💰Trade & Earn
Earn VRTX by trading. Unlock opportunities with every trade.
On Vertex, every trade is an opportunity to earn. With a cutting-edge, orderbook-based DEX, you unlock the speed and precision of centralized exchanges while staying true to the principles of decentralized finance (DeFi).
Whether you're trading spot or perpetuals, Vertex rewards you with VRTX tokens for simply doing what you do best – trading.
Built across five chains, with Arbitrum as its core, Vertex delivers the performance, flexibility, efficiency, and seamless experience you need to thrive in today’s fast-paced DeFi landscape.
Trade. Earn. Repeat.
How It Works – Earn VRTX Rewards by Trading
Vertex’s "Trade & Earn" program is an ongoing initiative that rewards users for engaging with its high-performance trading platform. By actively participating, traders accumulate VRTX rewards simply by executing trades on Vertex Edge across these supported chains:
Arbitrum
Base
Mantle
Sei
Vertex users can earn rewards while capitalizing on the platform's high-performance orderbook between chains to seamlessly execute their trades. The VRTX trading rewards are available to all Vertex users, including both makers and takers.
With Vertex’s pioneering synchronous orderbook, users can enjoy trading rewards on top of Vertex’s distinct features, including:
Lightning-fast transactions with minimal slippage.
Unified liquidity between 5 different chains – all in a single orderbook.
Cross-margin efficiency for seamless asset utilization.
Trade execution with extremely low fees.
Native yield on deposits.
Borrow or lend in the embedded money markets – including multiple collateral types.
Self-custody – only you have control over your assets.
Ongoing Incentives Phase (Active)
The Ongoing Incentives Phase is the active stage of Vertex’s Trade & Earn program, allocating 34% of the total VRTX token supply to reward both makers and takers on the platform.
Key Highlights
Active Now: This phase began on November 8th, 2023, with Trade & Earn Epoch #8 and will run for the next 5+ years.
Claim Rewards: Accrued rewards are typically available within 3 days after each Epoch ends.
Unclaimed Rewards: Rewards must be claimed within 30 days of availability; unclaimed tokens are returned to the Protocol Treasury.
No Restrictions: Rewards have no vesting periods or caps, providing immediate and flexible value to users.
Program Structure
With 340 million VRTX tokens distributed over 72+ Epochs, the Ongoing Incentives Phase represents a long-term commitment to rewarding traders.
Epoch Duration: 7 days
Total Rewards Pool: 340,000,000 VRTX tokens
Monthly VRTX Emissions Details:
Whether you’re providing liquidity as a maker or executing trades as a taker, Vertex ensures every trade counts.
How to Earn VRTX Trading Rewards
1. Execute Trades
Trading on Vertex is designed to be effortless yet rewarding. Whether you are trading spot and / or perpetuals, each executed trade contributes to your eligibility for rewards.
For every trade you make, Vertex allocates trading rewards – distributed to users on a weekly basis.
Rewards are distributed in VRTX, Vertex’s native utility token, which can be staked to further amplify your benefits or reinvested into your trading activities.
2. Earn Trading Rewards
For every trade you make, Vertex allocates reward points based on factors such as:
Trading Volume: Higher volumes yield greater rewards.
Asset Pairs: Certain trading pairs may offer enhanced incentives. See the market specifications table for more details.
A fixed pool of VRTX tokens are available to traders each epoch – weekly. VRTX rewards are allocated to users on a pro-rata basis relative to the total pool size of VRTX for that epoch of weekly trading.
The total pool of available VRTX trading rewards each epoch (weekly) are split between makers and takers as follows:
Makers = 75%
Takers = 25%
Taker Rewards – VRTX
Taker rewards are calculated for each user pro-rata as a percentage of the total pool of taker fees paid by users in a given weekly epoch.
A taker order qualifies as any order that immediately crosses the book and takes liquidity, such as filled market orders.
Maker Rewards – VRTX
The Vertex Maker Program offers VRTX trading rewards allocated to Q-score function for qualified makers that prioritizes:
Market Support
Uptime
Fees
On Vertex, makers do not incur trading fees. The "fees" eligibility mentioned above refers to the fees paid by takers on the other side of the maker's order.
The scoring function is as follows:
The minimum depth and maximum spreads for makers per market are as follows:
Depth:
$25K for stables.
$5K for core markets (BTC & ETH).
$2.5K for alt markets (non-BTC & non-ETH).
Spreads:
10 bps for stables.
30 bps for core markets (BTC & ETH).
50 bps for alt markets (non-BTC & non-ETH).
Sequencer Fees are not included in the Trading Rewards calculations for either makers or takers -- meaning they do not generate VRTX rewards.
Trading Fees
Trading fees on Vertex follow the structure below across all chains supported by Vertex Edge.
3. Maximize Your Earnings via Staking
Staking VRTX enhances your ability to earn and compound rewards. By locking your tokens into Vertex’s staking pool, you unlock:
Auto-Compounding Rewards: Staking rewards automatically compound, boosting long-term returns without manual input. USDC from trading fees is used to buy back VRTX, which is allocated as yield rewards to stakers in the staking pool contract.
Immediate Access to Maximum Staking Rewards: Users can stake at any time and instantly earn maximum yield, simplifying the process and encouraging wider engagement.
Flexible Unstaking Options: Users can unstake with a 14-day cooldown or opt for immediate unstaking with a 10% penalty, incentivizing patience and loyalty. Penalties are redistributed to the staking pool to enhance the following week's yield rewards for long-term stakers.
Sustainable Rewards Model: The total VRTX staking yield can be broken down into 3 primary streams:
Base APY: A portion of the VRTX emissions saved from recent reductions in trading incentives are allocated to generate additional yield for stakers. This yield will start at an annualized rate of 15% and gradually taper to 1.5% over the course of three years.
Fee APY: Trading fees will be used to buy back VRTX and add it to the staking pool. Initially, 50% of all protocol fees will go toward these buybacks, gradually increasing to 100% of total protocol revenue.
Loyalty APY: Participants who bypass the 14-day cooldown period will incur a 10% early unstake penalty. The revenue from these penalties will be redistributed as additional staking yield for long-term participants.
Getting Started
Ready to trade and earn on Vertex? Here’s how to dive in:
Connect Your Wallet: Visit the Vertex app and connect your compatible wallet.
Fund Your Account: Deposit assets across supported chains to start trading.
Start Trading: Execute your first trade and begin accruing VRTX rewards immediately.
Stake Your Rewards: Enhance your earnings by staking VRTX and unlocking additional benefits.
Full tutorial on how to get started → https://docs.vertexprotocol.com/tutorials/quick-start
Vertex simplifies DeFi by making every trade an opportunity to grow.
Whether you’re a seasoned trader or just entering the space, Vertex transforms your trading journey into a rewarding experience with the tools you need to excel as a trader.
Disclaimer – Vertex and its affiliates intend to offer a token rewards program to distribute governance tokens to a decentralized community in connection with the anticipated launch of the Vertex DAO. Terms and conditions of the token rewards program are subject to change. There can be no assurance that the token distribution program or the DAO will be launched or that rewards will be available related to participation on Vertex Protocol or otherwise. Vertex will consider legal, regulatory, and any other matters deemed relevant in connection with its decision to launch a token distribution program and a DAO.
*Wash trading on Vertex is strictly prohibited and explicitly banned under Vertex’s Terms of Service.
Attempts to wash trade on Vertex in any capacity, whether to manipulate the VRTX Trading Rewards or for any other reason, will be dealt with swiftly and appropriately.
Wash trading typically involves two accounts trading directly against each other to induce artificial market activity with specific intent. The trading usually comprises the vast majority of their volume and is trivial to detect. It is difficult to accidentally wash trade, and suspected cases of wash trading will be flagged rapidly as evidence emerges.
Addresses involved in wash trading on Vertex will be excluded from all Trading Rewards epochs. Complicit accounts will also have their addresses published as part of an ongoing list of excluded wallets from the Vertex Trading Rewards. Further actions deemed necessary may also be taken against wash trading accounts based on the circumstances.
Any impact across relevant exchange data (e.g., volume, trading fees, etc.) from wash trading on the Trading Rewards for a given epoch will be vacated, meaning regular users' VRTX rewards will NOT be diluted by wash trading activity.
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