U.S. traders can now access perpetual futures tied to individual stocks through qualifying regulated exchanges, ending years of regulatory uncertainty surrounding equity perpetuals. Qualifying CFTC-registered exchanges may offer equity perpetual futures, provided they also meet SEC registration requirements for security futures. Under the framework, the contracts can trade on designated markets that are also registered with the SEC as notice-registered national securities exchanges for security futures products. CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig announced the development in a press release.

Trading Begins Under Joint CFTC and SEC Oversight

Selig said equity perpetual futures, also known as Equity Perps, can begin trading for the first time on qualifying CFTC-registered exchanges that hold the required SEC registration to trade security futures products.

Journalist Eleanor Terrett reported that the CFTC approved the first perpetual futures contracts linked to individual stocks, allowing qualifying U.S.-regulated exchanges to offer the products under joint CFTC and SEC oversight. Perpetual futures are derivative contracts without a fixed expiration date that track the price of an underlying asset, a format widely used in cryptocurrency markets. Unlike conventional futures, which carry scheduled settlement dates, perpetuals have no expiry, so traders are not required to roll positions into successor contracts at set intervals. The dual-registration requirement reflects that security futures products straddle the two agencies' jurisdictions, which is why a listing venue must satisfy both regulators. Previously, regulatory uncertainty kept equity perpetual futures outside established U.S. market structures; the new arrangement provides a route for the contracts to enter regulated markets.

Selig Cites Risk Management and Market Access

Perpetual futures have become widely sought tools for risk management and price discovery, Selig said, adding that U.S. traders should be able to access these products within the CFTC's regulatory framework. According to the chairman, bringing Equity Perps into regulated markets could reduce the need for American investors to rely on offshore, often unregulated platforms. Because venues of that kind operate outside CFTC and SEC registration, activity on them does not carry the domestic protections that attach to trading on registered exchanges. His statement emphasized access under applicable law and existing regulatory protections.

The announcement also addresses the long-running jurisdictional uncertainty that has surrounded security futures and equity perpetual contracts. Selig said the products had remained in a regulatory “no man’s land” because of limited coordination between the two agencies.

CFTC and SEC Move Past Years of Regulatory Disputes

Selig linked the development to the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 and the CFTC-SEC Memorandum of Understanding, both of which provide the statutory and formal foundation for cooperation between the agencies on these products. The 2000 act is the statute that divides authority over futures and security futures between the CFTC and the SEC, making interagency coordination central to how such products reach U.S. markets. He said the CFTC and SEC have moved beyond an era of regulatory disputes and now seek to provide clearer rules and a defined path for innovative financial products.

SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins previously described the regulatory situation as a “no man’s land,” Terrett reported. The latest announcement brings individual-stock perpetual futures into qualifying U.S. exchanges under joint oversight. Selig said the approach aims to keep these products within established regulatory protections rather than leaving U.S. participants dependent on offshore venues. Details still to emerge include which exchanges pursue the combined registrations and which individual stocks are chosen as the first underliers.