Coinbase says it will suspend trading for 12 perpetual futures contracts on May 21 at around 13:00 UTC.
The affected markets are:
- KAITO-PERP
- SENT-PERP
- SAHARA-PERP
- CAKE-PERP
- TOSHI-PERP
- AKT-PERP
- VET-PERP
- ANIME-PERP
- THETA-PERP
- ZK-PERP
- KERNEL-PERP
- BARD-PERP
According to Coinbase, the move is tied to liquidity and market-quality standards. In simple terms, the exchange is reviewing which futures markets have enough trading activity and stability to stay listed.
What happens to open positions?
Traders still holding positions when trading stops will not keep them open indefinitely.
Instead:
- positions will be automatically settled
- settlement will use the average index price from the final 60 minutes before suspension
- the final funding rate before settlement will be set to zero
Coinbase also said it may suspend trading earlier if needed and can adjust settlement pricing if market conditions become unstable.
Why this matters
Perpetual futures are highly competitive products, and exchanges are becoming more selective about which contracts they support.
If a market has:
- weak liquidity
- low trading activity
- unstable pricing
- poor market depth
it becomes harder for exchanges to maintain smooth trading conditions.
That appears to be the main reason behind these removals.
Bigger picture
The crypto derivatives market is changing quickly right now.
Exchanges are:
- reviewing weaker markets more aggressively
- competing for high-volume traders
- focusing on products with stronger liquidity and demand
At the same time, Coinbase has been adjusting other parts of its platform too, including suspending or removing several spot trading pairs and products.
In simple terms
Coinbase is cleaning up parts of its derivatives market and concentrating on futures contracts that have stronger activity and better trading conditions.
