Coinbase is launching a new class of perpetual contracts for pre-IPO companies, allowing users to trade on changes in their valuations before they officially go public. The first listed asset is SpaceX, Elon Musk’s aerospace company.
The first underlying asset is SpaceX.
According to Coinbase’s disclosure, this product is available to eligible users outside the United States, supports 24/7 trading, and settles in USDC. The product has no expiration date, and positions will automatically convert to the corresponding post-listing contract once the relevant company completes its listing.
Coinbase co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong said that such products allow users to gain price exposure before a company goes public and help facilitate earlier price discovery.
The trading target is unlisted companies.
These perpetual contracts do not require users to hold the underlying equity directly; instead, they allow users to bet on the direction of the target company’s valuation by going long or short. Unlike traditional futures, perpetual contracts have no fixed settlement date, making them better suited for continuous trading or hedging.
Coinbase stated on its blog that it plans to add more pre-IPO companies in the future, covering sectors such as technology, AI, energy, and aerospace, but has not yet disclosed specific names or listing timelines.
The exchange continues to expand the boundaries of derivatives.
This launch signifies that Coinbase is extending the perpetual contract model common in cryptocurrency markets to the trading of private company valuations. The product design integrates private companies, stablecoin settlements, and 24/7 trading, further expanding the range of assets accessible on-chain.
Over the past year, perpetual contracts have continued to gain momentum in the crypto market. As platforms like Hyperliquid drive increased trading volumes, competition in derivatives tied to highly volatile assets and novel underlying instruments is accelerating.