Fees
Fee Types on Lynx
Over the lifecycle of a trade, there are a few different fees that might apply to a trader:
Opening Fee
0.09% (of pos. size)
N/A
N/A
Artificial Spread
0.01-0.02% (depending on the trading instrument)*
0.01-0.02% (depending on the trading instrument)*
N/A
Funding Rate
Floating (depending on the open interest skew)
Floating (depending on the open interest skew)
N/A
Borrow Rate
Floating (depending on liquidity pool's utilization)
Floating (depending on liquidity pool's utilization)
N/A
Closing Fee
0.09% (of pos. size)
N/A
N/A
Liquidation Fee
15% (of collateral)
15% (of collateral)
N/A
Performance Fee
N/A
15% (of the profit) on winning trades, 0% on losing trades + Min. Cost if applicable**
15% (of the profit) on winning trades, 0% on losing trades + Min cost if applicable**
*Applied as a % of the price so your opening price is slightly worse than the actual reported price, it is applied only when opening a trade.
**Per Minimum Cost Per Position, Lynx applies a Min. Cost to ensure that the platform’s services are sustainable and align with responsible trading practices. If the performance fee on a winning trade is less than the minimum cost or if the losses are less than the minimum cost, Lynx will collect a small additional amount to meet the minimum cost threshold.
Opening Fee
Traders are charged an opening fee which is deducted from their initial collateral amount. The opening fee for a trade depends on the collateral asset and traded instrument selected and is calculated as a percentage of the total trade size.
Current opening fees for each collateral asset are listed at the bottom of the trading panel:
For example, assume we're opening a position using 100 DAI initial collateral at 20x leverage and an opening fee of 0.10%.
Pre-Fee Position Size: 2000 DAI = 100 DAI initial collateral * 20x leverage
Opening Fee: 2.0 DAI = 2000 DAI pre-fee position size * 0.10% opening fee
Position Collateral: 98 DAI = 100 DAI initial collateral - 2.0 DAI opening fee
Position Size: 1960 DAI = 98 DAI position collateral * 20x leverage
Artificial Spread
The artificial spread depends on the traded instrument selected and is derived by aggregating that instrument's spread across leading spot markets. The artificial spread is then applied to the current price of the instrument (as reported by the price oracle) to mimic the entry price that would be received on an order-book exchange. Depending on whether the position is long or short, the artificial spread will make the entry price either higher or lower, respectively, than the price initially reported by the oracle.
As the artificial spread uses live data and real market conditions, it is adjusted periodically on Lynx to provide the most current value. Smaller and less liquid instruments receive a higher spread, while large-cap instruments with deep liquidity would receive a lower spread.
For example, assume the price for ETH/USD (as reported by Lynx's price oracle ) is $1500. If the spread for ETH across leading spot markets is 0.02%, the entry price given to traders going long on ETH would be $1500.30 ($1500*100.02%) and those going short would be $1499.70 ($1500*99.98%).
Note: When exiting a position, the price reported by the oracle is used as is with no artificial spread applied.
Funding Rate
The funding rate is a recurring fee mechanism that helps balance long and short open interest on perpetual futures markets. Traders on the more heavily exposed side of the market (typically longs) pay the funding rate, while traders on the less exposed side (typically shorts) receive it—minus a portion that is allocated to liquidity providers (LPs) and to the reserve fund.
Example: If 70% of BTC/USD open interest is long and 30% is short, long traders will pay the funding rate. A portion of this payment is directed to the liquidity pool and reserve fund, while the remainder is distributed to short traders.
Note: In the edge case where 100% of open interest is on one side (e.g. all longs and no shorts), there are no traders on the opposite side to receive funding. In this case, all funding is directed to the liquidity pool and reserve fund.
The funding rate is determined by the imbalance between long and short open interest, known as the skew:
In general, the greater the skew, the higher the funding rate paid by the heavier side.
By rewarding the less exposed side, the funding rate encourages more balanced open interest. This mechanism reduces LP exposure to net P&L: every profitable trade (a liability to the liquidity pool) tends to be offset by a losing trade of similar size (an asset to the pool). Since LPs ultimately remain the counterparty to traders, a portion of the funding rate is diverted directly to the liquidity pool as risk compensation.
The funding rate is displayed on the UI in the following manner:
Negative (red) → You are paying funding
Positive (green) → You are receiving funding
Borrow Rate
The borrow rate is a dynamic fee continuously applied to traders' positions for the time it remains open and is charged against the amount of funds the trader is utilizing in their trade:
For example, a trader with $100 of collateral and a Take Profit of 250% will pay the borrow rate on the utilized amount of $250. This fee is paid by traders and goes towards liquidity providers.
It is important to note that the borrow rate is floating and not fixed, with rates getting updated on a per-block basis. The borrow rate depends on the utilization of the liquidity pool and follows a single kink model, with higher pool utilization resulting in higher rates, acting as a strong incentive to attract additional liquidity.
The current borrow rate is displayed on the UI, expressed as a percentage paid by each trader:
Closing Fee
Traders are charged a closing fee once their position has been closed, be it manually, by TP/SL, or by liquidation. Like the opening fee, the closing fee varies per collateral asset and traded instrument used and is calculated as a percentage of the total trade size at the time of closing:
All Assets
0.09%
For example, assume we're closing a position that used 100 DAI initial collateral at 20x leverage, and there's a closing fee of 0.10%. As calculated above, the position collateral is 98 DAI after the opening fee.
Position Size at Closing: 1960 DAI = 98 DAI position collateral * 20x leverage
Closing Fee: 1.96 DAI = 1960 DAI * 0.10% closing fee
Liquidation Fee
As explained in Liquidations, a trade is eligible for liquidation when its losses and fees - as calculated by Net P&L - reach a threshold equal to 85% of its position collateral. At this point, the position will be closed and the remaining collateral will be taken as a fee, effectively resulting in a 15% fee on the total collateral.
Performance Fee
The performance fee is a unique fee model that applies exclusively to Cat Mode and Up/Down Options trading on Flamix. Unlike traditional fee structures, the performance fee is based on trading outcomes - only profitable trades are subject to this fee, while losing trades pay nothing.
How It Works
When a trader closes a winning position in Cat Mode or Options:
Winners pay 15% of their profits
Losers pay 0%
This creates an asymmetric fee structure that reduces the burden on unsuccessful trades while capturing value from profitable ones.
Example Calculation
Winning Trade Example:
Initial Collateral: 100 USDC
Position closed with 80 USDC profit
Performance Fee: 12 USDC (15% of 80 USDC profit)
Net Profit to Trader: 68 USDC
Losing Trade Example:
Initial Collateral: 100 USDC
Position closed with 40 USDC loss
Performance Fee: 0 USDC
Net Loss to Trader: 40 USDC (no additional fee applied)
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