Want to use crypto as collateral to trade perpetuals without selling first? Kalshi and BitGo have made that possible.
Bloomberg reported on October 21 that prediction-market platform Kalshi and custodian BitGo have established a triparty collateral arrangement. Customers of Kalshi Prime, Kalshi’s U.S.-registered futures commission merchant, can pledge digital assets held at BitGo Bank & Trust to Kalshi Katalyst, an affiliated lending firm, and use the borrowed funds as margin for perpetual futures on Kalshi’s main exchange.
Eligible collateral initially includes three categories: $BTC, $ETH, and stablecoins deemed compliant with the GENIUS Act. More custodians may be added later. Kalshi Prime CEO Jeff Bandman put it plainly: people who don’t want to sell their Bitcoin, and Latin American businesses holding only dollar-pegged stablecoins, can keep their assets while opening positions.
A reminder: this is “borrow against collateral → post margin,” not magic that turns coins directly into margin; leverage, liquidation, and borrowing rates are all covered in the fine print. This is not investment advice.