The exchange asked the U.S. derivatives regulator to separate statutory tests for prediction market contracts and to provide clearer, more transparent reasoning in reviews as the sector expands.
Coinbase has urged the CFTC, the U.S. derivatives regulator, to adopt a clearer framework for reviewing prediction market event contracts under Rule 40.11, arguing that exchanges and traders need greater legal certainty as the market grows. In comments on the agency’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, RIN 3038-AF65, Coinbase said the Commission should separate two legal questions under the Commodity Exchange Act by first deciding whether a contract falls within the law’s enumerated activities and only then determining whether it is contrary to the public interest. The filing aligns with similar arguments from the Hyperliquid Policy Center and Multicoin Capital, which also supported federal oversight, urged more transparency around how the CFTC evaluates contracts, and said federally regulated exchanges should remain under the agency’s exclusive jurisdiction rather than a patchwork of state gambling laws.