The Filing
Blockchain.com has filed for two U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission licenses: a designated contract market license and registration as a futures commission merchant. These filings, reported by CNBC on October 9, would enable the company to offer prediction markets and crypto derivatives to American customers directly for the first time. Currently, Blockchain.com operates Polymarket for non-U.S. prediction market users and provides perpetual futures access through third-party venues, but the company has excluded U.S. customers from both products due to regulatory barriers that have kept most crypto platforms out of the domestic derivatives space.
The timing reflects shifting regulatory momentum. The CFTC has moved faster than the SEC on crypto derivatives, proposing its own framework in early October that suggests the commission views crypto derivatives as an approachable category. Coinbase Clearing recently won CFTC approval for USDC derivatives, creating a precedent that could ease Blockchain.com's path. Prediction markets remain contested under federal law, but Polymarket's v2 upgrade shows prediction markets are maturing as a product category, potentially strengthening Blockchain.com's case for domestic licenses.
The IPO Angle
The CFTC applications directly tie to Blockchain.com's $500 million IPO, announced in late September with a $4 billion to $6 billion valuation target and a planned listing before year-end 2026. CFTC approval would open new revenue streams for derivatives and prediction contract fees, justifying a valuation at the upper end of that range. In September, the company secured an agreement with the New York Stock Exchange to offer tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs, adding another service pillar to the platform.
Regulatory Risks
Real hurdles remain. The CFTC's crypto regulation covers margin trading but explicitly skips spot markets, which could constrain how Blockchain.com structures its offerings. The company faces a dual approval challenge: the CFTC must approve both the designated contract market and the futures commission merchant registrations separately. Prediction markets also face ongoing SEC pressure, adding uncertainty to any CFTC timeline. If approved, Blockchain.com would control licenses across spot, derivatives, prediction markets, and tokenized assets, an asset portfolio no major competitor has yet assembled. If rejected, the company must justify its IPO valuation on tokenized stock access and smaller services alone. The CFTC's decision will likely set a precedent for other platforms seeking similar approvals.