CFTC Opens Equity Perps Trading and Gets Sued Hours Later

The CFTC's approval relies on a 2000 law that created a joint framework for products sitting between commodity and securities regulation. Following a decision by the CFTC, perpetual futures tied to individual US stocks can now trade on exchanges registered by the agency. However, a group backed by Cboe and Citadel Securities has filed a lawsuit against the decision, claiming that the CFTC had no authority to make it. CFTC Greenlights Equity Perps In a November 3 statement, CFTC Chairman Michael Selig confirmed the commission had approved perpetual futures on individual equity securities, known as equity perps, under its Regulation 40.3. They have been classified as security futures products under the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000, making them subject to the Commodity Exchange Act and federal securities laws. According to Selig, they can give US traders access to products that are popular in overseas markets without them having to rely on offshore venues. He described perpetuals as tools for risk management and price discovery but also insisted that they must operate with appropriate safeguards. Per the statement, exchanges looking to list single stock perps must also ...