CFTC files bid to dismiss CME suit over Kalshi’s Bitcoin perps

The CFTC wants a federal court to toss out CME Group’s lawsuit challenging the agency’s decision to greenlight Kalshi’s Bitcoin perpetual futures contract. The regulator isn’t being subtle about its feelings either, calling the suit “frivolous” and accusing CME of choosing courtrooms over competition. At the center of this dispute is a deceptively simple question: is a Bitcoin perpetual futures contract actually a futures product, or is it a swap? The answer determines which regulatory rulebook applies, and for CME, the wrong answer threatens its comfortable position atop the US derivatives market. How we got here The CFTC approved KalshiEX LLC’s Bitcoin perpetual futures contract, known as BTCPERP, on May 29. What made the approval notable wasn’t just the product itself but the speed: Kalshi submitted its application and received approval within a single day through the agency’s self-certification process. CME Group, which operates the world’s largest regulated derivatives exchange, filed suit on June 18 in the US District Court for the District of Columbia (case No. 1:26-cv-02157). The lawsuit names both CFTC Chairman Michael Selig and the agency as defendants. CME’s argument boi...