Kalshi filed with the CFTC to launch perpetual futures contracts tied to major equity indexes, including the S&P 500, according to regulatory filings dated August 18. The move marks the prediction market platform's expansion beyond its core event contracts into derivatives that have traditionally been the domain of CME and other established futures exchanges.
Perpetual futures use funding rates to keep the contract price tethered to the underlying index and have no expiration date. Kalshi's application seeks to launch products tracking broad-based benchmarks, expanding its addressable market from political and event outcomes into daily-traded equity derivatives.
Kalshi has built its business around binary event contracts approved by the CFTC under a 2020 no-action letter that exempted prediction markets from certain regulatory requirements. The company raised $150 million in a Series B round in early 2024, valuing it at $2 billion. Its event contracts, on elections, inflation data, and geopolitical events, have attracted institutional participants and retail traders seeking single-outcome wagers.
The equity perpetuals application represents a departure from that model. CME's E-mini S&P 500 futures contract averaged roughly 1.9 million contracts daily in open interest as of mid-2026. Kalshi would be competing directly against established venues and their 24-hour trading models.
The CFTC has not yet approved the application. Kalshi's success in securing the license would depend on the agency determining that equity index perps fall within the scope of derivatives eligible for trading on alternative swap execution facilities or other designated venues under Dodd-Frank. The regulatory framework governing which derivatives qualify for Kalshi's exemptive relief remains an open question.
Kalshi's entry into index derivatives, if approved, would test whether the CFTC's 2020 exemption for prediction markets extends to traditional benchmarks. The company's existing event contracts operate on a different risk and margin profile than perpetuals, which require continuous mark-to-market funding. The filing itself does not specify whether Kalshi is seeking a separate exemption or relying on expanded interpretation of its current relief.
The regulatory path remains uncertain. If the CFTC approves the application, Kalshi would operate in a segment currently dominated by CME, which handles the vast majority of U.S. index futures volume. The number that decides whether Kalshi can execute this strategy is the CFTC's response to the filing, expected within 60 to 90 days of submission.
