CME Group Sues CFTC Over Crypto Perpetual Futures

The lawsuit targets the federal regulator and Chair Michael Selig, alleging that the Commodity Futures Trading Commissioin is treating cryptocurrency “futures” as “swaps,” posing risks to derivatives markets.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group said it was taking legal action against the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) over cryptocurrency perpetual futures.

In a Thursday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, CME filed a complaint against the CFTC and its chair Michael Selig over the agency's regular approvals of perpetual futures tied to crypto. The lawsuit stemmed from a May 29 notice from the CFTC approving perpetual futures contracts tied to the spot price of Bitcoin (BTC) for prediction markets platform Kalshi and issuing a no-action position for similar products on cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.

According to CME's filing, the CFTC’s approval of such products went against directives from the US Congress by treating “futures” as “swaps” with expiration dates. The company alleged that the agency was in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act and a court should vacate its actions over perpetual futures, noting that Selig had unilaterally acted without a full panel of five CFTC commissioners.

“With one stroke of his pen, [Selig] overrode Congress’s definition of the term ‘swap’ and circumvented the regulatory regime Congress required for that form of derivative,” said the complaint, adding:

The lawsuit came just one day after CME CEO Terrence Duffy said that the company would be taking legal action against the CFTC. In a Monday CNBC interview, Selig said that perpetual futures contracts “trade very similarly” to others, describing the CFTC’s position as “good for investors” and claiming that the Commodity Exchange Act “does not define the term ‘futures contract.’”

A CFTC spokesperson told Cointelegraph that CME had engaged in “lawfare” against the agency and the administration’s crypto policies, calling the complaint “frivolous.”

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Kraken also announced the launch of perpetual futures trading for US users through CFTC-regulated platform Bitnomial.

CME CEO Terry Duffy. Source: CNBC Fast Money

Confirmed by the US Senate in December 2025, Selig remains the chair and sole commissioner at the CFTC in a leadership panel intended to consist of a bipartisan group of five people. As of Thursday, US President Donald Trump had not announced any nominations to fill the seats, despite urging from many members of Congress to do so.

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