A perpetual future, or "perp" for short, is a contract that lets you trade on whether a price will go up or down, without owning the thing itself and without a fixed expiry date. Your gain or loss depends on the direction and size of the price move.

A Bitcoin perpetual gives you exposure to Bitcoin's price without buying Bitcoin. The same principle applies to perpetuals tracking stocks or commodities: the contract does not grant ownership of the underlying asset.

How perps work

When you open a perp, you pick a direction:

  • Long means you think the price will go up.
  • Short means you think the price will go down.

You put down some money to back the trade. That deposit is called margin. On Bloxwap, margin is held in USDC, a stablecoin designed to track the US dollar.

Most perps let you use leverage, which multiplies the size of your trade. With 10x leverage, 50 USDC of your own money controls a $500 position. A small price move then becomes a bigger gain, or a bigger loss. Leverage magnifies gains and losses.

Here's a worked example. You go long on Bitcoin with 50 USDC at 10x leverage:

  • Bitcoin rises 2%: the $500 position gains $10, or 20% of your margin.
  • Bitcoin falls 2%: the position loses $10, or 20% of your margin.

These figures exclude fees and funding.

If the position no longer meets the exchange's minimum margin requirement, the exchange can close it through liquidation. This can consume the margin backing the trade. At higher leverage, a smaller adverse price move can reach that threshold.

The funding rate determines recurring payments between long and short holders. Those payments help keep a perpetual's price aligned with its underlying market. Depending on the rate and your direction, you may pay or receive funding while a position is open.

How perps differ from regular futures

A normal ("dated") future has an expiry date, a day when the contract ends and settles. A perpetual has no scheduled expiry to roll over, but you must continue to meet margin requirements and account for funding costs.

The funding rate is the trade-off. A dated future doesn't need one; a perp uses it to stay anchored to the real price.

Why people trade perps

  • No expiry to manage: open and close on your own schedule.
  • Trade both directions: you can profit when a price falls, not only when it rises.
  • Capital efficiency: leverage lets a small deposit control a larger position (with matching risk).
  • No ownership needed: you don't have to hold the actual coin or asset.

Where Bloxwap fits

Bloxwap provides a mobile trading interface for Hyperliquid. Choose your market, margin, and leverage, then:

  • Tap UP to go long.
  • Tap DOWN to go short.

Bloxwap is non-custodial: you control your wallet and trades settle on Hyperliquid. Trading approvals do not grant permission to withdraw funds.

New to the app itself? Start with What is Bloxwap?. To see what you can trade, browse the assets page.

A note on risk

Leverage magnifies losses as well as gains, and liquidation can close your position. Demo mode uses practice funds so you can learn the controls before trading live. Review fees and eligibility, and only trade money you can afford to lose.