TLDR Kalshi has asked the CFTC to approve margin trading for some of its event contracts. The plan is limited to qualified institutional traders and excludes sports markets and retail investors. The proposal includes a one-day margin period of risk and extra collateral as contracts near settlement. The rules could take effect no sooner than the first business day after 45 days from the September 22 filing. Kalshi launched a Bitcoin perpetual contract in May and was valued at $22 billion in its Series F round.
Kalshi has asked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to approve margin trading for some of its event contracts. The plan is aimed at qualified institutional traders and does not include sports markets.
The filing was made on September 22 by Kalshi Klear, the company’s clearinghouse, under CFTC Regulation 40.5(a). It requests changes to clearing rules and the margin risk framework, along with a new formula for figuring initial margin.
How Kalshi’s Margin Plan Would Work
Kalshi’s event contracts are binary. Each contract settles at $1 if an event happens and $0 if it does not, with prices moving between those two points.
Today, traders must post collateral equal to the most they could lose. For a YES trade, that is the full cost. For a NO trade, it is $1 minus the YES price.
The new plan would replace that upfront funding with collateral based on modeled price swings. This would let qualified traders take larger positions for less money down.
Because lower collateral adds risk, Kalshi would review each contract before making it eligible for margin. The clearinghouse could grant margin to one side of a contract or both, since each side faces different risks if an event resolves suddenly.
Access would be limited to professionals, with retail investors left