Coinbase Launches 24/7 Perpetual Future Contracts for U.S. Stocks and ETFs

• Coinbase now offers 24/7 perpetual futures for Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, Tesla, Alphabet, and ETFs to non-U.S. traders.
• The products allow up to 10x leverage for stocks and 20x for ETFs, trades settled in USDC.

Coinbase has taken a major step toward its Everything Exchange vision by launching stock perpetual futures for Magnificent 7 names and major ETFs, offering eligible international traders outside the U.S. with 24/7 exposure to major U.S. equities and Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). 

According to the Coinbase official blog on March 20, the company said that on a centralized and regulated platform, customers can trade synthetic, leveraged positions linked to certain publicly traded stocks and exchange-traded funds. 

At launch, the company is offering perpetual futures tied to a group of liquid U.S. stocks, including Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla. ETF-based perpetuals, including products linked to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100, are also available in certain areas.

For single equities, the product offers up to 10x leverage; for ETFs, it offers up to 20x leverage. USDC, a stablecoin backed by Coinbase, is used to settle trades. Additionally, users can leverage cross-margining between spot and futures markets. Coinbase’s international exchange and sophisticated trading tools and APIs provide access.

While it is seen as a great step, compared to typical U.S. stock markets, which follow a restricted weekly timetable, stock perpetual futures allow traders to obtain continuous exposure to equities. The demand for always-on equity exposure has increased, according to Coinbase, especially in areas where access to U.S. stocks may be limited or expensive.

Further, the company said, “This launch strengthens Coinbase’s position in international derivatives and advances our long-term strategy of building the Everything Exchange where traders can access crypto, traditional, and emerging assets side by side.”

Lastly, the company said, the current products are restricted to U.S. persons and also in specific jurisdictions, as they are looking forward to expanding these products into additional regions in the future. With that, Coinbase claims that it is one of the first major centralized exchanges to offer continuous derivatives trading on traditional stocks.