Hyperliquid seeks US foothold through Kraken parent Payward in crypto perpetuals deal: Bloomberg

Hyperliquid Labs could be nearing the finish line as it looks to bring perpetual futures to U.S. traders through a partnership with Kraken's parent company, Payward, according to Bloomberg.

Under the proposed arrangement, Payward subsidiary Bitnomial would offer registered U.S. users access to a selection of crypto perps linked to markets on Hyperliquid's decentralized exchange and underlying Layer 1 blockchain.

Bloomberg reported on Monday that Payward has already pitched the Commodity Futures Trading Commission with the outline of the structure, but is still awaiting final regulatory approval.

Payward acquired Bitnomial earlier this year for up to $550 million, giving it control of a CFTC-licensed U.S. derivatives stack spanning exchange, clearing and brokerage operations.

Kraken did not immediately respond to The Block's request for comment.

For Hyperliquid (HYPE) to come to the U.S., both the Securities and Exchange Commission and the CFTC may need to be involved in writing revised interpretive rules involving custody and mechanics around current routing standards, former SEC senior counsel Ashley Ebersole told The Block in an interview. However, that could take at least 10 to 12 months, "assuming things went quickly," Ebersole said.

Ebersole is currently the co-founder and chief legal officer at real-world assets platform tx.

Onshore perps

The talks come amid a major push to establish a regulatory path for companies seeking to offer perpetual contracts in the U.S. Last week, the Hyperliquid Policy Center urged the SEC and CFTC to harmonize their treatment of these products, arguing that clearer rules would help move more market share onshore.

"If the United States fails to keep pace with rapid advances in trading and markets, we risk ceding our reputation as the global hub of financial innovation," a CFTC spokesperson told The Block. "Under Chairman Selig’s leadership, the CFTC is committed to promoting fair access and responsible innovation so that the next generation of our financial markets are built here in America and not overseas."

The week before that, President Donald Trump specifically mentioned Hyperliquid, saying that CFTC Chair Michael Selig was working to bring the platform into the U.S. in a "fully compliant and legal fashion," during a press conference with tech leaders and federal agency chairs.

In May, the CFTC took a first step toward allowing crypto perpetual futures by greenlighting KalshiEX and Coinbase to list the products. Then in June, the CFTC released a request for comment on crude oil perpetual contracts and 24/7 trading.

Hyperliquid's native HYPE token was trading up 1.3% over the past 24 hours to $84.25. It reached an all-time high just above $86 last week and is one of crypto's best performers over the past year, gaining over 85%.