Coinbase has launched a new type of perpetual contract product for pre-IPO companies, allowing users to trade on changes in a company's valuation before its official listing. The first company listed is SpaceX, Elon Musk's aerospace company.

The first target is SpaceX

According to Coinbase, this product is available to eligible users outside the United States, supports 24-hour trading, and uses USDC as the settlement asset. The product has no expiration date; once the relevant company completes its listing, the holdings will automatically be converted to the corresponding post-listing contract.

Coinbase co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong said that such products allow users to gain price exposure before a company goes public and also help to form earlier price discovery.

Targeting unlisted companies

These perpetual contracts do not require users to directly hold the underlying equity; instead, they involve betting on changes in the valuation of the target company by going long or short. Unlike traditional futures, perpetual contracts do not have a fixed settlement date, making them more suitable for continuous trading or hedging.

In its blog post, Coinbase stated that it will continue to add more pre-IPO companies to its portfolio, covering sectors such as technology, AI, energy, and aerospace, but has not yet disclosed the specific list or launch date.

Exchanges continue to expand the boundaries of derivatives.

This launch signifies that Coinbase is extending the perpetual contract model, common in the crypto market, to valuation trading of unlisted companies. The product design combines private companies, stablecoin settlement, and 24/7 trading, further expanding the range of assets that can be covered by on-chain trading platforms.

Perpetual contracts have continued to gain traction in the crypto market over the past year. With platforms like Hyperliquid driving increased trading volume, competition in derivatives markets surrounding high-volatility assets and new underlying assets is accelerating.