On the 16th, US cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase announced that it has been approved as a futures commission merchant (FCM) by the National Futures Association (NFA).
This means that Coinbase can now offer cryptocurrency futures to US customers.
The FCM approved this time is Coinbase Financial Markets, a subsidiary of Coinbase. Coinbase plans to offer Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) futures trading to US users within the next few weeks.
The NFA is a US self-regulatory organization designated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the regulator of futures products. It registers futures traders on behalf of the CFTC.
Coinbase has been applying for approval as an FCM to the NFA for about two years.
According to the announcement, with this approval, Coinbase has become the first cryptocurrency-specialized platform in the US to directly provide cryptocurrency spot trading and futures trading services with approval from a regulatory authority.
In a statement, Coinbase said, "It is a milestone to be able to offer regulated crypto futures to U.S. customers."
The company continued, "Being allowed to offer regulated crypto futures in accordance with U.S. regulations and allowing many users to access the crypto ecosystem will contribute to making the U.S. a center of innovation."
Coinbase explained that the crypto futures market currently accounts for 75% of trading in the crypto market. It also said that this approval is a major milestone for the company.
In January last year, Coinbase acquired FairX, a futures exchange licensed by the CFTC, with an eye toward offering futures products. Coinbase then rebranded the exchange to offer futures products such as nano Bitcoin (BIT) and nano Ethereum (ETI) through Coinbase Derivatives Exchange.
In June of this year, the company announced plans to offer Bitcoin and Ethereum futures trading to institutional investors.
Reference:Announcement
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