Kalshi lists 12 altcoin perps as Chainlink goes live in US

Chainlink perpetual futures went live on Kalshi on Monday, making LINK the first altcoin to trade as a regulated perpetual contract in the US.

"Kalshi self-certified the contracts under the same process used for its event-based markets," Dustin Gouker, a prediction market analyst, said.

The listing follows the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's approval of Bitcoin perpetual futures on Kalshi on Friday. The regulator said it would take a case-by-case approach to altcoin perps, and Kalshi has since filed to certify a menu of 12 additional offerings tied to Ethereum, XRP, Solana, Dogecoin, Stellar, Chainlink, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Sui, Shiba Inu, Polkadot and Hedera, according to a filing.

The move opens regulated US access to a derivatives structure that has historically been dominated by offshore platforms like Binance and decentralized upstarts like Hyperliquid. Bitcoin anchors the crypto derivatives market with $54.9 billion in open interest, followed by Ethereum at $31.5 billion, CoinGlass data shows.

CFTC Chair Mike Selig said in an X post on Friday that the agency would "use the tools at its disposal to onshore crypto asset perpetuals." The commission's order indicated that the perp structure "may not be suitable for all asset classes," meaning Kalshi's altcoin slate has not yet been approved and will be reviewed individually.

Strategy co-founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor described the development as potentially far-reaching, saying in an X post that enabling regulated access to perpetual futures is "good for BTC holders" and supports the Bitcoin-buying firm's preferred stock.

Perpetual futures differ from traditional futures in that they lack an expiration date, allowing traders to maintain leveraged positions indefinitely while periodic funding payments keep prices anchored to the underlying asset. The structure has long been popular among crypto traders but was largely unavailable through US-regulated channels until the CFTC's Friday order.

LINK price was rebounding near support as of Monday, with the listing providing a fresh catalyst for the token. The broader altcoin derivatives market showed mixed signals: XRP open interest held above $2.96 billion despite a 4% price decline, while Ethereum futures open interest rose 1.57% to $31.34 billion in the last four hours, according to Coinglass data.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.