Institutional crypto derivatives provider Rails announced the launch of “Institutional‑Grade Vaults” on the Stellar network, allowing brokerages, fintechs and other intermediaries to plug into crypto perpetuals via a single backend. The company said it aims to add options trading in Q2 2026.
Satraj Bambra, CEO of Rails, told Cointelegraph the core idea is to separate matching from money. “The critical difference is custody and verifiability,” he said.
Rails runs a centralized matching engine while client assets sit in audited smart contract vaults on Stellar. Every 30 seconds, profit and loss (PnL), fees and liabilities are committed onchain as Merkle roots that institutions can independently reconcile against their records.
Reducing counterparty risk
Rails says the vaults lower counterparty and operational risk by ring‑fencing client collateral from market‑making capital and Rails’ operating funds. Bambra framed the design as a direct response to prior exchange implosions where assets were held in omnibus accounts and clients had to trust internal ledgers.
“If they fail, you become an unsecured creditor in bankruptcy,” he said, pointing to the FTX collapse. He emphasized the lesson: “Separate execution from custody,” and noted that user funds remain in onchain smart contracts rather than on Rails’ balance sheet.
Rails chose the Stellar network for fast settlement finality and its decade‑long track record with banks, remittance providers and tokenized asset platforms. “When you are asking institutions to trust smart contracts holding tens of millions in capital, that heritage matters,” Bambra said.
The company said it has processed more than $3.4 billion in trading volume to date. Rails is registered under the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) and has begun the registration process with the United States National Futures Association (NFA).
Crypto derivatives market context
Derivatives have become a primary venue for crypto price discovery and risk transfer. CoinGlass’ 2025 annual report estimated derivatives trading volume at roughly $85.7 trillion for the year, with average daily turnover around $264.5 billion. Those figures marked record volumes and deeper open interest as institutional traders increasingly used futures and options for price discovery and risk management.
The same report warned that greater complexity and deeper leverage chains have “elevated systemic tail risks.” The Oct. 2025 deleveraging event highlighted how fragile liquidation engines, auto‑deleveraging mechanisms and highly concentrated venues can turn crowded positions into outsized market losses.
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