Anthropic IPO Bets Hit Crypto: Leveraged Pre-IPO Contracts Offer No Share Ownership

By Kevin · 2026-11-02 · News

Nov. 2 (CandyPulse) — One of the year's most anticipated IPOs is being traded on crypto exchanges before a single share has been sold. With Anthropic's IPO filing in focus, venues including Hyperliquid, Binance and Crypto.com have listed leveraged pre-IPO perpetual contracts that track the company's expected value. The catch: none of them give you any shares.

Key takeaways

Anthropic has filed for a Nasdaq IPO under the ticker ANT; valuation figures reported so far are unconfirmed
Crypto venues list pre-IPO perps that track its expected value, with leverage of up to 10x or more
Contracts traded around $1,870 on Oct. 26, implying a valuation near $1.88 trillion
The contracts give no equity, voting rights, dividends or IPO allocation
Anthropic has urged caution about products claiming to sell its shares to the public

Where the contracts trade

Venue	Product	Leverage (reported)
Hyperliquid	ANT pre-IPO perpetual	Up to 10x
Binance	Pre-IPO perpetual (eligible traders)	Varies
Crypto.com	Pre-IPO perps (eligible institutions)	Varies
Phoenix	Anthropic pre-IPO perpetual	Up to 6x
Polymarket Perps	Anthropic pre-IPO perpetual	Up to 10x
ApeX	Anthropic pre-IPO contract	Up to 20x

What you're actually buying

A pre-IPO perpetual is a bet on a price, not a piece of the company. You can't vote, you won't receive dividends, and holding one doesn't get you an allocation when the shares list. Crypto.com says its contracts carry no equity interest, voting rights, dividends or direct claim to the shares.

The risks

No guaranteed listing: Hyperliquid's expected listing date is its own estimate. If Anthropic hasn't listed by then, the contract settles on its average price since trading began
Withdrawn IPO: Crypto.com says that if an IPO is withdrawn, contracts may settle at zero or another price it sets
Leverage: small moves can wipe out positions fast, as seen in the $52 million chip-stock perps liquidation

Why it matters

Crypto platforms are racing to list exposure to private companies and stocks, from Webull's U.S. crypto perps to tokenized stock venues. It's popular, but it's also exactly where investors need to read the fine print. Our explainer you bought the token, do you own the stock? covers the difference.

What's next

Watch for Anthropic's official IPO terms and date, and how contract prices react. More on our Tokenization page.

Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Leveraged derivatives are high risk and can result in total loss. Pre-IPO contracts do not represent ownership of any company shares. Always do your own research.