CME to Sue CFTC Over Bitcoin Perpetual Futures Approval: CEO
CME Group plans to sue the CFTC over its approval of crypto perpetual futures. Outgoing CEO Terry Duffy says these products are swaps under Dodd-Frank, not futures, so they should face different clearing, reporting, and trading rules. CME also argues the regulator moved too quickly on a novel instrument and that rival perps would still depend on CME’s benchmark licenses. The CFTC recently allowed Kalshi to list a Bitcoin perpetual futures contract and approved Coinbase’s link to offshore perps, bringing these products onto regulated U.S. venues for the first time. Perpetual futures never expire and use funding payments instead of contract rollovers, often with high leverage. The CFTC defends the decision as a way to bring crypto trading onshore and has called the lawsuit frivolous. CME also announced Duffy’s successor, Lynne Fitzpatrick, who will become CEO in March 2027.
