How I learned the bitter way about hidden risk in options — and how you can prevent your money from disappearing too 💰⚠️
By Lucas
On July 17, 2025, I entered a trade that seemed simple: I made a leveraged trade on the BNBUSDT Perpetual pair. With a small margin of about 3 dollars, I managed to open a position that moved more than 250 USDT. The operation was closed with a slight loss, but the system still returned 255 USDT, which were available in my account. Everything was going well… until those 255 USDT disappeared without a trace.
Where did the balance go?
I used the amount to buy options in contracts like BTC, ETH, SOL, and XRP. The prices were low, penny premiums, small quantities. Looking at it from above, it seemed like a calm strategy — nothing aggressive.
But what I didn't know is that, even though the visible amount was small, the system locked practically 100% of my balance as hidden margin, without showing this at the time of purchase. And since all these options expired out of the money (OTM), this margin was completely consumed.
Result? Zero return. 100% of the balance lost. No alerts. No explanation.
What did I learn from this?
🎯 1. Hidden margin exists — and it's silent
When you buy an option with leverage, the system reserves a part (or all) of your balance as margin. This lock does not appear clearly on the interface. If the option expires without profit, the amount is simply consumed without return.
⚠️ 2. The Binance interface still fails in transparency
The options purchase panel does not show how much will be reserved as collateral, nor does it alert about the risk of total loss. You only see the cost of the contract — and think you are operating safely. But you are not.
🛡️ 3. I should have used strategies with protection
Spreads, contracts with longer expirations, hedge positions — all of this reduces margin requirements and allows for controlled trading. I learned the hard way that options with distant strikes and short expirations are traps when there is no clear visibility.
🤝 4. Complaining makes sense — and can help others
I didn't seek a fight or a lawsuit. I wrote firm feedback to @Binance , explaining the problem, asking for improvements to the interface, and offering help to prevent others from going through this. The platform needs to evolve, but we as users can also educate the ecosystem.
What would I do differently now?
✅ I only enter contracts with visible margins and calculated risk
✅ I test operations with minimum lots to understand behavior before scaling up
✅ I use spreads, protection, and risk management
✅ I check all tabs: Transfers, PnL, Fees, Margins, and Exercise History
✅ I demand transparency in future updates — and I help my followers not to fall into the same trap
For you who trade options: maximum attention
If the system doesn't show you what is being locked, you might be assuming more risk than you realize. Be alert, simulate, confirm, ask. Because a penny operation can consume your entire balance — even without liquidation, even without fuss.
If this text helped you — share it. If you have been through something similar — comment. And if you want to learn to trade safely — let's build this together. No one needs to learn the bitter way. 💡💪
— Lucas