Coinbase just completed its US derivatives stack but its biggest bet still sits outside it
The CFTC registered Coinbase Clearing LLC as a derivatives clearing organization, allowing it to clear fully collateralized futures, options on futures and swaps. Coinbase now controls the main layers of a regulated US derivatives operation, potentially reducing reliance on outside clearing partners and enabling products using USDC collateral and 24-hour settlement. The approval does not cover all planned products: Coinbase will continue using partners for some margined derivatives and its proposed single-stock perpetual futures. That filing, submitted Sept. 18, remained pending CFTC approval on Sept. 30; its representative Apple contract names Nodal Clear as counterparty. The clearinghouse approval expands Coinbase’s infrastructure, while the equity-linked product awaits a separate regulatory decision.
