Coinbase Gets CFTC Approval to Run Its Own USDC-Native Clearinghouse

According to BlockchainReporter, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission registered Coinbase Clearing LLC as a derivatives clearing organization on September 28. Reported by BlockchainReporter, the approval gives Coinbase an in-house clearinghouse for the first time, completing its end-to-end U.S. derivatives stack alongside Coinbase Financial Markets and Coinbase Derivatives. BlockchainReporter noted that Coinbase described the unit as a USDC-native clearinghouse built to take Circle's stablecoin as collateral and settle around the clock. Previously, Coinbase Derivatives cleared trades through Nodal Clear. BlockchainReporter stated that the new registration permits the firm to clear fully collateralized futures, options on futures, and swaps. However, as BlockchainReporter highlighted, the registration does not yet cover margined and leveraged products or planned single-stock perpetual contracts, which will continue clearing through outside partners. Molly Abraham, Coinbase's general counsel, stated that the approval enables the company to bring more regulated derivatives products to market with native USDC collateral and 24/7 settlement, as reported by BlockchainReporter.