What Moscow Exchange Is Adding in September
Moscow Exchange plans to begin trading perpetual futures on Bitcoin and Ethereum in September, according to Maria Patrikeeva, managing director of the bourse's derivatives market. The first two instruments will be linked to bitcoin and ether indices, she told journalists at a Media Days seminar.
The move extends a crypto derivatives line Moscow Exchange launched in summer 2025. Qualified investors can already trade monthly and quarterly futures on Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Ripple and Tron. Patrikeeva said the exchange intends to expand that range to around ten coins over time.
In addition, the exchange is preparing perpetual futures on roughly 20 foreign stocks, including Amazon, AMD, Tesla and Netflix. Perpetual futures are one-day contracts with no fixed expiration date; they automatically roll into the next trading day.
The rollout is part of a broader derivatives push. Moscow Exchange has added 34 new instruments to its futures market this year and plans about 30 more before the end of the year, Patrikeeva said.
Inside Moscow Exchange's Derivatives Expansion
The planned crypto perpetuals are an extension of an existing business rather than a new market entry. Moscow Exchange began crypto-linked futures in summer 2025, so much of the infrastructure, risk management and client access framework is already in place. Starting with bitcoin and ether indices is a relatively contained way to test demand before the exchange pursues its stated goal of around ten coins.
Why Perpetual Contracts Matter for Moscow Exchange
Perpetual futures remove the fixed expiration date that forces traders to roll positions from one monthly or quarterly contract to the next. For short-term and leveraged traders, that design makes continuous exposure simpler. For Moscow Exchange, it can support more frequent trading turnover and fee income, particularly in volatile crypto products where active traders value uninterrupted positioning.
Where Foreign-Stock Perpetuals Fit
The second part of the plan applies the same mechanism to about 20 foreign stocks, with Amazon, AMD, Tesla and Netflix explicitly named. That is a broader product statement: the exchange is not only pursuing crypto-linked volume but also trying to give local qualified investors more flexible derivatives on widely followed US-listed companies.
Access Rules Remain the Key Unknown
Current crypto futures at Moscow Exchange are available to qualified investors. The announcement did not explicitly state whether the new perpetual contracts will carry the same restriction. If they do, the addressable market will be narrower than the headline crypto demand suggests, though it would also limit retail exposure to the products' volatility.
What the Launch Means for Eligible Traders
- If you are already a qualified investor in Moscow Exchange crypto futures, the first Bitcoin and Ether perpetual contracts are scheduled for September. Because they are one-day contracts with automatic rollover, they remove the need to manually roll monthly or quarterly positions.
- For traders focused on foreign equities, the planned perpetual futures cover about 20 names, with Amazon, AMD, Tesla and Netflix explicitly mentioned. Contract terms will determine whether they offer an advantage over existing futures or cash-market exposure.
- Before trading, wait for Moscow Exchange to publish the contract size, margin requirements, position limits and fees. None of those commercial terms were disclosed in the announcement.
- Confirm whether the new crypto perpetuals will carry the same qualified-investor requirement as the existing Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Ripple and Tron futures. The exchange has not yet specified the access rules for the September launch.
Risk & Opportunity Assessment
| Commercial Risk | Medium | The new perpetual contracts could launch with thin liquidity. Moscow Exchange is adding many instruments at once — 34 already introduced this year and around 30 more planned — which increases operational complexity without guaranteeing trading volume. |
| Competitive Risk | Medium | Perpetual crypto products compete with established crypto derivatives venues and over-the-counter services for the same qualified-investor demand. The foreign-stock perpetuals must also win order flow from existing futures and cash equity trading. |
| Regulatory Risk | Medium | Crypto derivatives on Moscow Exchange are currently restricted to qualified investors. If regulators alter the classification or access rules for perpetual contracts, the product launch terms could change. |
| Reputation Risk | Low | The qualified-investor restriction limits retail exposure, so sharp moves in Bitcoin or Ethereum are less likely to create a broad retail reputational issue for the exchange. |
| Technology Disruption | Low | The rollout relies on Moscow Exchange's existing derivatives infrastructure and is an incremental product addition rather than a technological transformation. |
| Commercial Opportunity | High | The launch adds fee-generating instruments in two liquid asset categories and supports the exchange's stated plan to expand to ten cryptocurrencies and about 20 foreign-stock perpetuals. It follows 34 new derivatives instruments already added this year. |
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