first U.S.-regulated Aptos on Bitnomial

Institutional and retail traders in the U.S. now have a new regulated way to access the Aptos ecosystem through aptos futures listed on a CFTC-supervised venue.

First U.S.-regulated Aptos-linked futures go live

Bitnomial has introduced the first-ever U.S.-regulated futures contracts tied to Aptos (APT), creating a regulated market structure for institutional access to the Layer 1 blockchain. The contracts began trading on January 14 on Bitnomial Exchange, giving both institutional and retail traders a venue for price discovery and risk management tied to APT.

Moreover, the launch positions Bitnomial among a small group of venues offering physically connected digital asset futures under a U.S. regulatory framework. The firm aims to bridge traditional derivatives infrastructure with emerging blockchain networks such as Aptos without altering core compliance standards.

Contract design and margining framework

The new APT futures feature monthly expirations and are designed to be settled in either U.S. dollars or in APT, depending on the direction of the position. This dual-settlement structure is intended to give traders flexibility in how they manage exposure and settlement risk.

Traders can post margin in crypto or USD through Bitnomial Clearinghouse, LLC. However, access to the contracts is routed via Bitnomial Exchange Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) clearing members, aligning the product with established futures market workflows and compliance checks.

Michael Dunn, president of Bitnomial Exchange, said the launch addresses a critical gap in the U.S. derivatives landscape. He emphasized that a regulated futures market is often viewed as a prerequisite for spot crypto exchange-traded fund approvals under the Securities and Exchange Commission‘s generic listing standards, especially for new Layer 1 assets.

According to the company, with APT futures now live institutional participants can obtain institutional Aptos exposure using the same regulated infrastructure they already rely on for Bitcoin and Ether derivatives, including portfolio margining across multiple positions.

Institutional infrastructure meets Aptos

Aptos is a Layer 1 blockchain engineered to deliver sub-second finality and high transaction throughput. Built using the Move programming language and a parallel execution engine, the network has drawn increasing interest from institutions testing scalable on-chain applications and transaction-heavy use cases.

That said, institutional adoption typically depends on the availability of regulated derivatives rails. aptos futures listed on a U.S.-regulated venue are therefore seen as an important step toward integrating the blockchain more deeply into traditional trading strategies and risk frameworks.

Solomon Tesfaye, chief business officer at Aptos Labs, said U.S.-regulated derivatives infrastructure is essential for institutional adoption. Moreover, he noted that Bitnomial’s CFTC-regulated exchange and clearinghouse deliver the compliance, custody and risk management framework demanded by sophisticated market participants seeking exposure to Aptos.

Expansion of Bitnomial’s Crypto Complex

The introduction of APT futures further broadens Bitnomial’s Crypto Complex, a suite that provides U.S. market participants with access to a wide range of digital asset derivatives. This expansion underscores the firm’s strategy of layering new blockchain assets onto an existing regulatory and operational stack.

Delivery-settled contracts listed on Bitnomial Exchange can be margined with digital assets, a structure the company argues enhances capital efficiency versus traditional cash-only margin regimes. However, the contracts still clear through Bitnomial’s regulated entities, preserving oversight and standardized risk controls.

This delivery-settled approach allows traders to manage exposure across multiple crypto derivatives products more efficiently within a single regulated venue. Moreover, it can support more advanced strategies, including basis trades and spread positions that link APT with other major tokens such as Bitcoin and Ether.

Retail access and future Aptos-linked products

APT futures are available for trading today for institutional clients. Retail participation is expected to follow in the coming weeks through Botanical, Bitnomial’s retail trading platform, which will extend regulated access to a broader U.S. audience once integration is complete.

Looking ahead, Bitnomial said it plans to expand its Aptos-linked lineup with perpetual futures and options. That said, any new products will also sit inside the same U.S.-regulated framework, further deepening what the firm describes as a growing aptos derivatives market for compliant APT exposure.

Bitnomial is headquartered in Chicago and operates a suite of CFTC-regulated exchange, clearinghouse and clearing brokerage entities. As Aptos and other Layer 1 networks continue to mature, the company expects demand for regulated access routes to keep rising.

In summary, Bitnomial’s launch of U.S.-regulated APT futures brings a new Layer 1 asset into the mainstream derivatives arena, aligning Aptos with existing institutional trading, margining and compliance practices while opening a path to broader participation over time.