Payward to Launch Regulated Onchain Perpetual Futures for US Clients via Hyperliquid

Quick Summary

Payward is bridging the gap for American traders by introducing regulated onchain perpetual futures to the US market. By deploying on the Hyperliquid protocol through its CFTC-regulated subsidiaries, Payward provides a compliant gateway to decentralized derivatives, a sector that saw $85 trillion in global volume during 2025.

How Does Payward Enable Onchain Perpetual Futures in the US?

Payward solves the regulatory access gap for US clients by utilizing its established financial infrastructure to deploy permissioned markets on the Hyperliquid blockchain. The process involves a multi-entity regulatory stack where Bitnomial, a CFTC-regulated exchange, acts as the market deployer and clearinghouse, while NinjaTrader Clearing manages client accounts. This structure ensures that onchain perpetual futures trading remains within federal oversight while leveraging decentralized order books.

• Bitnomial Exchange: Acts as the HIP-3 deployer and contract administrator.
• NinjaTrader Clearing: Handles client onboarding and account maintenance.
• Hyperliquid Protocol: Provides the public blockchain and onchain order book.

Why is the Hyperliquid Integration Significant for Crypto Derivatives?

Hyperliquid has emerged as a best-in-class onchain venue, processing over $200 billion in volume in a single 30-day period. By choosing Hyperliquid as its first deployment partner, Payward is integrating with the most active onchain perpetuals venue of 2025. This allows US users to access high-performance decentralized infrastructure that matches and records trades on a public blockchain, ensuring transparency and efficiency that traditional venues often lack.

What Regulatory Safeguards Protect US Perpetual Futures Clients?

Unlike unregulated offshore platforms, Payward’s framework for onchain perpetual futures is built on CFTC-registered entities. This includes Bitnomial’s status as a designated contract market and NinjaTrader’s role as a futures commission merchant. Furthermore, Payward maintains a Proof of Reserves reviewed by independent third-party accountants, showing client assets are backed above 100 percent. This ensures that institutional-grade security and regulatory compliance are front-loaded into the user experience.

FF NEWS TAKE:

This move by Payward is a definitive signal that the era of "offshore-only" crypto derivatives is ending. By successfully wrapping the onchain perpetual futures experience in a CFTC-regulated shell, Payward isn't just launching a product; they are reclaiming the US market's share of an $85 trillion industry. This is a massive win for regulated DeFi access and sets a high bar for competitors like Coinbase and Gemini to follow.