Coinbase has filed SEC notice registrations this week to pursue single-stock perpetuals in the United States. The company submitted Form 1-N for its derivatives exchange and Form BD-N for its brokerage business, creating a regulatory pathway that involves coordination between the SEC and CFTC.
Single-stock perpetuals allow traders to gain leveraged price exposure to individual stocks without owning the underlying shares. The contracts trade continuously without fixed expiration dates and use funding mechanisms similar to perpetual futures products in cryptocurrency markets.
Regulatory Framework and Next Steps
Faryar Shirzad, Coinbase's chief policy officer, described the filings as the first step toward offering equity perpetuals domestically. He noted that single-stock perpetuals have demonstrated strong demand in international markets and expressed optimism about a regulated pathway for U.S. investors.
The next milestone involves product approval from the CFTC. However, the filings do not guarantee an immediate launch. Coinbase has not disclosed trading start dates, leverage limits, contract specifications, or which stocks would be supported.
International Operations
Coinbase already offers single-stock perpetuals to eligible customers outside the United States. The current international lineup includes perpetuals on Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla.
These contracts provide price exposure to the underlying stocks without shareholder rights such as voting or dividend participation. The structure mirrors how crypto perpetual swaps operate on many exchanges.
