Morning Minute: HYPE Soars as CFTC Gives Perps Green Light
U.S. crypto regulation took a major step forward when the CFTC approved KalshiEX’s BTCPERP, the first Bitcoin perpetual contract on a U.S.-regulated exchange. The cash-settled product trades 24/7 with spot-linked funding, and the CFTC also cleared a path for a Coinbase affiliate to connect U.S. customers to offshore options and perps through Deribit, with crypto assets allowed as margin collateral for eligible users. Markets reacted strongly: Coinbase and Robinhood rose, and Hyperliquid hit new highs amid debate over whether U.S. legal perps help or threaten it. On policy, JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon attacked Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong over the Clarity Act, especially the stablecoin yield carve-out, as the Senate prepares for a floor vote within about 30 days. Separately, the U.S. said it seized about $1 billion in crypto linked to Iran, including BTC, ETH, and USDT, in one of the largest state-actor crypto seizures to date.
