TL;DR:
Coinbase entered the pre-IPO perpetual futures market with the launch of a contract on SpaceX, Elon Musk’s aerospace company, which is expected to debut on public markets next week at an estimated valuation of $1.8 trillion. The initiative allows retail traders to gain exposure to the price of private companies before their public listing, a market that has historically been reserved for accredited investors and private funds.
The contracts are settled in USDC, operate 24 hours a day seven days a week, have no expiration or rollover requirements, and automatically convert into a standard perpetual future if the company completes its IPO. A Coinbase spokesperson confirmed they offer up to 5x leverage, below the 10x available on its standard equity perpetual futures and the 20x applicable to ETFs.
Pre-IPO perps are coming to Coinbase.
Starting today with SpaceX – now live for eligible users outside the US.
24/7 trading. USDC-settled. No expiry. pic.twitter.com/EHovmns8fe
— Coinbase
(@coinbase) June 4, 2026
The pre-IPO perpetual futures segment has gained significant momentum in recent weeks, driven in part by the launch of TradeXYZ, a decentralized platform built on Hyperliquid, which introduced contracts on Cerebras, an artificial intelligence chip manufacturer. Binance, OKX, Bitget, Crypto.com and Ventuals, among others, have since joined TradeXYZ in the space.
However, the market has already recorded one incident. Last week, Ventuals’ SpaceX contract dropped nearly 45% temporarily following the publication of incorrect price data by a third-party oracle provider. The incident triggered forced liquidations and led the platform to compensate affected users.
Coinbase warned that these instruments differ significantly from standard perpetual futures, with greater exposure to low liquidity, high volatility and liquidation risk, as well as a valuation-based pricing mechanism and a conversion risk tied to the public listing process.
Just days ago, Coinbase Financial Markets obtained approval as a futures merchant regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a development that will broaden access for institutional clients across global markets to perpetual futures and crypto options, including Deribit.
The pre-IPO contracts are available to eligible Coinbase Advanced users in permitted jurisdictions, with explicit exclusion of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Singapore, India and Australia, among other restricted territories. SpaceX is just the first in a planned pipeline targeting sectors including technology, artificial intelligence, energy and space exploration.
