# CFTC Says CME Has Shown No Financial Harm From Perpetual Futures Policy

By Riza Dagoc

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/regulation/35147
Published: 2026-10-20T00:29:07.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-20T00:29:07.000Z
Section: Regulation

> The regulator says CME’s cryptocurrency futures volume has risen since the policy changed, while CME argues perpetual contracts should be regulated as swaps.

The CFTC says CME has failed to show financial harm from its approach to perpetual futures, a central issue in the exchange’s challenge to U.S. crypto derivatives policy.

In its latest court filing, the regulator argues that CME has identified neither an actual loss nor an imminent one tied to the policy. The CFTC also says CME’s cryptocurrency futures trading volume has increased since the change, disputing the exchange’s claim that the policy threatens its business.

CME challenges the CFTC’s decision to regulate perpetual contracts as futures. The exchange argues that contracts without expiration dates should instead be classified as swaps, which are subject to different rules. The court fight concerns both that classification and CME’s claim of financial injury.

The CFTC approved Kalshi’s Bitcoin (BTC) perpetual futures contract in May, making it the first such contract approved in the United States. The regulator plans to consider other perpetual futures products individually. Unlike a contract with a set expiration date, a perpetual contract allows a trader to keep a position open indefinitely.