Webull to Begin Rolling Out Perpetual Futures in November in Derivatives Expansion
Key Facts
Webull announced plans to begin rolling out perpetual futures in November to eligible U.S. clients, adding cryptocurrency-linked derivatives to the trading services available to them. The company said in its statement that the rollout would begin with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, with clients required to obtain approval to trade futures. Access to the new products will be through clients' existing Webull futures accounts, according to Reuters' account of the service arrangements. Reuters confirmed that the contracts will be listed on KalshiEx, the exchange where the products offered through Webull will trade. Kalshi Clear will clear the contracts, under a structure linking product access through the brokerage to listing and clearing at market operators. The exchange and clearinghouse are regulated by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, according to Reuters.
The derivatives expansion follows growth in Webull's business in the second quarter of 2026, according to its earnings statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company reported total revenue of $198.8 million for the period, up 51% from the same quarter a year earlier. Trading-related revenue reached $147.7 million, up 66% year-on-year, outpacing the growth in total revenue reported for the same period. Webull had said in its second-quarter earnings presentation that it had launched futures and prediction markets for institutional clients as part of its earlier expansion into these services. On its client base, the company said when announcing the rollout that it had more than 29 million registered users globally. Webull Group provides investment services in 18 markets through its network of licensed brokerage subsidiaries.
Webull is entering the business as perpetual futures trading expands outside the United States, according to annual market volume figures published by Kalshi. The platform said trading volume reached $28 trillion in 2023, then exceeded $90 trillion in 2025. Perpetual futures differ from contracts with a set maturity in that they have no conventional expiration date, according to Reuters' description of the derivatives Webull plans to offer. This allows traders to hold positions without periodically rolling them into new contracts at maturity. Webull says a periodic funding mechanism helps keep the contract price aligned with the price of the underlying asset. Kalshi's bitcoin contract specifications allow leverage of up to 6 times, with trading available around the clock throughout the week.
Holding these positions carries the possibility of accumulating funding costs, according to warnings in Kalshi's help center on the risks of perpetual futures trading. The platform explains that these costs continue as long as a position remains open, even if the price moves in the trader's favor during the holding period. Kalshi said these costs could accumulate "even if the price moves in your favor," in a warning about funding associated with the position. Webull, for its part, stipulates in its rollout statement that positions will be automatically liquidated if margin falls below maintenance margin requirements. Liquidation is tied to the margin level required to maintain the position, under the condition the company announced as part of the product arrangements. Trading directly on Kalshi's platform requires completion of a mandatory educational lesson after approval for access to perpetual futures and before placing the first trade.
The announcement of availability through Webull followed CFTC approval of the bitcoin perpetual futures contract submitted by KalshiEx. The commission announced its approval on May 29, 2026, marking a regulatory milestone ahead of the brokerage's rollout schedule. The regulatory order for the contract addressed analysis of the product within the digital commodities category, including similar contracts based on those commodities. The scope of that analysis was limited to the bitcoin contract and similar digital commodity contracts, within the boundaries set by the commission in the order. It did not extend to other underlying asset classes, the restriction the commission placed on the analysis associated with the contract's approval.
After the rollout begins, Webull expects to expand availability before year-end, according to the wording in its statement on the next phase. The company described broader availability as "expected before year-end" under its announced service schedule. On the product range, Webull plans to add further products to the initial cryptocurrency-linked offering. These additions are subject to regulatory review, according to the conditions the company set out for its subsequent expansion plans. Exchange listing requirements must also be met before those products can be offered, according to Webull's statement.