Perps in the US! + Robinhood's AI Agent Bet

Summary

The episode covers the CFTC's approval of a true Bitcoin perpetual futures contract on Kalshi, the regulatory implications for centralized and decentralized perp markets, Robinhood's new AI agent trading feature, and a legal case seeking ownership of abandoned crypto wallets. The discussion focuses on legal and regulatory developments rather than investment recommendations.

• CFTC approved Kalshi's application to list a perpetual Bitcoin futures contract, classifying it as a future rather than a swap.
• The approval is limited to crypto commodities with deep spot markets and does not extend to all asset classes.
• The CFTC also issued a staff letter recognizing Deribit's perpetuals as foreign futures.
• Robinhood launched an agentic trading beta allowing users to instruct AI agents to make purchases using their Gold card.
• The hosts discussed the legal challenges of treating software as a customer in financial systems.
• A New York lawsuit seeks court declaration of ownership over nearly 40,000 abandoned crypto wallets.
• The legal theory relies on a lost property statute but faces significant hurdles.
• Crypto good news: a Montana businessman donated $1 million in Bitcoin to a university foundation, avoiding capital gains tax.