Kalshi plans CPI futures market for December launch

Kalshi is preparing to launch exchange-traded futures contracts linked to the Consumer Price Index, targeting a December debut, according to people familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg.

The contracts would track both headline CPI and the core inflation gauge that excludes food and energy costs. Kalshi has partnered with Michael Ashton, a former Barclays trader who now runs Enduring Investments, to design the contracts and approach institutional investors. Ashton described the ambition plainly: Kalshi wants to be the inflation exchange.

No exchange currently offers futures linked directly to CPI. The gap puts Kalshi in potential competition with CME and Intercontinental Exchange for traders active in interest-rate and bond markets. CEO Tarek Mansour told Bloomberg TV that existing tools for pricing inflation have been inadequate, and the new contracts are Kalshi's answer.

The move follows CFTC approval in September for Kalshi to list precious metals perpetual futures, and a separately announced plan to expand into foreign exchange, metals and energy derivatives. The CPI product would extend that expansion into a market where institutional demand is directly tied to Federal Reserve policy expectations.