# Margin

All **Margin Trade** accounts currently use **cross margin** only.

{% hint style="info" %}
Cross Margin means your entire account balance acts as shared collateral across all open positions within your trading account.
{% endhint %}

Support for **Isolated Margin** will be introduced in a later release.

Leverage lets you control a larger position than your deposited collateral. It also increases liquidation risk.

***

### Margin Modes

#### **Cross Margin (Default)**

In cross margin mode, all positions within your account share a single pool of USDC collateral.

* Profits from one position can offset losses in another.
* Liquidation risk is calculated based on your total account equity (collateral + unrealized PnL).
* Depositing or withdrawing USDC affects the available margin for all open positions.

This design provides maximum capital efficiency for active traders but also means that a loss in one position can impact your overall account health.

#### **Isolated Margin (Coming Soon)**

Isolated margin confines collateral to an individual position.\
Losses in one market do not affect other positions, and margin can be adjusted independently.\
This feature will be available in a future update.

***

### Initial Margin

**Initial Margin** is the amount of collateral required to open a leveraged position.\
It is determined by the following formula:

```
initial_margin = position_size * mark_price / leverage
```

Example:\
If you open a **$10,000 BTC-USDC** position at **10× leverage**, your initial margin requirement is **$1,000**.

You must maintain at least this level of margin to open or expand a position.\
If your available margin is lower, the platform will reject the order.

***

### Maintenance Margin

**Maintenance Margin** is the minimum equity required to keep a position open.\
If your total account value (collateral + unrealized PnL) falls below this threshold, your positions will be liquidated to protect against negative balances.

The maintenance margin rate depends on the market. In most cases, it is roughly **half of the initial margin rate at max leverage**.

Maintenance margin scales dynamically with position size and leverage used.

***

### Leverage Limits

Each market has its own **maximum leverage**, tick size, and risk limits.\
Use [Markets](/perps-specs/markets.md) as the source of truth for current values.

***

### Liquidation Process

If your account’s **equity** (collateral + unrealized PnL) falls below the **maintenance margin requirement**, liquidation will begin.

* The system automatically closes positions to restore margin health.
* Full liquidation will occur when the account is underwater.
* Liquidation prices are determined using the **mark price**, not the last traded price, to ensure fairness.

See [Liquidations](/trading/liquidations.md) for the full liquidation flow.

***

### Managing Margin

Because all Margin Trade accounts use **cross margin**, any changes to your account equity — including PnL from open positions — affect your available margin globally.

You can:

* **Deposit USDC** to increase your available margin
* **Withdraw USDC** only when your remaining equity exceeds all margin requirements
* **Monitor your Margin Ratio** in the trading interface (displayed in the bottom-right account panel)

Maintaining a **Margin Ratio above 100%** ensures you are safe from liquidation.


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