FAQs
Discover answers to the most frequently asked questions from Vertex users.
Deposits & Withdrawals
If you're depositing into Vertex and / or withdrawing for the first time, please refer to the responses and associated tutorial sections linked below.
Deposits
Why can’t I deposit my ETH?
Only ERC-20 tokens are accepted as deposits. Before depositing, you’ll need to swap ETH for Wrapped ETH (wETH). You can complete this swap via the cross-chain deposit dialogue on the Vertex app.
How do I deposit from other chains or use unsupported tokens?
Vertex’s integration of Axelar allows you to deposit directly into Vertex from 8+ different blockchains in a single transaction. You can also swap unsupported assets on the current chain into tokens that Vertex supports.
How do I deposit from a centralized exchange (CEX) into Vertex?
You’ll need to send supported assets from the CEX to your wallet.
Once you receive your assets in your wallet, return to the [Deposit] dialogue to deposit from your wallet into Vertex.
Withdrawals
There is NO bridging involved with withdrawals.
You can enable the borrowing toggle to borrow assets against your margin.
All successfully placed withdrawals will be processed in batches with other withdrawals. You can monitor your withdrawal status in the [Withdrawals History] tab of the Portfolio Page.
Vertex minimizes user fees by sending transactions on Arbitrum when gas fees are low. All actions on Vertex still happen instantaneously, but withdrawals can take up to 30 minutes or longer during high gas periods.
The 30-minute time-frame is the targeted maximum that a withdrawal will remain pending, as Vertex usually sends the transaction to Arbitrum after this time automatically -- even during high gas periods.
If your withdrawal takes longer, it may be due to persistent and excessively high gas costs.
To track withdrawals' status, visit the Portfolio page's Account History section.
General FAQs
Why do I need to deposit?
Traders must deposit collateral into smart contracts which enables them to take on leverage within the system. The smart contracts are audited and non-custodial, meaning you can withdraw your available funds at any point.
Do I control my assets?
Yes. Only you can trade and access your funds. The smart contracts are non-custodial, which means you are in control of your assets.
Vertex Open-Source Contracts: https://docs.vertexprotocol.com/more/open-source-contracts-and-code-audits
What is unified cross-margin trading, and how does that make Vertex unique?
Cross-margin trading is a type of margin system whereby traders can utilize multiple forms of collateral and margin is shared across positions.
Every asset and liability will have an impact on your margin. This form of portfolio margining lets you make the most of your assets while offsetting liabilities.
Assets: Deposits, Positive PnL, Pools, and Spreads
Liabilities: Perp Positions, Negative PnL, and Borrows
How do I earn interest on deposits?
Interest is automatically earned on asset deposits.
Money markets are integrated into the protocol to facilitate leveraged spot trading and borrowing. All deposits automatically participate in the underlying money market.
The trustless smart contracts on-chain ensure that borrowers always maintain margin requirements.
What are the fees?
Vertex charges low trading fees for executing a filled trade order based on the notional size of the position.
Maker Fees = 0% for ALL markets
Taker Fees = 0.02% for ALL markets
Maker fees are applied to orders that add liquidity to the orderbook, such as limit orders that don’t immediately cross the book.
Taker fees are applied to orders that do immediately cross the book, such as market orders.
Learn more about fees.
Are there take-profit and stop-loss orders?
Yes, traders can set TP/SL orders for open perpetual positions.
Learn more about TP/SL orders.
Why do I have less funds available than what I deposited?
“I deposited $50, why does it say I only have $40 to trade with?”
Your Funds Available represents the value of your collateral weighted by the initial margin weights of the deposited asset. Since this is a cross-margin trading protocol, this means you can utilize different types of collateral as margin.
Because certain types of collateral are more volatile than others, a discounted weight is applied to determine the impact of collateral on your Funds Available.
That said, USDC is 1:1 with face value.
Is there a minimum amount to trade?
There is no minimum deposit amount or minimum $ value per trade.
There is a minimum order size per market. That is, the minimum amount you must buy or sell for that market denominated in the asset - i.e., "ETH" or "ETH-PERP."
Trades that don’t meet the minimum order size will not be valid and the front-end app will prompt you to adjust.
To learn about the minimum order size for each market:
Click on [Market Details]
Why is there a negative sign in front of my asset balance?
A negative sign in front of an asset’s balance means you are currently borrowing that asset.
I didn’t borrow USDC. Why is my balance negative?
This could happen because you have perp positions with negative PnL and non-USDC assets as collateral.
The protocol automatically settles PnL (USDC) between losing and winning positions throughout the duration of holding a position. If you have a perp position with a negative PnL, but you don’t have any USDC, the protocol will borrow USDC on your behalf to settle the PnL.
This results in a negative USDC balance. The same will happen if you close the negative PnL position entirely.
How do I repay borrows?
Click on the [Repay] button:
Balances Table: Click on the drop-down (right-most side).
Navbar: Click on your wallet address (top-right side).
You have 2 options when it comes to Repaying:
Deposit the amount you’re borrowing to settle the borrowed balance.
Convert (sell) another balance to settle the borrowed balance - i.e. sell wETH for USDC to repay a USDC borrow.
Why was my position liquidated if the chart shows that the price didn’t hit my Liq. price?
The Liq. Price displayed in the Perp Positions table is an estimated Liq. Price based on your current account and the position’s health. If you have multiple positions open, the Liq. Price is subject to the health changes of your other positions.
Perpetuals are liquidated based on the given market's Oracle Price - provided by the Stork Oracle. The Oracle Price is submitted to smart contracts based on time intervals or price movements.
When an account gets liquidated, it is because the Oracle Price caused the account to fall under maintenance margin requirements.
How do liquidations work?
An account is eligible for liquidation once either of the following has occurred:
Funds Until Liq = $0
Liq. Risk = 100%
The riskiest positions/balances will get liquidated first, until the account is no longer eligible for liquidation. For more details on liquidations, check out the section here.
What is margin usage?
Margin Usage is the percentage of your initial margin being used by open positions. In other words, it’s how much of your tradable collateral is in use.
If Margin Usage reaches 100%, you cannot initiate new positions.
What is “Funds Available?"
The amount of tradable funds / collateral you have in your account. This is the initial weighted margin you have unused.
If your Funds Available reaches $0, you cannot initiate new positions.
This can also be known as Free Collateral or Available Margin.
What is “Funds Until Liq?”
The amount of funds / collateral in your account until liquidation. If it reaches $0, your account will be at risk of liquidation.
You must maintain a Funds Until Liq. above $0 to avoid being liquidated.
What is Liq. Risk?
The percentage of your maintenance margin that is being used by positions.
Also known as “Maintenance Margin Usage.”
If it reaches 100%, you’re at risk of liquidation.
Low Risk = 0 → 40%
Medium Risk = 40 → 60%
High Risk = 70 → 90%
Extreme Risk = 90 → 100%
What are initial and maintenance weights?
For an exchange that only accepts dollar-pegged collateral, collateral is typically weighted at face value.
In a cross-margin system that accepts multiple forms of collateral, weights are used to discount collaterals that are more volatile. Most trading venues will use 2 weights:
Initial
Maintenance
Initial Weight: Used to determine the amount of collateral an account has to initiate positions - i.e., for trading.
Maintenance Weight: Used to determine the margin to maintain positions - i.e. to avoid liquidation.
Initial vs. Maintenance Margin
Initial and maintenance weighted margins give traders an idea of their account’s health through two metrics: its ability to trade and how close it is to liquidation.
Initial Margin: The amount of funds your account has to trade with. This is the sum of your initial weighted collateral minus initial weighted margin requirements.
Maintenance Margin: The amount of funds your account must maintain before it will be liquidated. This is the sum of your maintenance weighted collateral minus maintenance weighted margin requirements.
For any other questions or feedback, please refer to the Vertex Discord for assistance.
Official Vertex Discord: https://discord.com/invite/vertexprotocol
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