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Kalshi filed its WTIPERP proposal on 20 October, seeking approval for a NYMEX-linked WTI contract with no expiry. On 22 October, commodity exchanges and energy hedgers asked the CFTC to reject it, citing a threat to market integrity.
How Kalshi has set contract terms
Without an expiry, the proposed contract would let traders maintain a position rather than move it into a fresh monthly future. Kalshi would base its reference price on two nearby NYMEX WTI futures, adjusting the calculation as delivery months change to preserve a one-month horizon. Daily funding payments are designed to keep the contract's market price close to that benchmark.
The proposed trading calendar follows oil futures, with weekend closures and the same holidays and early closes. Trading could stop if the underlying market is halted.
Each cash-settled contract represents 100 barrels, or one-tenth of a standard oil future. For position limits, Kalshi would translate positions into standard-contract equivalents and apportion the exposure across relevant delivery months. Approval is still pending, so trading cannot begin unless the regulator authorises the application.
Why commodity groups reject the design
The Commodity Markets Council, whose members include CME, NYMEX and ICE Futures US as well as trading firms and commercial hedgers, opposed the proposal. In a letter sent after Kalshi filed, the council asked the CFTC to withhold approval, warning of risks to market integrity. Finance Magnates reported that the letter did not identify Kalshi, though its filing references and timing correspond to WTIPERP.
The council's concern centres on the difference between a dated future and a perpetual. As a conventional oil future nears delivery, its price moves closer to the physical market. A perpetual does not reach delivery; instead, it depends on funding payments to track the futures prices used as its reference.
Kalshi says its use of dated futures would keep WTIPERP connected to physical oil conditions. CME recently shelved a round-the-clock oil contract after weekend trading drew concern; Kalshi has left weekends out of WTIPERP. In comments to Bloomberg, Kalshi said it had asked industry groups for feedback, while noting that some had not identified specific concerns about the proposal. The council also urged the CFTC to work with foreign regulators to restrict US traders' use of VPNs to reach offshore commodity platforms.
What this changes for operators
If approved, the product's operation would depend on more than a listing decision. Teams should establish how the two nearby futures feed into the reference-price calculation, how the one-month horizon changes with delivery months, and how daily funding is calculated and recorded. What would reconcile those values against WTIPERP trading prices?
Risk and operations teams should also check how the 100-barrel contract maps into position-limit exposure across delivery months, and how cash settlement is handled. The calendar requires checks for weekends, holidays, early closes and underlying-market halts. With approval still pending, operators should ask what reporting and control changes would be required before any launch.
