A perpetual swap, also called a perp, is a derivative contract with no preset expiration date. The contract gives a trader price exposure to an underlying asset without requiring the trader to hold that asset. Contract design, collateral, and settlement rules depend on the exchange.
Price Reference and Funding
A dated futures contract has an expiration date and a settlement process. A perpetual contract has no scheduled expiry. Exchanges use a funding mechanism to influence the gap between the contract and its reference market. Funding payments move between eligible long and short positions under the venue's formula.
The funding schedule can differ across exchanges and contracts. A trader should check the instrument rules for settlement times, rate limits, collateral, and mark price.
Linear and Inverse Contracts
A linear contract quotes profit and loss in a stablecoin or quote currency. An inverse contract can quote value in the underlying asset. The contract multiplier changes how a price move affects the account, so traders should read the exchange specification before calculating exposure.
Example
A trader opens a $10,000 linear BTC perpetual position with $1,000 of initial margin. That is 10 times notional exposure relative to the posted margin before fees and other account adjustments. A 1% move in BTC changes the position's unrealized PnL by about $100 before fees and funding. The exchange can require more margin as prices and account conditions change.
Perpetuals carry market, liquidity, funding, and liquidation risk. Read Funding Rate, Margin, Mark Price, and Index Price. The Funding Rate Guide covers payment calculations. For venue-specific contract details, see Hyperliquid's contract specifications and Bybit's perpetual-contract overview.