Hyperliquid HIP-3: Kraken parent Payward set to be first CFTC-regulated deployer

26 Oct 2026

26 Oct 2026, 19:30 UTC+01:00

Regulation TradeReviewed News Desk

Hyperliquid plans to make Payward, the parent company of Kraken, the first CFTC-regulated deployer on its HIP-3 markets. The decentralized derivatives protocol announced the plan in a post on X on Monday, according to The Block. The deployment is still subject to regulatory approval.

How the Payward setup would work

HIP-3 is Hyperliquid’s framework that lets outside parties deploy their own perpetual futures markets on the protocol. The upgrade adds permissioned markets: a deployer can restrict who trades through onchain allowlists. That is what could let a regulated operator use Hyperliquid’s order book and matching engine while still meeting its own compliance rules.

In Payward’s case, the roles would be split across its regulated U.S. entities:

• Bitnomial, Payward’s CFTC-regulated designated contract market and derivatives clearing organization, would act as the HIP-3 deployer.
• NinjaTrader Clearing, Payward’s CFTC-registered futures commission merchant, would carry client accounts if the plan is approved.

The permissioning functionality is live on testnet. It is not yet clear how access controls would work in practice, including whether a Payward-deployed market would build in KYC checks. Hyperliquid described itself as “a neutral infrastructure layer” and said deployers keep control of, and responsibility for, their own markets.

Months in the making

The move did not come out of nowhere. Bloomberg reported in August that Payward was exploring a structure to bring Hyperliquid-linked perpetual futures to U.S. traders through Bitnomial. Payward formally announced the plan on September 16, saying Bitnomial would handle deployment, clearing and settlement, pending regulatory sign-off. Separately, the Hyperliquid Policy Center argued in an EU regulatory submission that regulated firms could run markets on Hyperliquid with leverage limits and onchain access restrictions.

What it means for traders

Perpetual futures are the most traded crypto product worldwide, but U.S. retail traders have had very limited regulated access to them. A CFTC-supervised route into Hyperliquid liquidity would be a notable step for both DeFi and U.S. derivatives markets, although nothing changes until regulators approve it.

• No launch date yet: the deployment depends on regulatory approval, so treat timelines with caution.
• HYPE in focus: The Block’s market data showed HYPE up about 2.6% around the time of the report.
• Centralized alternatives today: traders outside the U.S. who want perpetual futures now mostly use centralized exchanges. Compare fees, leverage and liquidity in our crypto exchange comparison, and read our BingX review and OKX review before choosing a platform. Our testing method explains how we rate them.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice. Derivatives trading carries a high risk of loss.

Sources

• The Block: Hyperliquid says Kraken parent Payward to be first CFTC-regulated HIP-3 deployer

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