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1. Webull bitcoin perpetual futures arrive for US customers in November
Webull, the Nasdaq-listed online brokerage, announced on October 20, 2026 that eligible US customers will be able to trade perpetual futures starting in November. The first contracts cover bitcoin and other crypto assets, and they will list on Kalshi's regulated exchange. Webull expects to widen access before the end of 2026, though its press release named neither a launch day nor any asset beyond bitcoin.
The move gives a mainstream retail broker a way to offer a product that has been a staple of offshore crypto trading for years. Customers will not need a separate crypto venue or a new account. Instead, those already approved for futures trading will use their existing Webull Futures accounts, which keeps the new product inside a framework that US investors and regulators already know.
2. How will the Kalshi-listed contracts trade and settle?
The contracts will trade on KalshiEX LLC, the exchange operated by Kalshi, a prediction market operator. They will settle through Kalshi Klear LLC, the affiliated clearinghouse. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission regulates the exchange as a designated contract market and the clearinghouse as a derivatives clearing organization.
Those two designations describe different jobs. A designated contract market is a venue licensed by the commission to list futures, with rules on trading practices and market surveillance. A derivatives clearing organization stands between buyers and sellers after a trade, collects margin and guarantees performance, which reduces the chance that one party's default spreads to others. Together, they form the structure that distinguishes US-regulated futures from offshore products.
Access will start narrowly. Only customers who are already approved for futures trading can participate, and they will do so through the accounts they hold today. Webull plans to add further products later, subject to regulatory review and the exchange's listing requirements.
3. What is a perpetual future and why is there no expiry date?
A perpetual future is a derivatives contract that tracks the price of an asset without a set end date. Traditional futures expire on a fixed day, and traders who wish to keep their exposure must close the position and open a new one in a later contract, a process called rolling. Perpetual contracts remove that step, so a position can remain open for as long as the trader can meet margin requirements.
To keep the contract price close to that of the underlying asset, perpetuals use periodic funding payments. Depending on whether the contract trades above or below the asset's price, one side of the market pays the other at regular intervals. The mechanism creates an incentive for the contract price to drift back toward the spot price without the convergence that an expiry date would otherwise provide.
Webull warned that positions face automatic liquidation if the margin in an account falls below the maintenance level. Leverage is built into futures, which lets traders control a large position with a small deposit, and the same feature magnifies losses. When an account no longer holds enough margin to support its position, the platform closes the trade automatically to prevent the account from falling into deficit.
4. What executives at Webull said about regulated perpetuals
Anthony Denier, Webull's group president and US chief executive, pointed to the scale of the market. He said perpetual futures are a significant part of global derivatives markets, with annual volume reaching more than $90 trillion in 2025. In his view, American investors should be able to reach such products through a regulated platform they already know and trust.
Tanmay Sheth, the company's managing director for its futures commission merchant business, futures and prediction markets, described the shift as a step toward bringing activity under a domestic regime. He said that moving more activity into a regulated, onshore framework is an important step forward. He added that Webull wants users to have clear visibility into margin requirements, funding rates, leverage and liquidation levels.
The emphasis on disclosure reflects the nature of the product. Funding rates and liquidation thresholds can change a position's cost and risk quickly, so brokers that offer perpetuals to retail customers face pressure to show those figures plainly. A futures commission merchant is the type of firm that accepts customer orders for futures and holds customer funds, and it must comply with the commission's rules on how those funds are handled.
5. Why do regulated perpetuals matter in the US?
Perpetual futures have long been associated with offshore exchanges, where they have been widely traded. US customers have had limited ways to use them through domestic, regulated channels. The Webull rollout is one of the clearest signs that this gap is closing.
The regulatory groundwork was laid earlier in 2026. In May, the commission approved Kalshi's bitcoin perpetual, described as the first on a regulated US exchange. Commission staff also allowed Coinbase to route US clients to perpetuals listed on its offshore affiliate, Deribit. These steps came through different routes, but both widened the options available to American traders.
Kalshi's choice is notable for another reason. The company built its business on prediction markets, in which users trade contracts tied to the outcome of events. Listing a crypto product represents its first move beyond that core activity, and a brokerage distribution partner such as Webull gives the contracts an audience of existing retail futures traders.
6. How does a brokerage route trades to an exchange like Kalshi's?
Webull acts as the customer-facing broker, while Kalshi operates the venue where orders meet and the clearinghouse where trades are guaranteed. A customer places an order in the Webull app, the brokerage's futures arm transmits it to the exchange, and the clearinghouse handles margin and settlement. Customers deal with one familiar interface even though several regulated entities take part behind it.
This division of roles is standard in US futures markets and is one reason regulators can supervise each layer separately. The exchange sets contract specifications and monitors trading, the clearinghouse manages counterparty risk, and the broker is responsible for onboarding customers, checking suitability and safeguarding client funds. A retail trader benefits from this layering because no single firm controls every step.
For crypto, the arrangement is a departure from the way many retail traders have approached perpetuals. On offshore venues, the exchange, the clearing function and the customer relationship often sit inside one company. The Kalshi and Webull structure separates them, which is what Webull means in calling the product a step toward a regulated, onshore market.
7. What are the risks for retail traders?
Leveraged derivatives carry well-known hazards, and perpetuals add features that new users may not expect. Because there is no expiry, a position can accumulate funding charges for as long as it is held, and those charges can erode returns when the market is crowded on one side. Liquidation can occur abruptly if prices move against a leveraged position, and the loss can exceed the original deposit in some cases.
For that reason, the access rules matter. By limiting the first stage of the rollout to customers already approved for futures, Webull ties the product to an existing screening process in which account holders have acknowledged the risks of margin trading. The company's stress on visible margin and liquidation figures is consistent with that approach.
Investors should also read the contract terms before trading, including how funding is calculated and how often it is paid, since those details determine the real cost of holding a position over several days or weeks.
None of this changes the underlying volatility of bitcoin. A contract that tracks a volatile asset on borrowed money can move quickly, and investors considering the product should compare the funding costs and margin rules with their own tolerance for loss.
8. What does the move mean for Webull and Kalshi?
For Webull, the product widens a futures offering that its customers already use. Adding a bitcoin contract lets the brokerage keep crypto-minded clients on its platform instead of watching them move to other venues, and it fits the company's stated plan to add products over time. The firm has also said that further additions depend on regulatory review and on the exchange's listing requirements, so growth will be gradual.
For Kalshi, distribution through a broker with an established retail base is a way to reach traders who might not otherwise find a new exchange. A contract can only succeed if it attracts enough buyers and sellers to trade at tight prices, and access through a recognizable brokerage helps supply those participants. The listing also extends the company's reach beyond the prediction market contracts for which it is best known.
The partnership is a sign of how the lines between traditional brokerage, crypto derivatives and event contracts are blurring. Firms that began in different corners of finance are now offering overlapping products to the same customers, under the oversight of the same regulator.
9. What to watch as the rollout approaches
The first date to watch is the November launch itself, for which Webull has given only the month. After that, readers should look for the specific day the contracts become available, the list of crypto assets beyond bitcoin and the point at which access extends to customers outside the initial group. Webull has said it expects wider access before the end of 2026.
Other indicators will be trading volume on the Kalshi-listed contracts and whether competing brokerages announce similar offerings. The commission's approvals in May opened the door, and the pace at which brokers walk through it will show how much demand exists for a regulated, onshore version of a product that has so far been associated mainly with venues outside the United States.