Kalshi in Talks With CFTC to Add Gold Perpetual Futures After $16.1B in Crypto Volume

Kalshi, a CFTC-regulated prediction-market platform, is looking to broaden its perpetual futures business beyond crypto and into traditional commodities. The company is in advanced discussions with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to list perpetual futures tied to gold and other markets, including metals, foreign exchange, and energy. Approval would extend Kalshi's offering beyond the crypto-only perpetual futures it introduced on May 29, 2026. Since that late-May launch through July 9, 2026, Kalshi has recorded $16.1 billion in perpetual futures trading volume. About $5.5 billion was traded in the first two weeks. Perpetual futures are derivatives that do not expire. Traders can maintain leveraged positions indefinitely, with a funding rate mechanism designed to keep contract prices aligned with the underlying asset. Kalshi currently lists 11 perpetual futures contracts, all focused on crypto. The firm's Chief Risk Officer, Udesh Jha, said gold stands out as a retail-friendly market that fits Kalshi's broader strategy, citing strong demand signals from both retail and institutional participants. A key operational change is that non-crypto perpetuals would likely trade during regular market hours, rather than the 24/7 schedule typical of crypto perpetuals. Kalshi's expansion efforts also face legal uncertainty. CME Group has sued, challenging the CFTC's approvals of Kalshi's products. If CME succeeds, the ruling could delay or block Kalshi's plans and shape how regulators ultimately treat perpetual futures as a product category. For retail traders, a U.S.-regulated gold perpetual could provide a leveraged, no-expiry way to express a view on gold. By contrast, standard gold futures on CME can require significant capital and involve rollover costs, while gold ETFs such as GLD do not provide leverage. The timing of any CFTC approval remains unclear, and the pending CME litigation adds another moving piece. With $16.1 billion in volume since launch, the central question is whether the CFTC will accept perpetual futures as a regulatable instrument in commodity markets.