Crypto29 July, 20262 min read
Binance.US Plans CFTC DCM License Filing Next Month to Launch Prediction Market
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Binance.US plans to apply for a CFTC DCM license next month to launch prediction markets. A CFTC DCM license would allow Binance.US to operate regulated prediction markets.
Binance.US targets CFTC DCM
Binance.US plans to apply for a Designated Contract Market (DCM) license with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) next month to launch its own prediction market, according to Crypto in America journalist and host Eleanor Terrett.
Terrett said the move is part of Binance.US’s broader comeback strategy, which centers on lower trading fees and expanding beyond spot trading with products such as prediction markets and perpetuals.
Bloomingbit reported that Chief Executive Officer Stephen Gregory announced the plan at the Rare Evo conference in Las Vegas on July 29, and that the CFTC did not comment on the planned application.
TradingView said Gregory told attendees that Binance.US will apply for the DCM sometime in August, and that as of Wednesday the CFTC had no records showing Binance.US has a pending application for a DCM.
CEO frames competition
At the Rare Evo blockchain conference, Binance.US CEO Steve Gregory said the CFTC license would allow the exchange to launch its own prediction market, potentially challenging platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket.
CoinGape reported that Terrett revealed Gregory’s comments after speaking with him during the Rare Evo conference, and that Binance US plans to apply for a CFTC license to launch regulated prediction markets.
Bloomingbit said prediction-market activity in the U.S. has been growing rapidly, led by Kalshi and Polymarket, with Gemini and Coinbase also expanding prediction-market businesses.
Cointelegraph similarly reported that Gregory said Binance.US would apply for the DCM in August, and noted that the reported application would come more than a year after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dismissed its lawsuit against Binance, its U.S. entity and former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao.
Rules, timing, and uncertainty
TradingView said DCMs can legally trade “futures or option contracts based on any underlying commodity, index or instrument,” and that companies seeking to be licensed must comply with 23 core principles from the agency. CoinGape said the exchange has not yet submitted its application and that CFTC approval could take several months, with no assurance regulators will approve the proposal.
“DCMs can legally trade ‘futures or option contracts based on any underlying commodity, index or instrument.’”
CoinGape also described ongoing regulatory challenges for prediction markets in the U.S., including a federal court declining requests from the CFTC to block Wisconsin from enforcing its laws against sports event contracts. Bloomingbit added that Binance.US operates separately from global exchange Binance as its U.S. affiliate, and that its domestic market share fell sharply after Binance reached a settlement with U.S. authorities in 2023 over allegations of anti-money laundering and sanctions violations.