On Wednesday, the Chicago-based crypto derivatives exchange Bitnomial launched the first regulated futures contract for the crypto Aptos (APT), coinciding with the network reporting record highs in daily fee and weekly fee generation in early 2026.
“These are the first U.S. APT futures, and a regulated futures market is a prerequisite for spot crypto ETF approval under the SEC’s generic listing standards,” said Michael Dunn, president of Bitnomial Exchange.
The launch coincides with Aptos achieving its highest revenue period, generating about $1.07 million from fees on December 31. This peak was sustained for weeks, with the week ending January 4, generating up to $1.75m.
Institutional money is also flowing in: Franklin Templeton and BlackRock have already deployed tokenized funds on Aptos, which now hosts $723 million in real-world assets.
First regulated APT futures open institutional gateway
Bitnomial’s APT futures began trading on January 14 and is available through Bitnomial’s trading partner firms. After launch, institutional clients gained immediate access to trading, while retail traders will participate through Bitnomial’s Botanical platform in the coming weeks.
The futures contracts expire monthly and give traders the option to settle in either Aptos tokens or U.S. dollars. Additionally, traders can put up collateral in either crypto or dollars.
The exchange offers the first Aptos futures that are regulated in the United States. Futures products like Bitnomial’s create the necessary infrastructure for future ETF approvals as regulatory frameworks change.
“U.S.-regulated derivatives are essential for institutional adoption,” stated Solomon Tesfaye, chief business officer of Aptos, who also noted that Bitnomial’s regulated platform provides investors with the compliance framework required to access Aptos.
Aptos has seen RWA explosion
Major financial institutions have recognized Aptos’ potential for regulated applications. Built with the Move programming language, Aptos processed about 2 billion mainnet transactions in 2024. Monthly active users surged to over 8 million accounts with daily active addresses up to 1.77 million in December, and total value locked growing approximately 700% through 2024 to exceed $1 billion.
Franklin Templeton chose Aptos to host its On-Chain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), while BlackRock’s BUIDL tokenized money market fund also deployed on the network. The blockchain is also the third-largest network for real-world assets, with about $723 million issued on-chain. PACT’s micro-lending and credit portfolios in emerging markets represent 78% of the RWA footprint.
Bitnomial’s milestone underscores Aptos’ maturing ecosystem at a moment when institutions seek compliant ways to tap its growth.
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