17th September 2026
By Anjali Kochhar
The Singapore Exchange (SGX) is preparing to expand its cryptocurrency derivatives business into the US institutional market, filing with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to offer Bitcoin and Ether perpetual futures to American investors.
SGX Expands Bitcoin and Ether Perpetual Futures to US Institutions
The move would position SGX among traditional financial exchanges seeking a larger share of the rapidly expanding crypto derivatives market. SGX launched its Bitcoin and Ether perpetual futures in November 2025 and has since recorded around US$6 billion in cumulative trading volume.
Under the regulatory filing, SGX can offer the contracts to US institutional investors if the CFTC raises no objection within the required 10-day period. The planned expansion would give the exchange access to a deeper pool of hedge funds, asset managers and proprietary trading firms.
How Crypto Perpetual Futures Work
Perpetual futures, commonly known as “perps,” are derivatives that allow traders to take leveraged positions on an asset without an expiration date. Unlike conventional futures contracts, traders can maintain positions indefinitely, making perpetuals one of the most widely traded instruments in crypto markets.
How SGX Crypto Perpetuals Differ From Crypto-Native Platforms
However, SGX’s structure differs from the trading environment offered by crypto-native platforms. Its contracts operate for 22.5 hours a day, five days a week, while cryptocurrencies themselves trade around the clock. SGX has said this schedule is unlikely to be a major obstacle because its target customers are institutional and professional investors who generally do not trade during weekends.
The exchange also requires members to post a 35% margin and use fiat collateral, while avoiding automatic deleveraging mechanisms used by some crypto-native venues.
The scale of the competition is significant. Hyperliquid, a leading crypto derivatives platform, handles roughly US$80 billion to US$100 billion in monthly Bitcoin and Ether perpetual futures trading, compared with SGX’s approximately US$6 billion since launch. SGX recorded 29,655 Bitcoin perpetual contracts and 6,758 Ether contracts in August, taking its combined total for the first eight months of 2026 to 353,825 contracts.
The US market is becoming increasingly important as regulators show greater openness toward crypto derivatives. The CFTC has already approved a Bitcoin perpetual contract offered by prediction-market operator Kalshi, while Coinbase is also expanding its derivatives strategy.
Can SGX Compete With Crypto-Native Derivatives Platforms?
SGX believes its position as a multi-asset exchange could provide an advantage to institutional investors seeking regulated access to crypto alongside equity, currency, interest-rate and commodity derivatives.
By opening its perpetual futures to US institutions, SGX is betting that greater institutional participation can boost liquidity and help establish traditional exchanges as serious competitors to crypto-native derivatives platforms.
