Perpetual futures are beginning to break out of their origins and emerge as a broader asset class beyond cryptocurrencies, according to a new report from TD Securities.
The bank said recent regulatory developments in the US and growing institutional demand are helping to transform perpetual futures, commonly known as “offenders”, from a niche crypto instrument to a market structure that could eventually encompass commodities, stocks and investments in the private market.
“PERPs are no longer just a crypto product. They are becoming a broader market structure product,” TD Securities wrote.
Perpetual futures differ from traditional futures because they do not expire. Instead, they rely on funding rate mechanisms that keep prices aligned with underlying markets. Contracts have become the dominant trading vehicle in crypto, accounting for approximately 80% of global digital asset trading volumes, according to TD.
Momentum accelerated last month when the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) allowed bitcoin perpetual futures for trading on Kalshi prediction market platform. Around the same time, Coinbase (COIN) announced plans to launch perpetual futures on US stock indices and moved closer to connecting US customers to offshore perpetual futures markets.
The report argues that institutional demand is expanding beyond cryptocurrencies. Hyperliquid (HYPE), the largest decentralized perpetual futures platform, now offers contracts linked to commodities and private companies. The exchange has become a place to trade pre-IPO contracts tied to companies like Cerebras and SpaceX, allowing traders to speculate on valuations before going public.
Hyperliquid’s growth is also beginning to test the traditional role of exchanges like CME Group in price discovery.
TD pointed to trading activity during the US-Israel-Iran conflict earlier this year, when commodity markets were closed over the weekend but Hyperliquid remained open. According to the report, the notional volume of oil-linked perpetual futures on the platform grew from approximately $25 million to more than $550 million in the third weekend of trading. The hyperliquid also priced in about 80% of the subsequent movement in West Texas Intermediate crude before the CME market reopened.
“The significance was not just volume, but also price discovery that occurred before traditional commodity markets reopened,” TD wrote.
The trend extends beyond raw materials. TD said Hyperliquid’s pre-IPO perpetual futures tied to companies like Cerebras and SpaceX have become an early test of whether blockchain-based markets can help establish valuations before stocks begin trading publicly.
That growth has attracted scrutiny from established exchanges. TD noted that ICE and CME have pushed regulators to examine Hyperliquid’s oil-linked products while also exploring similar offerings, highlighting a growing battle between traditional and crypto-native market infrastructure.
TD expects commodities to be the next major growth area for perpetual futures, with oil, gold and copper among the most likely candidates. As regulators move toward creating a formal U.S. framework for the products, the bank said the biggest question is whether perpetual futures can retain their appeal once they come under stricter oversight.
