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Payward, the parent company of Kraken, said on September 16, 2026 that it plans to launch onchain perpetual-futures markets for U.S. clients through Hyperliquid’s permissioned HIP-3* framework. The proposal is not a live listing: it still requires regulatory approval, and no launch date or contract list has been announced. Bitnomial Exchange, Payward’s CFTC-regulated designated contract market, would create and administer the market; Bitnomial Clearinghouse would clear it; and NinjaTrader Clearing would hold customer futures accounts.

What did Payward announce?

Payward says it intends to become the first CFTC-regulated deployer of a HIP-3* market on Hyperliquid. The announcement describes a proposed operating structure, not an available product. The first deployer would be Bitnomial Exchange, rather than the Kraken consumer brand.

In this arrangement, Bitnomial Exchange would hold the market’s administrative and regulatory responsibilities. Payward co-CEO Arjun Sethi said the company intends to be first while “holding the keys and carrying the regulatory obligations.” The proposed contracts remain subject to approval.

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How would the proposed market work?

The plan combines Hyperliquid’s public blockchain execution with regulated futures-market infrastructure:

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  1. Order matching and records: Hyperliquid’s public blockchain would provide the onchain order book that matches trades and records activity.
  2. Market deployment: Bitnomial Exchange would create, own and administer the permissioned HIP-3* market.
  3. Clearing and settlement: Bitnomial Clearinghouse would process clearing and settlement for the contracts.
  4. Customer accounts: NinjaTrader Clearing would carry the client futures accounts.
  5. Access controls: Only customers onboarded by NinjaTrader and placed on both NinjaTrader’s and Bitnomial’s allowlists could trade.

This is therefore a regulated broker-and-clearing route into a Hyperliquid-hosted market, not unrestricted access to the ordinary Hyperliquid application.

What is HIP-3*?

HIP-3 is Hyperliquid’s framework for third parties to launch custom perpetual markets. A company description filed with the SEC in 2026 says deployers bond HYPE as collateral when launching markets for assets such as equities, commodities and indices.

HIP-3* is the permissioned variant cited in Payward’s announcement. Its deployer controls allowlists, so access can be limited to approved participants rather than opened to anyone who can connect a wallet. The asterisk is important: Payward is proposing the controlled HIP-3* model, not saying that all Hyperliquid perpetual markets will become regulated U.S. products.

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How would a U.S. client get access?

A customer would use a futures-account process rather than simply visiting Hyperliquid with a personal wallet.

  1. Apply through NinjaTrader: The customer would need to be onboarded by NinjaTrader under its futures-account procedures.
  2. Pass eligibility checks: The account would have to appear on NinjaTrader’s allowlist and Bitnomial’s allowlist.
  3. Trade the approved contracts: Once eligible, the customer could access the HIP-3* markets made available through that account structure.

Payward has not said whether customers would connect a personal wallet, which collateral assets would be accepted, or whether positions would be publicly visible. The proposal also does not disclose leverage limits, funding calculations or fees.

Is the Payward-Hyperliquid product live yet?

No. The September 16, 2026 statement is an intention to deploy markets, and the proposed contracts remain subject to regulatory approval. Payward has not published a launch date, first instruments or final trading rules.

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Until those approvals and operational details are announced, a U.S. trader should not assume that an existing Kraken account, a standard Hyperliquid login or a self-custody wallet provides access to these proposed contracts.

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What is the difference between ordinary Hyperliquid access and the proposed HIP-3* route?

Category Ordinary Hyperliquid access Proposed Payward HIP-3* route
Access Direct protocol access using the venue’s normal interface and account model Futures-broker onboarding through NinjaTrader, plus two allowlists
Market control Open builder markets under Hyperliquid’s native framework Permissioned market created and administered by Bitnomial Exchange
Clearing Hyperliquid’s native onchain mechanics Bitnomial Clearinghouse clearing and settlement
Account layer Protocol-native account arrangements NinjaTrader Clearing carries customer futures accounts
Trading terms Terms already offered by the relevant Hyperliquid market Collateral, leverage, funding, fees and position visibility have not been announced

Why does this matter for the perpetual-futures market?

The proposal targets a large and rapidly expanding market. The figures below describe overall industry or Hyperliquid scale; they do not prove that Payward’s proposed U.S. contracts have been approved or launched.

Measure Figure Source and qualification
Payward funded accounts 6.6 million Payward, measured June 30, 2026; its rails serve clients in more than 190 countries and territories
Global perpetual-futures volume in 2025 More than $85 trillion CoinGecko 2026 report, as cited in Payward’s announcement
Hyperliquid volume over the preceding 30 days More than $200 billion DefiLlama 2026 figure, as cited in Payward’s announcement
Average open interest in Q2 2026 Approximately $9 billion Grayscale 2026; up 54% year over year
Share of global onchain perpetuals 24-hour volume Approximately 40.1% Hyperliquid Strategies Inc. 2026 Form 10-K
Share of global onchain perpetuals open interest Approximately 62.5% Hyperliquid Strategies Inc. 2026 Form 10-K
Cumulative Hyperliquid perpetuals volume More than $5.4 trillion Hyperliquid Strategies Inc. 2026 Form 10-K
2025 net protocol revenue Approximately $857 million Hyperliquid Strategies Inc. 2026 Form 10-K

If approved, the structure would be notable because it places a CFTC-regulated exchange and clearinghouse around a public-chain order book. It would also give U.S. customers a controlled access path without making the entire Hyperliquid protocol a regulated U.S. venue.

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What remains unknown before launch?

  • The first contracts or underlying assets.
  • The collateral asset or assets customers may deposit.
  • Maximum leverage and margin requirements.
  • The funding-rate formula.
  • Trading, clearing and account fees.
  • The launch date and approval timetable.
  • Whether customers would use a personal wallet, a broker-controlled wallet or another account design.
  • Whether open positions and trade details would be publicly visible on Hyperliquid’s blockchain.

These details will determine whether the service feels like direct onchain trading or like a conventional futures brokerage that uses Hyperliquid infrastructure underneath.

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Who would be responsible for each part of a trade?

Bitnomial Exchange would be the market operator and HIP-3* deployer. Bitnomial Clearinghouse would stand between the trading activity and final settlement, while NinjaTrader Clearing would maintain the customer futures accounts. Hyperliquid would supply the blockchain-based order book and transaction record.

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That division of duties is why the announcement calls Payward’s plan a first CFTC-regulated HIP-3* deployment: the regulated entities would operate the market and clearing layers, while the matching and recordkeeping infrastructure remains on Hyperliquid’s public chain.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Does this make Hyperliquid itself a CFTC-regulated exchange?

No. The proposal assigns regulated exchange and clearing responsibilities to Bitnomial Exchange and Bitnomial Clearinghouse. Hyperliquid would provide the public blockchain order book and records, but the announcement does not say that the protocol itself has become a CFTC-registered venue.

Will U.S. customers need HYPE tokens to trade?

No customer HYPE requirement has been announced. The 2026 SEC-filed description discusses deployers bonding HYPE to launch HIP-3 markets, while Payward has not identified the collateral that its customers would use.

Is a Kraken account enough to join the proposed markets?

There is no indication that an existing Kraken account alone would qualify. The stated path requires NinjaTrader onboarding and inclusion on both NinjaTrader’s and Bitnomial’s allowlists.

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When will the first contracts be available?

Payward has not announced a launch date or named the first contracts. Availability depends on regulatory approval and publication of final market, margin and account rules.

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