CFTC Asks Court to Dismiss CME Lawsuit Over Crypto Perpetual Futures Approval: 17 outlets compared

CFTC targets CME standing

In a Wednesday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, lawyers representing CFTC Chair Michael Selig and the commission requested a hearing to address the motion to dismiss, saying the group lacked standing.

The dispute began in June after the CFTC approved prediction-market platform Kalshi’s perpetual futures contracts tied to the spot price of Bitcoin and issued a no-action position for similar products on the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.

CME’s June complaint argued that Selig acted unilaterally without a full panel of five commissioners and that treating “futures” as “swaps” violated the Commodity Exchange Act.

The CFTC countered that CME failed to show actual financial harm or a specific competitive injury, noting that “any CFTC-registered exchange can list perpetual futures on digital assets.”

“Mucho ruido” in filings

CFTC attorneys told Cointelegraph that the lawsuit was “mucho ruido y pocas nueces,” arguing CME lacked legitimacy to bring it and rebutting CME’s arguments about perpetual futures.

The CFTC’s motion also said CME could not make a “concrete showing that it is in fact likely to suffer financial injury,” because the regulator clarified that any DCM—including CME—can offer perpetual futures on digital assets.