Coinbase has filed two notices with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as it moves toward offering single-stock perpetual contracts in the United States. The September 1 filings cover the company's regulated derivatives exchange and its brokerage business, and they come as Coinbase continues discussions with U.S. financial regulators. The move is part of a broader industry push by crypto-native platforms to bring offshore trading products into regulated U.S. venues.

The company confirmed the move in a September 3 post on X, stating that it was working to bring single-stock perpetual products to U.S. customers.

We're working to bring single stock perps to the US. This week, we filed SEC-notice registrations for our derivatives exchange and broker. We'll be collaborating closely with the SEC and CFTC to bring more major financial products onshore. pic.twitter.com/6wvjLXRwih — Coinbase 🛡️ (@coinbase) September 3, 2026

What Do the Filings Cover?

Two Coinbase entities submitted separate forms. Coinbase Derivatives, LLC filed Form 1-N with the SEC, while Coinbase Financial Markets, Inc. filed Form BD-N.

Form 1-N allows a CFTC-regulated exchange to register with the SEC solely for the purpose of trading security futures products. Coinbase Derivatives has operated as a CFTC-designated contract market since 2020. The forms provide information about the organization's structure, rules, systems, operations, and disciplinary procedures. Notably, the filing does not convert Coinbase Derivatives into a stock exchange; the registration is limited strictly to security futures.

Form BD-N, filed by the brokerage arm, enables an eligible CFTC registrant to register as a broker-dealer in connection with security futures. Coinbase Financial Markets is currently registered with the CFTC as a futures commission merchant.

The two forms therefore serve different purposes: one entity can list the contracts, while the other can provide regulated customer access. Neither filing indicates that the proposed stock perpetual contracts have been approved for trading. Notice filings of this kind typically trigger a review window during which the SEC can raise objections before the products go live, so the timing of any launch depends on how that process unfolds.

Why Does Coinbase Want Stock Perpetuals in the US?

Coinbase already offers stock perpetual futures to eligible users outside the United States. The service launched in March for international customers and is not accessible to U.S. users. Bringing the products onshore would place Coinbase in more direct competition with both offshore exchanges that already offer similar levered equity exposure and traditional U.S. futures markets.

The first batch of underlying assets included Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla, along with products tied to the SPY and QQQ ETFs.

The international stock perpetual futures trade on a continuous basis. The initial leverage ratio was 10x for single-stock products and 20x for ETF contracts. Positions can be settled in USDC, and margin-eligible positions can be cross-margined with other spot or perpetual positions.

Unlike conventional futures, perpetual futures have no expiration date. Funding payments keep the contract price aligned with the underlying asset's price, allowing traders to take long or short positions without purchasing the underlying stocks. The structure originated in crypto markets, where perpetual swaps have become among the most heavily traded derivative products globally, and Coinbase's filings would extend the same design to U.S. equities.

It remains unknown whether the U.S. products will carry identical terms. Details on trading hours, leverage ratios, the settlement process, and the stocks to be offered have not been disclosed.

How Coinbase Has Expanded Its Derivatives Business

The SEC filings come amid a series of changes to Coinbase's regulated derivatives business in 2026.

In May, CFTC staff granted regulatory relief to Coinbase Financial Markets concerning certain derivatives traded on Deribit, the offshore derivatives exchange Coinbase acquired as part of its expansion. Coinbase has also made crypto perpetual futures available to American customers within its regulated activities.

On September 2, Coinbase expanded in Canada, launching 23 futures products for eligible investors, including contracts based on Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, and 20 other crypto-assets, with leverage of up to 10x.

According to data provided by Coinbase, derivatives trading volume at Coinbase Derivatives stood at roughly $1.75 billion over 24 hours as of September 3, while Coinbase International Exchange recorded about $9.7 billion. Those figures illustrate why derivatives have become a strategic priority for Coinbase as it diversifies beyond spot crypto trading, where fee compression has pressured exchange revenues across the industry.

What Regulatory Risks Could Affect a US Launch?

The regulatory status of perpetual contracts remains contested in the United States. In June, CME Group took the CFTC to court over the agency's stance on crypto perpetual products traded on platforms such as Coinbase and Kalshi. CME argued that contracts without expiration dates are swaps under the Dodd-Frank Act and therefore should not be regulated like traditional futures. The CFTC rejected the argument and called the lawsuit "frivolous." No court ruling has overturned the current regulatory treatment of crypto perpetual products. The outcome of that dispute could shape how equity perpetuals, which raise similar questions, are ultimately overseen.

Regulators have also raised concerns about leverage, volatile funding rates, manipulation, and price convergence.

Stock derivatives present an additional regulatory question: the contracts would remain active even while the exchanges listing the underlying stocks are closed. According to Coinbase's international filings, equity perpetual contracts carry liquidity, execution, and volatility risks during non-business hours of the stock market.

The September 1 filing does not detail how Coinbase plans to address these issues in the U.S. No information has been provided on funding calculations, margin requirements, position limits, clearing arrangements, or trading hours.

The filings therefore represent a regulatory step rather than a product launch announcement. Coinbase still must disclose the final structure and operation of the contracts to U.S. traders, and the SEC's response to the filings, the pending CME litigation, and any product-term disclosures are the concrete developments that will determine whether and when U.S. customers can trade these contracts.