Coinbase Applies for a US National Futures Association Membership

Thursday, 16/09/2021 | 07:25 GMT by Arnab Shome
  • The exchange will need a CFTC license to list crypto derivatives in the country.
Coinbase

Coinbase is gearing up to start crypto derivatives offering in the United States as the Exchange has applied for a National Futures Association (NFA) membership, becoming a registered Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). The San Francisco-headquartered exchange first revealed its move on Twitter, which can be confirmed from the registry of the US regulator. “This is the next step to broaden our offerings and offer futures and derivatives trading on our platforms,” the exchange noted.

According to the regulatory database, Coinbase has applied for the NFA membership on September 15 for its subsidiary Coinbase Financial Markets Inc., whose application is now pending. Joseph Nikolson, who joined Coinbase in 2018, is the Chief Executive Officer of Coinbase Financial Markets. Nikolson himself has been a FINRA-registered broker for more than 20 years.

A Lucrative Market for Crypto Derivatives

The financial derivatives market in the United States is highly regulated and has kept major international crypto derivatives platforms away from the country. But, now many other crypto exchanges are realizing the potential of the US market and are already making moves to launch crypto derivatives products. Most recently, FTX.US acquired the US-regulated derivatives exchange, LedgerX. However, becoming an NFA member is not enough to list derivatives products. In addition, Coinbase has to acquire a license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which oversees the US derivatives markets. Meanwhile, Coinbase recently revealed that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has threatened to sue the exchange if it proceeds with its proposed launch of crypto Yield services, which according to the regulator violates the local securities markets laws.

Coinbase is gearing up to start crypto derivatives offering in the United States as the Exchange has applied for a National Futures Association (NFA) membership, becoming a registered Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). The San Francisco-headquartered exchange first revealed its move on Twitter, which can be confirmed from the registry of the US regulator. “This is the next step to broaden our offerings and offer futures and derivatives trading on our platforms,” the exchange noted.

According to the regulatory database, Coinbase has applied for the NFA membership on September 15 for its subsidiary Coinbase Financial Markets Inc., whose application is now pending. Joseph Nikolson, who joined Coinbase in 2018, is the Chief Executive Officer of Coinbase Financial Markets. Nikolson himself has been a FINRA-registered broker for more than 20 years.

A Lucrative Market for Crypto Derivatives

The financial derivatives market in the United States is highly regulated and has kept major international crypto derivatives platforms away from the country. But, now many other crypto exchanges are realizing the potential of the US market and are already making moves to launch crypto derivatives products. Most recently, FTX.US acquired the US-regulated derivatives exchange, LedgerX. However, becoming an NFA member is not enough to list derivatives products. In addition, Coinbase has to acquire a license from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which oversees the US derivatives markets. Meanwhile, Coinbase recently revealed that the US Securities and Exchange Commission has threatened to sue the exchange if it proceeds with its proposed launch of crypto Yield services, which according to the regulator violates the local securities markets laws.

About the Author: Arnab Shome
Arnab Shome
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Arnab is an electronics engineer-turned-financial editor. He entered the industry covering the cryptocurrency market for Finance Magnates and later expanded his reach to forex as well. He is passionate about the changing regulatory landscape on financial markets and keenly follows the disruptions in the industry with new-age technologies.

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