Backpack US taps ex-SEC chief Piwowar as it targets US…

Crypto exchange Backpack US has appointed former SEC Acting Chairman Michael S. Piwowar to its board of directors, signaling an aggressive push into U.S.-regulated perpetual futures trading. Piwowar, who served as an SEC commissioner from 2013 to 2018 and briefly as acting chairman in early 2017, called the current moment "different from prior cycles" due to "growing momentum toward regulatory clarity and durable market infrastructure."

Why it matters

The hire is a deliberate regulatory credentialing move. Backpack US President Mark Wetjen — himself a former CFTC commissioner and acting chairman — framed the CFTC's recent approval of Kalshi's regulated bitcoin perpetual futures contract as "a defining moment," adding that "what was once only available offshore is now on a path to U.S.-regulated exchanges." With both a former SEC and a former CFTC chair now inside the company, Backpack is assembling the kind of regulatory pedigree that smooths the path to U.S. perps licensing. The exchange already offers regulated perps in the EU, so the infrastructure exists — the gap has been U.S. regulatory access.

Market impact

The appointment lands as Backpack broadens its product surface rapidly: a stock trading platform offering traditional and tokenized equities launched earlier this month, and the company has signaled IPO ambitions backed by a proposed post-IPO treasury holding 37.5% of its 1 billion exchange token supply, plus an equity-linked staking model offering users 20% of corporate equity. For the broader crypto perps market, the CFTC's Kalshi approval and Backpack's regulatory hires together suggest the U.S. onshore perps window is opening faster than many expected — a structural shift that offshore-dominant perps venues will need to price in.