💵PnL Settlements
Open position settlement and account value calculations.
PnL means “profit and loss.” This metric is the current market value of a position minus the cost to open the position.
PnL = Market Value - Cost
On Vertex, you will find two PnL metrics:
Perp PnL = Your total PnL across all open perpetual positions.
Position PnL = A specific position’s PnL.
Perp PnL can be viewed by visiting the Vertex app pages:
Portfolio Overview
Perpetual Positions
Position PnL can be found in the Perp Positions tables on the Vertex app.
Users can also use Account Pins to pin Perp PnL to the top of their Vertex app screen and monitor across different page views.
Account Value
It is important to note:
Account Value does NOT equate to [ Assets - Borrows +/- Perp PnL ]
Instead:
Account Value = Assets - Borrows +/- Unsettled USDC
Balances will change constantly as USDC is automatically settled on the backend from perpetual trading into balances.
Eventually:
There is no economic effect to traders, BUT Assets and Borrows will change over time as PnL is settled. This process is covered in more depth below.
Perpetual Settlements – Settled & Unsettled USDC
First, it’s important to define two types of open positions within the context of settlement on Vertex.
Winners: Open positions with positive PnL.
Losers: Open positions with negative PnL.
A settlement happens when there is a transfer of USDC from Losers to Winners. At this point, balances are altered accordingly.
Since this process is happening continuously, the lifetime PnL of a perpetual trade can be broken down into two parts:
Unsettled USDC
Settled USDC
Unsettled USDC = USDC that is yet to be transferred between accounts.
If positive, users can expect the displayed amount to be deposited into their USDC balance.
If negative, users can expect the displayed amount to be removed from their USDC balance.
This happens continuously and automatically while holding an open position. There is no action required by users.
Settled USDC = PnL that has already been transferred to the current USDC balance on the Portfolio Overview page on the Vertex app.
Users can view their Unsettled USDC balance by clicking on the icon beside Perp PnL. There is also an Unsettled column in the Balances Table that displays it.
This will vary up and down depending on the volatility of positions. It is NOT necessarily related to the lifetime PnL of positions. For example, a positive PnL CAN have a negative settlement, and a negative PnL CAN have a positive settlement, depending on how long the positions are held and how much they move.
Settlement History can be viewed by navigating on the Vertex app UI to:
Portfolio → History → Settlements Table
Closing a Position -- Settlements are automatic when closing a trade, and any remaining unsettled USDC will be realized into the USDC balance. When closing a position, any remaining unsettled USDC will be settled into the trader's USDC balance. This settlement will normally occur within a few minutes.
Changing USDC Balances -- Users with open positions will notice changes in USDC balances over time. This is due to PnL being settled on the backend. It is normal behavior and will not affect the ability to trade.
What if users don’t have USDC and have negative PnL? PnL will continue to settle. Users without USDC but positive account health will borrow USDC automatically.
Users are advised to keep note of the above as they manage risk.
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