According to The Information, Hyperliquid is discussing with the SEC and CFTC how it could operate in the U.S. market through regulated companies. In July, representatives of the project met with both agencies and proposed a model that would allow customers to trade perpetual contracts using onchain infrastructure. The talks also cover rules for onchain trading and certain derivatives offered by the platform.
U.S. regulations currently do not fit well with Hyperliquid’s model: users hold their own assets, while the blockchain records trades. Traditional financial infrastructure, by contrast, relies on regulated intermediaries. Contracts tied to stocks raise a separate issue because, unlike commodity products, they could fall under SEC regulation.
In May, the CFTC already allowed Kalshi and Coinbase to offer perpetual futures to U.S. users. In July, the Hyperliquid Policy Center and crypto wallet Phantom proposed that the CFTC allow regulated companies to use onchain markets to match and settle trades. They also proposed that developers and applications that do not custody customer funds should not be required to register.
Read also: