FAQs

dYdX Chain is open-source, standalone blockchain software built by dYdX Trading, Inc. (“dYdX”). It’s based on the Cosmos SDK and uses the Tendermint proof-of-stake consensus protocol. It enables decentralized cryptocurrency perpetuals trading. dYdX Chain is the underlying software used by a network to establish a dYdX Chain Deployment, to which users can connect wallets and trade perpetuals.

An app chain, or an application-specific blockchain, is a standalone blockchain that's designed to support specific functionalities very efficiently.

Cosmos is an app chain ecosystem that enables interaction between application-specific blockchains built with the Cosmos SDK, such as dYdX Chain.

Onchain data consists of transactions that occur directly on the blockchain, while offchain data is information the blockchain reads from external sources. Onchain data is transparent and verifiable using a block explorer. Offchain data doesn't offer the same transparency guarantee, but it can be delivered by networks capable of more efficient transactions.

dYdX supports the following wallets: • Metamask • Keplr • Ledger • Trust Wallet • TokenPocket • iToken Wallet • Coinbase • imToken • and any wallet enabled by WalletConnect

dYdX accepts only USDC.

Markets are added by community vote. You can Propose a New Market.

Leverage allows traders to take larger positions than their capital would otherwise allow by borrowing against collateral. dYdX offers leverage up to 25× for certain perpetual contracts. While some centralized exchanges offer over 100× leverage, most traders use low double digit leverage to reduce the risk of losing funds quickly.

Trading limits vary by market. For specific values, refer to each market's configuration. The minimum trade size for a market is a small fraction of that market's asset value in USDC. The maximum trade size is determined by the market's maximum open interest. For large trades, less leverage is available when additional leverage would exceed this maximum.

Margin refers to the amount of USDC you have both to spend and to cover your open positions. When you deposit funds into a dYdX Chain they are added to your cross-margin account by default. Your cross-margin balance is used to settle liquidations for your positions on cross-margined markets. You can use your cross-margin account balance to create and fund isolated margin sub-accounts. Isolated margin is USDC that you have allocated to a specific market and will be used to cover liquidations for that market, without affecting positions using cross-margin funds. This is useful for managing liquidation risk in volatile markets.

If your account value falls below the maintenance margin required to keep your positions open, your positions may be automatically closed by dYdX liquidation software. The dYdX insurance fund takes profits or losses from liquidations.

A dYdX Vault operates as a virtual market-maker, providing liquidity for a market so that users can place orders. Users can deposit USDC into Vaults to earn yield.

Not at this time. dYdX Chain may support spot trading in the future but there are currently no plans to do so. Perpetuals are the focus for dYdX, given the strong market interest from both retail and institutional users in DeFi.