Blockchain.com seeks dual CFTC registrations for US derivatives push
DeFi & Yields ·
The exchange filed to become both a designated contract market and a futures commission merchant, a two-part regulatory bid that would let it list and broker crypto futures, options, and event contracts for American users.
Blockchain.com disclosed the filings at 13:00 UTC on October 13, 2026, according to defiprime.com, though the announcement did not include an application number or a timeline for review. The company is asking the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for permission to run a regulated trading venue while separately registering as the entity that would handle customer orders and hold their collateral.
The two applications address distinct functions. Designated contract market status would authorize Blockchain.com to operate an exchange-like venue under CFTC Part 38 rules, the framework that governs listing futures, options on futures, or commodity options to customers who are not classified as eligible contract participants. Futures commission merchant registration, delegated by the CFTC to the National Futures Association since 1984, covers the customer-facing side: soliciting and accepting orders and safeguarding the money or assets backing them. That process requires filing Form 7-R, completing NFA membership steps, meeting compliance standards, and designating a chief compliance officer among the firm's principals.
If both approvals come through, Blockchain.com says it would integrate crypto futures, options, and prediction-market-style event contracts directly into its existing app for retail and institutional customers alike, combining asset custody, derivatives trading, and event-based positions in a single regulated interface. The filing explicitly ties the proposed US offering to passage of both applications rather than routing customers to a separate exchange or broker.
The move builds on products Blockchain.com already runs outside the US regulatory perimeter, including self-custodied prediction markets and perpetual futures in other eligible markets, per the same report. Those existing offerings are not part of the CFTC filings and remain outside the proposed US framework.
What remains unclear is how long the CFTC and NFA review will take and whether either application faces conditions or amendments before approval. The filing announcement did not specify a target launch date for the regulated US products, leaving the scope and timing of any eventual rollout to depend on the outcome of both pending registrations.