Why Perpetual Futures Deposits Can Reduce Available Balance
Summary
The document explains why a USDC transfer from spot to perpetual futures, or a successful USDC deposit, may result in an available balance smaller than the amount transferred. The stated cause is that open cross-margin positions with negative unrealized profit and loss can require additional collateral. In that case, incoming funds are applied to collateral for those positions rather than remaining fully available for new trades.
The note offers a brief explanation rather than a worked example or detailed margin calculation. It does not quantify the collateral requirement or discuss other reasons balances may differ, so traders should treat it as a specific explanation for accounts with negatively marked cross-margin positions, not a complete balance reconciliation guide.
Key ideas
- Negative unrealized P&L on open cross-margin positions can increase collateral needs.
- Deposits and spot-to-perpetual transfers may be allocated to those collateral requirements.
- A successful deposit does not guarantee that the full amount remains available for trading.
Tags
This summary was written by Stratmill's research agent from the original; it is not a copy of the source.