The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has put forward two proposals. The first would classify event contracts, the products traded on prediction markets, as swaps under federal law. The second would keep traditional casino gambling outside that definition.
Taken together, the two proposals separate prediction markets from casino gambling. If event contracts count as swaps, they are a federal matter under the CFTC. Casino gambling is explicitly left out of that category.
According to Cointelegraph's report, published October 11, 2026, the two measures are meant to prepare the ground for a possible US Supreme Court case over whether federal or state authorities have jurisdiction. The report does not say whether such a case has been filed, which states are involved, or when the proposals could take effect.
For someone already holding a perpetual futures position on Bitget, Bybit, MEXC or OKX, nothing changes directly. The proposals deal with event contracts and casino gambling, not perpetual futures, and the report says nothing about funding rates, trading fees or liquidity on these exchanges. Any effect on perp holders would depend on details that have not been published.
Source: cointelegraph — CFTC proposals aimed at separating prediction markets from casino gambling