SEC backs CFTC in court fight over US single-stock perpetual futures
Why it matters
Exchanges offering these new stock bets now have both US market watchdogs on their side in court, but the SEC has kept the right to overturn them itself, so the legal risk is far from settled.
Post to XThe short version
The US Securities and Exchange Commission has told a New York court not to stop new bets on single company share prices sold by Kalshi, Coinbase and a Kraken-owned exchange, Ledger Insights reported on 11 November 2026. A group backed by Citadel Securities and Cboe wants them halted. The SEC did not say whether the products are legal.
Here's what happened. The SEC has filed a brief supporting the CFTC, the US derivatives regulator, in a lawsuit over single-stock perpetual futures, Ledger Insights reported. These are contracts that track a share price and never expire.
They began trading in the US the week before, after the CFTC let a 45-day review run out on applications from Kalshi, Coinbase and Bitnomial, which is owned by Kraken's parent Payward. A new group, the Capital Markets Alliance, representing Cboe, Citadel Securities and the Healthy Markets Association, sued the CFTC in New York, arguing the products are swaps that belong to the SEC.
The SEC told the court not to issue an injunction (an order to stop trading) and agreed with the CFTC that the group has no right to sue. But it did not say whether the contracts count as futures or swaps.
So what's left? The SEC can still overturn the exchange rules that allowed the products, and it has until 31 Dec to decide, according to Ledger Insights. A judge earlier refused an emergency halt but said the group would probably win on the law.
Where this comes from
Written with AI from the sources above and checked against them before publishing. Here's how we work. This is news, not financial advice. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
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