This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.
India’s crypto market is poised for unprecedented growth following the recent launch, with analysts predicting a surge in investment by over 50% this year.
Giottus and WazirX launched global crypto futures trading on May 13, 2026. This marked a shift in India’s digital asset sector. WazirX rolled out rupee-based perpetual contracts.
Futures trading will generate further profits from platform operations and directed toward additional recoveries for eligible creditors who hold Recovery Tokens — WazirX official blog
According to Businesstoday, WazirX officially launched futures trading on May 13, 2026, adding BTC/INR and ETH/INR perpetual contracts. The new platform sets maker fees at 0.02% and taker fees at 0.04%, rates that WazirX claims are currently the lowest among Indian exchanges. Fee compression has sharply divided platforms by depth of liquidity and scale of incentives, and According to WazirX launches crypto Futures with lowest trading fees a…, this will likely spark further pricing wars in Q3 2026.
Their new perpetual contracts are pegged to US equities like Tesla and Nvidia, plus global commodities.
WazirX promotional materials cited by cryptotimes.io confirm up to 10x leverage on listed futures, down from the 20x allowed during an early access trial in March. That $230 million Lazarus Group hack — which froze big swath of user funds — exposed lapses in margin and collateral controls. Data tracked by WazirX launches crypto futures trading as exchange pushes… shows that hefty-scale liquidation cascades during the breach led to renewed focus on platform solvency and risk mitigation. Margin policy is now a principal scrutiny point for Indian authorities and users.
According to WazirX launches crypto futures trading as exchange pushes…, that 85% of frozen user funds have been distributed through unique, non-transferable Recovery Tokens, with 15% of impacted balances still subject to ongoing restructuring.
INR Perpetuals: The Product Design
According to cryptotimes.io, both WazirX and Giottus have designed their INR perpetual futures platforms with mandatory onboarding questionnaires.
Giottus’s product suite now includes access to perpetuals linked to US equity indices and international commodities settled in INR, building a domestic channel for traders to bet on global events without needing to open offshore accounts. According to Giottus expands Futures beyond Crypto with US Equities, M…, this restructuring lets users hedge exposure to both currency and foreign equity movements with a single instrument.
Revenue Pledged to Recovery Token Buybacks
According to cryptotimes.io, WazirX has committed to using all futures trading revenue, net of restructuring expenses, to accelerate the buyback and redemption of the remaining 15% of Recovery Tokens still held by users impacted by the 2023 hack. All incremental profits accrued after ongoing restructuring have been ringfenced for the repurchase of Recovery Tokens, prioritising users with extended lockups.
The timeline and size of monthly buybacks will fluctuate based on aggregate contracts traded and resulting fee revenue. That 15% of tokens holds locked — According to WazirX launches crypto futures trading as exchange pushes…, recovery acceleration now depends directly on platform trading velocity.
Monthly reporting on the rate of Recovery Token buybacks has become the principal metric for user trust.
The $230M Shadow: Security and Solvency Questions
According to BusinessToday, the $230 million cyberattack attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group in 2023 froze a large swath of WazirX user funds, triggering the creation of the Recovery Token program.
Giottus has stated that all client funds supporting new INR perpetuals are segregated from operational pools as part of new risk disclosures, according to cryptotimes.io.
Trust Questions Persist: Regulation and User Protections
According to cryptotimes.io, new user onboarding processes now require knowledge certification — a move welcomed by investor protection advocates.
According to cnbctv18.com, authorities are also exploring capital control implications and liquidity dynamics as INR-based global derivatives volumes climb. If volumes surge and risk disperses across new platforms, the Ministry of Finance may introduce reporting or capital requirement thresholds in late 2026.
India’s Crypto Futures Landscape
According to cryptotimes.io, the latest launches place Indian platforms in direct competition with both domestic and sizable offshore exchanges for the climbing crypto derivatives market. The share of futures contracts denominated in INR is projected to double by Q4 2026, driven by local asset access and regulatory incentives. While global leaders such as Binance and Bybit remain prominent in offshore flows, restrictions on foreign platforms are redirecting meaningful retail and professional interest to compliant domestic venues.
Based on data from BusinessToday, the Indian crypto futures market is forecast to outpace spot trade growth for the rest of 2026, with monthly turnover already exceeding $1.2 billion across all platforms.
Expanding access and market implications
According to cnbctv18.com, the expansion into global futures trading by both Giottus and WazirX addresses a persistent friction point for Indian crypto traders: constrained onshore access to diversified derivatives in rupee terms.
Giottus’s new perpetual contracts tied to US equities such as Tesla and Nvidia offer local traders an unprecedented way to hedge or speculate directly on global tech, commodity, and energy trends — all denominated in INR.
What it means
For retail and professional traders, the direct launch of rupee-denominated global futures by Giottus and WazirX signals a change in the playing field for India’s digital asset industry. According to cnbctv18.com, offering contracts on US equities and international commodities now allows Indian investors to more easily hedge portfolio risks, bet on macro trends, or mimic the strategies of large institutional traders — all without leaving local regulatory frameworks.
According to cnbctv18.com.
Perpetual futures have no expiry date and can be traded perpetually as long as margin requirements are maintained by the trader, making them accessible for continuous market strategies.
The emergence of competitive fee structures — maker fees at 0.02% and taker fees at 0.04% on WazirX.
What to watch next
The outstanding 15% of Recovery Tokens remain locked pending further buybacks.
For Giottus, platform scale will depend on onboarding new retail accounts and ramping up INR liquidity. Capacity to support institutional flows through deep order books and transparent fee policies remains a key differentiator, according to cnbctv18.com. If other Indian exchanges respond with new global futures products or tighter fee structures, the competitive dynamic may intensify, fueling further innovation in contract offerings for local users.
The sector’s next phase hinges not just on product innovation, but on whether these shifts can rebuild trust and deliver durable returns for India’s crypto users.
Sander Lutz is a crypto journalist and contributor at Token Liberty Times (tlt.ng), specializing in crypto policy reporting from Washington D.C.
Current Role: Senior Writer at Decrypt | Contributor at Token Liberty Times
Experience: 5 years in crypto journalism
Expertise: Crypto Policy, Regulation, Washington D.C., Political Risk
Previous Workplace: Decrypt
Credentials: Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University
Social Links:
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Focus: Federal regulatory developments, White House-related crypto news, and crypto intersection with politics and law.
