The perpetual contract market is like a huge gladiatorial arena, where both bulls and bears wield leverage as weapons, and the funding rate is the hidden weapon in the referee's hand — you think you are betting on price fluctuations, but in reality, your fate has long been arranged by the 'liquidation rules.'

When the 'tug of war' becomes a 'meat grinder'

The original intention of the perpetual contract design was beautiful: using the funding rate as a rope to tie prices to the spot market. Bulls give bears red packets, or bears give bulls compensation, a seemingly fair mechanism, but it has completely distorted by today in 2025 — the fee calculation periods of certain exchanges are becoming increasingly 'flexible', and the direction of the fees is becoming more 'mystical', to the extent that there is a saying in the market: 'The funding rate is just a thought away, and liquidation can happen at midnight.'

Masterful duels emphasize 'predicting your prediction', and now the funding rate game has evolved to 'predicting your prediction of the prediction'. An anonymous trader once revealed: 'Now before opening a position, you have to do some divination; predicting the direction of the rate is harder than guessing K-line trends, and the exchange's rake is much harsher than a casino.'

The 'art of raking' at exchanges

Do you think the funding rate is a spontaneously balancing mechanism of the market? Naive.

Some platforms are well aware of the 'boiling frog' strategy: when market sentiment is overheated, they suddenly raise the funding rate, causing high-leverage bulls to die suddenly in their revelry; when bears are pressing, they subtly lower the rate, leading the supposedly safe bulls to get harvested in reverse. Even more absurdly, the settlement time of the funding rate for certain contract varieties is like Schrödinger's cat — until the last moment, you never know how many points will be taken away.

There is a joke to prove it:

One night, contract player A watched the positive funding rate and fell asleep peacefully, dreaming of counting interest and waking up laughing, only to find that his account had been deducted to a negative balance — it turned out the platform 'temporarily adjusted' the settlement rules at 3 AM.

Self-cultivation of retail investors

Want to survive in the dark war of funding rates? Remember three iron rules:

Funding Rate Assassin's Self-Defense Techniques

Don't be deceived by the fairy tale that 'positive rates = guaranteed profits'; funding rates can reverse faster than flipping a book. Real masters will position reversely at the peak of the rates — when everyone online is shouting 'free interest', it's time to be cautious of the scythe being raised.

Time Magic Trap

Avoid the 'death window' one hour before settlement; many platforms choose this timeframe to launch 'rate surprise attacks'. Remember, your pending orders are like prey running naked in the eyes of the exchange.

The Philosophy of Hedging

Instead of betting on the direction of the rate, it's better to play 'arbitrage duet': hoarding coins in the spot market + hedging contracts, profiting from the rate differential is ten times safer than opening a position. A saying from a low-key big player is worth pondering: 'Profits come from errors, and being alive allows for compound interest.'

Dark Forest Survival Rules

The perpetual contract market is no longer a simple bull-bear showdown, but a four-way game involving exchanges, market makers, whales, and retail investors. The latest play in 2025 is:

Whales use zero-fee accounts for market making, while retail investors have to pay 'toll fees'.

Market makers rely on delayed transactions to 'hit points' and earn fees

Some platforms have even been exposed for 'dynamic rate adjustment' black technology.

The final advice:

Don't treat the exchange as a referee — they are athletes with raking machines.

Those who understand have already followed and liked, letting newcomers continue to be lost in the noise. I am trading coins based on first principles, see you next time!

(Tip: This article does not constitute investment advice, markets have risks, and decisions should be made cautiously.)