Key facts
- Coinbase and five other companies filed a brief opposing the Capital Markets Alliance Association's request to block stock perpetual futures.
- The Capital Markets Alliance Association argues the contracts should be treated as security-based swaps, which face tighter retail trading restrictions.
- Judge Valerie Caproni denied the alliance's temporary restraining order request on November 3, finding it had not shown likely irreparable harm.
- The SEC reportedly submitted a proposed brief opposing a temporary halt, saying it was reviewing the exchanges' listing rules.
- The alliance cited about $375 million in reported 24-hour notional trading volume for Kalshi's stock perpetuals shortly after launch.
Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, said he was "flattered" by Coinbase's support for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in a US legal dispute over stock perpetual futures, in comments to Cointelegraph published on November 13, 2026. "When we launched the perpetual swap at BitMEX in 2016, Washington's reaction was less than warm," Hayes said. "Ten years later, Coinbase is in federal court defending the right to offer them on US stocks. I'm flattered. Imitation is the sincerest form of regulation."
Coinbase and five other companies submitted a brief on Monday opposing the Capital Markets Alliance Association's request to block trading in perpetual futures tied to individual stocks. The court accepted the brief on Tuesday. The alliance, which brought the lawsuit, says the contracts should be treated as security-based swaps, which face tighter restrictions on retail trading.
Hayes was CEO of BitMEX when the crypto derivatives exchange launched its Bitcoin perpetual swap, which let traders take leveraged positions on Bitcoin without a fixed expiration date. The product helped make perpetual swaps a staple of crypto trading.
The Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly submitted a proposed court brief on Monday opposing the alliance's request to temporarily halt trading in the contracts. The agency said it was reviewing the exchanges' rules for listing the contracts. The brief left open whether the SEC would set those rules aside and whether the contracts qualify as security futures or security-based swaps.
In a Tuesday court filing, the Capital Markets Alliance Association said the CFTC had approved the contracts without adequately explaining its decision or addressing unresolved regulatory questions. The group also cited about $375 million in reported 24-hour notional trading volume for Kalshi's stock perpetuals shortly after launch, claiming the products were already diverting business from traditional stock markets.