• Binance.US will formally apply for a Designated Contract Market (DCM) license with the CFTC within the next month.
  • CFTC-authorized platforms recorded over $25 billion in trading volume throughout 2025.
  • The CFTC certified approximately 1,600 event contracts in 2025, up from 131 recorded in 2021.

On Wednesday, news broke that Binance.US is considering applying for a CFTC license to operate as a Designated Contract Market (DCM) within the next month. Stephen Gregory, the exchange’s director, announced this during a live presentation at the Rare Evo conference held in Las Vegas. A report by journalist Eleanor Terrett indicates that the company has not yet submitted the required documents to the US regulator.

🚨SCOOP: @BinanceUS plans to apply to the @CFTC for a Designated Contract Market (DCM) next month with the goal of offering prediction markets to customers, CEO @Stevie_Satoshi just told me on stage at @RareEvo Conference.

The move is part of the exchange’s broader comeback…

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) July 29, 2026

The pursuit of this regulatory status represents the platform’s latest initiative to diversify its commercial offerings in the United States. Following the dismissal of previous regulatory legal actions during 2025, the company has focused its strategy on rebuilding its service catalog for US customers.

Regulatory Requirements and the Designated Contract Market Framework

The Designated Contract Market (DCM) permit constitutes the primary authorization issued by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for trading venues listing futures, options, and event-based derivatives contracts. Without this official designation, no trading platform can legally offer these types of instruments to investors residing in the United States.

The evaluation process demands strict compliance from applicant entities. The Commodity Exchange Act establishes 23 fundamental core principles that companies must fully satisfy. These standards cover operational areas such as ongoing market surveillance, financial resource adequacy, operational neutrality, and IT system safeguards. Institutional sector data reveals that application reviews of this magnitude typically extend across several months.

Binance.US’s intention reflects an effort to re-establish the brand’s presence in the North American jurisdiction. Company representatives declined to provide additional comments following Gregory’s initial statements at the Las Vegas event.

Competition in a Rapidly Expanding Derivatives Market

The event-based derivatives segment has experienced accelerated growth in the US market. Trading volume on CFTC-authorized platforms surpassed $25 billion throughout 2025. During that same period, exchanges under this jurisdiction certified an estimated 1,600 event contracts, contrasting sharply with the 131 contracts officially registered in 2021.

Liquidity in this industry is predominantly concentrated among a small number of participants. The Kalshi platform currently leads brokerage volumes in US territory, while Polymarket actively operates on the domestic front. According to sector reports, Binance.US’s entry would place the firm in direct competition with platforms handling the majority of capital flow in this segment.

To tackle this competitive landscape, the firm’s management proposed a product bundling model. The exchange’s strategy aims to integrate prediction markets alongside planned perpetual futures and an aggressive fee reduction structure. According to market analysis, this approach seeks to attract users interested in expanding their operations beyond spot trading.

A Evolving Regulatory Landscape and State-Level Challenges

The federal regulatory framework for derivatives in the United States is currently undergoing technical revision. The CFTC presented a proposal to restructure the rules applicable to event contracts on June 10, 2026. The public comment period for these regulations closed on July 27, 2026.

At the state level, prediction platforms face additional friction. Various state entities have filed lawsuits against event market operators, focusing their objections on contracts linked to sports and election outcomes. According to legal reports, these lawsuits across multiple state jurisdictions represent a persistent obstacle to the sector’s operational expansion.

Securing the DCM license would grant Binance.US operational parity with established competitors in the US derivatives space. The formal submission of the application scheduled for August will mark the first verifiable milestone in this regulatory process.