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The Coinbase exchange will launch Bitcoin (BTC) perpetual futures trading for retail traders. This financial service will come to light after the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) granted the exchange its approval through a “Class F” license.
The new announced Perpetual Futures Service Will be available to customers outside the US in the “coming weeks.” on Coinbase International Exchange, the global branch of the North American exchange.
According to the Coinbase Advanced page, trading in Bitcoin and cryptocurrency perpetual futures contracts, which already exists in the United States, will be available in other “select jurisdictions.”
In announcing this new perpetual contract service, Coinbase states the following:
By expanding greater access to perpetual futures to eligible customers outside the U.S., we are pleased to advance our mission to help modernize the global financial system and provide greater economic freedom and opportunity to users around the world.
Coinbase, Bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange.
A perpetual futures contract is a type of futures contract that allows investors to speculate on the future price of an asset without having to own it. A contract of this type does not have a fixed expiry date, but is automatically renewed at each specified period; for example every 8 hours.
What is a Class F driving license?
A “Class F” license is an authorization from the Bermuda Monetary Authority, the country from which Coinbase manages its international operations.
This permission, granted based on compliance with the “DABA” or the rules that regulate the activities of digital asset companies, It is an unrestricted operating license “which is not subject to a specific deadline”.
There is another license that the BMA offers to its applicants, the “Class M”, which offers greater restrictions than the previous one and whose approval is, among other things, valid for a certain period of time.
Generally, upon expiration of a “Class M” license, the expectation is that the licensee “must apply for a Class F license or cease doing business.”
The latter is not the case with Coinbase, which has a full license has an optimal regulatory status v. Bermuda Monetary Authority.