CFTC files to dismiss CME lawsuit over crypto perpetual futures

The CFTC’s lawyers called the lawsuit “much ado about nothing,“ claiming that the CME Group lacked standing to file and argued against its claims over crypto perpetual futures.

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a motion to dismiss a civil suit filed by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group, which claimed that the regulator’s treatment of cryptocurrency “futures” as “swaps” went against Congress.

In a Wednesday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, lawyers representing CFTC Chair Michael Selig and the commission requested a hearing to address the motion to dismiss the CME lawsuit, claiming the group lacked standing.

CME filed suit against the CFTC in June after the commission approved perpetual futures contracts tied to the spot price of Bitcoin (BTC) for prediction markets platform Kalshi and issued a no-action position for similar products on cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. The June complaint argued that Selig had unilaterally acted without a full panel of five commissioners, going against the Commodity Exchange Act by treating “futures” as “swaps” with expiration dates.