- Binance.US said it plans to apply for a CFTC market license in August.
- The license could let Binance.US launch prediction markets.
- The CFTC had no pending Binance.US application on record as of Wednesday.
Binance.US markets are moving into focus after CEO Steve Gregory said the exchange plans to apply for a Designated Contract Market license with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission in August. Gregory made the comments at the Rare Evo blockchain conference on Wednesday, outlining a regulatory step that could let the platform launch prediction markets. If the application is filed and later approved, Binance.US would enter a segment now associated with companies such as Kalshi and Polymarket. As of Wednesday, though, the CFTC had no public record showing a pending filing from Binance.US, meaning the plan remained an announced next step rather than an active application.
Binance.US markets plan announced by CEO
Steve Gregory said Binance.US plans to seek a Designated Contract Market, or DCM, license from the CFTC. He shared that timeline during the Rare Evo blockchain conference on Wednesday and said the company expects to apply sometime in August. The announcement gave the first public timetable for the proposed filing and clarified that no application was yet under review.
The stated purpose of the filing is to let the exchange offer prediction markets services to users. If the regulator grants the license, Binance.US markets could expand beyond the company’s current exchange activity and move into a business line now served by Kalshi and Polymarket.
What Binance.US markets could do with a CFTC license
Under CFTC guidelines, a Designated Contract Market can legally trade futures or option contracts based on an underlying commodity, index or instrument. That is the regulatory category Binance.US is targeting as it looks at prediction markets. Approval would give the company a regulated framework for offering contracts tied to future events and outcomes.
Companies seeking DCM status must meet 23 core principles set by the agency. Those standards include system safeguards, record keeping obligations and steps to address conflicts of interest, all of which form part of the compliance framework for this type of market license.
Binance.US markets application is not yet on record
Although Gregory said the exchange intends to file in August, the CFTC had no record as of Wednesday showing a pending DCM application from Binance.US. The company’s announcement therefore points to a planned submission rather than a filing already under review. No formal agency review timetable had begun publicly at that point.
That distinction matters because the timeline discussed by the CEO is still forward-looking. Publicly available agency records on Wednesday did not indicate that Binance.US markets had formally entered the CFTC approval process at that stage.
SEC case dismissal adds context to the move
The expected application would come more than a year after the US Securities and Exchange Commission dismissed its lawsuit against Binance, Binance.US and former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao. The allegations in that case included claims of misusing customer funds. The dismissal ended that federal enforcement action without resolving the separate licensing question now under discussion.
That earlier dismissal does not change the current CFTC process, but it provides context for the latest regulatory step. In this case, Binance.US is describing a route that would place its prediction market plans under a CFTC licensing structure if the application is submitted and approved.
Conclusion
Binance.US markets could enter the prediction trading sector if the exchange follows through on its plan to seek a CFTC Designated Contract Market license in August. Steve Gregory said the filing would support a prediction market offering that could put Binance.US alongside platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. For now, the company has only announced its intention to apply, and the CFTC had no pending application on record as of Wednesday. The move also comes more than a year after the SEC dismissed its lawsuit against Binance, Binance.US and former CEO Changpeng Zhao, adding broader regulatory context to the company’s latest plan.
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