Coinbase seeks National Futures Association membership in bid to offer derivatives

Crypto exchange company Coinbase wants to offer futures trading, and it's seeking membership in the country's top derivatives self-regulatory organization (SRO) as part of that process.

Coinbase Financial Markets Inc. is seeking membership, per an application with the National Futures Association dated September 15. Bloomberg first reported the news.

The timing of any application approval is unclear. Coinbase is listed as a "pending NFA member" on the SRO's website.

In a tweet, Coinbase said that "[t]oday, Coinbase filed an application with the NFA to register as an FCM → Futures Commission Merchant. This is the next step to broaden our offerings and offer futures and derivatives trading on our platforms."

In an interview with The Block during an episode of The Scoop podcast, Coinbase head of institutional sales Brett Tejpaul highlighted the role of derivatives, including futures, as part of the companies roadmap. Specifically, he pointed to "the formation of the derivative market, which then will include all the things I mentioned, plus derivatives, futures, options, swaps, structured products" as part of a broader push to attract business from future clients. 

This story is developing.