Kalshi Enters Crypto Market with Perpetual Futures, Challenging Coinbase and Robinhood

In a significant expansion, Kalshi is preparing to introduce crypto trading in the US, moving beyond its core prediction markets business amidst intensifying competition. The platform plans to offer perpetual futures tied to cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, allowing traders to bet on asset prices without ownership or fixed expiration dates. This move positions Kalshi in direct competition with crypto platforms like Coinbase, which has been expanding its derivatives and prediction market offerings but does not yet offer true perpetual futures in the US. Kalshi's expansion is timed with shifting regulatory conditions in the US, enabling products that have mostly traded offshore to enter the market. With multiple licenses from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and recent approval for margin trading, Kalshi is poised to enter the derivatives market, potentially extending its model to other asset classes over time. This development reflects the growing overlap between prediction markets and crypto trading platforms, with both competing for the same users amidst a surge in prediction market activity and a decline in crypto trading volumes.