Coinbase launches regulated Bitcoin and Ethereum futures trading across 26 European countries under MiFID rules

Coinbase launched regulated bitcoin futures trading across Europe on March 9, giving traders in 26 countries access to leveraged cryptocurrency contracts for the first time through a fully licensed platform.

On March 9, the U.S.-listed exchange launched the service and made it accessible via Coinbase Advanced.

Germany, France, and the Netherlands are among the product’s main markets. The platform functions under the same licensing structure that oversees conventional financial products in the European Union since trades are handled through the company’s MiFID-regulated entity.

Filling a gap in regulated trading

Coinbase said the move was partly a response to how European traders have been operating until now.

Without a regulated option, many turned to offshore or unregulated platforms to access crypto derivatives, which carry higher risk for retail investors. The company said it aims to fill that gap.

“As regulatory clarity continues to mature across Europe and globally, we are looking forward to continuing to introduce new and expanded services,” the company said in a statement.

At launch, the platform supports Bitcoin and Ethereum contracts.

Three types of products are available. The first is a perpetual-style futures contract, which runs for a five-year term, tracks the price of the underlying asset through an hourly funding rate, and settles daily.

The second type is a fixed-term contract that expires either monthly or quarterly and is marked to market daily using an official settlement price.

Both are cash-settled, meaning no actual cryptocurrency changes hands. The third product type gives traders exposure to equity indexes, including one called the Mag7 + Crypto Equity Index Futures, which covers top technology companies, Coinbase shares, and spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds.

For Bitcoin, Ethereum, and some index products, leverage goes up to ten times the original stake.

Other contracts carry leverage between four and five times. The trading fee starts at 0.02% per contract. Traders can fund their accounts in U.S. dollars or euros after completing identity checks.

Market conditions and the regulatory backdrop

The launch comes at a difficult moment for the market.

Bitcoin hit a record high of $126,000 in October 2025 but has since dropped by nearly 50%, putting its total market value at around $1.3 trillion.

The continuous turmoil in the Middle East, U.S. tariff policies, and worries about the economic effects of artificial intelligence advancements are some of the causes that analysts have identified as contributing to the fall.

Despite the downturn, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has continued pushing the exchange toward becoming a broader financial trading platform.

This year, the company added trading in traditional stocks such as Apple and Tesla, available 24 hours a day, five days a week. It also offers commodities trading in products like gold and oil, and runs a prediction market product.

In Europe, a regulatory deadline also affects when futures launch.

On July 1, the transitional term of the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets law, or MiCA, will come to an end. Utility tokens and stablecoins, which are currently exempt from current EU financial regulations, are among the many digital assets covered by the regulation.

Its objectives are to provide retail investors with better protections, reduce inconsistencies across EU member states, and apply the same level of monitoring to cryptocurrency as to traditional banking.

This regulatory pathway allows the exchange to offer sophisticated derivatives under established ‘passporting’ rights, which grant a firm authorized in one EU member state the right to provide services across the entire bloc.

By using its existing MiFID license to offer these products now, Coinbase is positioning itself ahead of that enforcement cutoff.

The company said it plans to keep expanding its European product lineup as rules in the region become clearer.

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