Perpetual Oil Futures in 24/7 Trading Push
Prediction Markets
”Polymarket has launched perpetual futures contracts tied to oil, stepping into a market that rival Kalshi Inc. is also seeking to enter as trading venues compete to offer round-the-clock access to the commodity. The company announced the launch Thursday as part of a broader rollout of perpetual futures spanning crypto, stocks and commodities including gold and silver. Among them are two never-expiring contracts linked to the Brent and West Texas Intermediate oil benchmarks, a type of derivative facing scrutiny over its potential impact on price discovery in physical markets. The launch comes a day after it was reported that Kalshi is seeking regulatory approval for its own perpetual futures contract linked to West Texas Intermediate oil. If approved, it would be the first contract of its kind to trade on a regulated US platform.”
Source: Bloomberg
Standard Chartered Launches Institutional Spot Crypto Trading in UAE
Adoption
”Standard Chartered, said on Thursday it had launched cryptocurrency spot trading in bitcoin and ether for institutional clients in the United Arab Emirates, becoming the first global systemically important bank to offer the service in the Gulf country. Here are the details: The bank said eligible institutional clients can access deliverable bitcoin and ether spot trading through its electronic trading channels. Ether spot trading allows investors to buy and sell ether, the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, for immediate delivery rather than through derivatives contracts. The service is integrated into Standard Chartered's existing platforms, allowing clients to execute crypto-asset trades through foreign exchange interfaces, it said.”
Source: Reuters
CFTC Asks Judge to Dismiss CME Lawsuit Over Crypto Perpetual Futures
Legal
”The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has asked a federal judge to dismiss CME’s challenge to its approval of cryptocurrency perpetual futures, arguing the derivatives exchange cannot show that it has been harmed. The regulator called the dispute 'much ado about nothing' and said CME lacks constitutional standing because it has not alleged a concrete financial loss, in a motion filed Wednesday. The CFTC said the order CME is challenging allows any registered designated contract market, including CME, to list similarly structured products. CME has also publicly said its customers have not asked for perpetual futures. Any harm caused by its decision not to offer the contracts is therefore self-inflicted, the CFTC argued.”
Source: CoinDesk
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Notable Events Next Week
- Wed: U.S. Treasury Long-End Buybacks Double – US
- Wed: Franklin Bitcoin DRIP ETFs Become Effective – US
- Thu: ECB Rate Decision – EU
- Fri: U.S. CPI Inflation – US
Themes of the Week
Tweet of the Week
https://x.com/SECGov/status/2094815583455891903
