Coinbase introduced pre-IPO perpetual futures tied to OpenAI and Anthropic on June 22, offering eligible non-U.S. customers exposure to two private artificial intelligence companies through its International Exchange. CEO Brian Armstrong cited challenges retail investors face accessing private firms before public listings as the rationale for the product. The launch expands Coinbase International Exchange's perpetual futures lineup into private-market valuation trading, allowing traders to take positions on company valuations without acquiring equity or voting rights.
Coinbase Launches Valuation-Based Contracts for Private AI Firms
The pre-IPO perpetual futures use company-wide valuation metrics instead of hypothetical share prices, reflecting the absence of finalized capital structures before listing. Private firms often revise share counts or adjust capitalization during IPO preparation, making early share-based pricing unreliable. Anchoring contracts to total equity valuation avoids distortions from incomplete disclosures.
Trading occurs continuously, with positions margined and settled in USDC. Participants gain exposure to valuation changes without acquiring equity or voting rights. The perpetual format removes expiry constraints, allowing positions to remain open while funding rates align contract prices with valuation benchmarks.
Coinbase stated: "Pre-IPO perpetual futures allow users to trade USDC-settled perpetual futures contracts on private companies ahead of their IPO, referencing the company's total equity valuation rather than an estimated pre-IPO share price."
Platform access is restricted to eligible users outside the United States through Coinbase International Exchange. The contracts allow traders to take long or short positions while using the exchange's existing perpetual futures infrastructure, including margin requirements, funding mechanisms, and risk controls.
On June 22, Armstrong wrote on X: "Two of the biggest, most hyped private companies are due to go public soon (OpenAI and Anthropic). But because they're private, regular people can't get exposure. We launched pre-IPO perps for both these companies on Coinbase (non-US customers)."
SpaceX Contract Conversion Demonstrates Transition to Public Market Pricing
Coinbase demonstrated the contract conversion process with its SPCX-PERP contract tied to the IPO of SpaceX. After a June 3 S-1/A filing, the exchange executed a per-share rebase on June 11, converting the contract into a share-based format. The contract transitioned into a standard equity perpetual future on June 12, with pricing linked to live equity feeds from Pyth, a market data provider.
The conversion process ensures continuity as companies move toward public markets. After share counts are disclosed, contracts adjust to per-share pricing and later link to live equity data, allowing a controlled transition without requiring traders to close positions.
FAQ
What did Coinbase launch on June 22?
Coinbase introduced pre-IPO perpetual futures tied to OpenAI and Anthropic on June 22, available to eligible non-U.S. customers through Coinbase International Exchange. The contracts reference total equity valuation and are settled in USDC.
How do pre-IPO perpetual futures differ from traditional stock investing?
Pre-IPO perpetual futures provide exposure to company valuations without granting ownership or voting rights. Contracts use total equity valuation metrics instead of share prices and remain open indefinitely through the perpetual format, with funding rates aligning prices to valuation benchmarks.
What conversion process did Coinbase use for the SpaceX contract?
Coinbase's SPCX-PERP contract underwent a per-share rebase on June 11 following a June 3 S-1/A filing. The contract transitioned to a standard equity perpetual future on June 12, with pricing linked to live equity data from Pyth.
