Polymarket Launches Perpetual Oil Futures in 24/7 Trading Push

(Bloomberg) -- Polymarket has launched perpetual futures contracts tied to oil, stepping into a market that rival Kalshi Inc. is also seeking to enter as trading venues compete to offer round-the-clock access to the commodity.

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The company announced the launch Thursday as part of a broader rollout of perpetual futures spanning crypto, stocks and commodities including gold and silver. Among them are two never-expiring contracts linked to the Brent and West Texas Intermediate oil benchmarks, a type of derivative facing scrutiny over its potential impact on price discovery in physical markets.

The launch comes a day after it was reported that Kalshi is seeking regulatory approval for its own perpetual futures contract linked to West Texas Intermediate oil. If approved, it would be the first contract of its kind to trade on a regulated US platform.

Polymarket's contracts will trade offshore and won't be available to US-based traders, putting the venue in more direct competition for now with exchanges including Hyperliquid and Binance.

Perpetual futures are derivatives with no expiration date and built-in leverage, allowing customers to amplify the risk they take with each trade. The contracts surged in popularity during the Iran war as one of the few ways to trade oil while traditional futures markets were closed and have since become a flashpoint in the debate over whether weekend trading can influence prices once traditional markets reopen.

There are other key differences between the Polymarket and Kalshi offerings. Unlike Polymarket's nonstop contract, Kalshi's oil-linked contract would trade 24 hours a day, five days a week. The structure was designed to address regulatory concerns raised in a Commodity Futures Trading Commission review of trading outside regular market hours, Bloomberg previously reported.

Polymarket first telegraphed plans for the launch in April, though it was unclear at the time whether oil would be among the offerings.

The contracts will allow traders to use up to 20 times leverage, according to a social media post by the venue. The ability of retail traders to take on outsized risk has been a key concern surrounding perpetual futures.