CFTC Staff Gives DCMs Short Window to Convert Digital Commodity Perpetual Futures

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s Division of Market Oversight issued no-action relief on June 12 for designated contract markets that want to convert existing perpetual-style digital commodity futures into true digital commodity perpetual futures.

The relief applies to DCMs that remove expiration dates from existing contracts tied to bitcoin or other digital commodities with deep, active and continuous spot markets. CFTC staff said the conversion can become effective once specific customer-protection and procedural conditions are satisfied.

Those conditions include soliciting feedback from market participants with open positions, giving advance notice and an opportunity to exit, providing appropriate risk disclosures and avoiding other material contract-term changes. DCMs must also file the amendments under CFTC Regulations 40.5 or 40.6 and certify that the conditions have been met.

This is a narrow and time-limited move rather than a broad rewrite of futures rules. The no-action position expires on June 30, 2026, giving exchanges a short operational window to use the relief.

Why it matters

Perpetual crypto contracts are a central product in offshore digital-asset markets, but regulated U.S. futures venues have had to fit similar exposure into conventional futures structures. If DCMs use the relief, traders could see U.S.-regulated contracts that behave more like true perpetual instruments while still sitting inside CFTC-supervised exchange infrastructure.

What to watch next

Watch which DCMs file contract amendments before the June 30 expiration date, how brokers handle customer notices and exits, and whether the CFTC follows with a more durable framework for listed digital commodity perpetual futures.