In the past two years, major crypto exchanges have significantly increased their involvement in traditional finance through the introduction of perpetual futures products for stocks, indexes, and commodities. Bitget, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange, noted a significant shift in its business model, with 28% of its trading volume now originating from stock-related perpetuals. Similarly, Binance’s Shunyet Jan stated that traditional exchanges are increasingly adopting trading practices initially developed by crypto platforms.
Crypto exchanges processed $1.32 trillion in perpetual futures tied to traditional assets from January to May 2026, up from $104.21 billion for the entire year of 2025, according to CoinGecko. Monthly volume surged from $230 million in January 2025 to $347.17 billion in May 2026.
A year ago, we didn’t even have a perpetual stock product; 100% of our volume came from crypto,” said Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget. “Traditional exchanges are now adopting products and trading hours first used by crypto platforms,” stated Shunyet Jan.
The integration of traditional assets into the crypto ecosystem reflects the growing acceptance of digital currencies in mainstream finance. As these exchanges continue to diversify their offerings, they are likely to further blur the lines between crypto and traditional financial markets.
Written by Oliver Grant
Markets Desk
