Kalshi is pursuing regulatory clearance from the CFTC to launch perpetual futures contracts tied to WTI crude oil, according to Bloomberg. The derivatives platform plans to file for approval as soon as the week of September 8, according to the reporting.
The move comes at a moment when the CFTC has grown more receptive to novel contract structures. In July 2024, the agency approved Kalshi's binary options contracts on economic data and election outcomes, a category of bets that had been barred for nearly two decades. Perpetual futures differ from traditional dated contracts by having no expiration date, allowing traders to hold positions indefinitely as long as they maintain margin.
Kalshi operates under a Retail Commodity Transactions (RCT) exemption, which allows smaller retail-focused exchanges to offer certain derivatives without full designated contract market status. The binary options approval in 2024 required the platform to demonstrate compliance infrastructure and clear risk controls.
WTI crude is the United States benchmark for oil pricing and one of the most actively traded commodities globally. Conventional WTI futures trade on the NYMEX division of the CME Group, with strict trading hours and expiration cycles. A perpetual contract would allow 24-hour price exposure without the rolling costs of managing dated futures.
The CFTC under Chair Christy Goldberg has approved specific contract terms within defined risk parameters. The agency has distinguished between approving novel contracts and endorsing the broader business model. Kalshi's proposal will test whether that approval extends to commodity perpetuals, which carry different custody risks than binary options.
Kalshi has raised $75 million in venture funding and positioned itself as a platform for prediction markets and event-based derivatives. A successful WTI filing would diversify its revenue streams beyond the policy and election bets that have driven user growth since 2021. The company declined to comment on the filing timeline or contract specifications.
The CFTC's decision on commodity perpetuals could influence how other derivatives platforms approach commodities approvals. If approved, Kalshi's WTI contract would operate alongside but outside the traditional futures ecosystem, creating a dual market for the same underlying price. The filing window of early September means a decision could arrive by late fall or early 2027, depending on whether the CFTC issues a no-action letter or requires formal rule amendments.
