Try my hands at OKEx USDT futures
This week, OKEx, one of the global well-known digital asset exchanges, has launched the USDT margin futures products. As written in my article earlier, the simulation has been ready, and the product will possibly get officially launched at mid of this month.
01 Take an attempt on OKEx USDT futures
After logging in the OKEx website, I select “Derivatives” and find out the “Futures with USDT margin” (Simulation). There are currently three trading pairs BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT and EOS/USDT available on the page, but as mentioned in the official medium blog, 9 trading pairs including BTC, EOS, ETH, LTC, BCH, XRP, ETC, BSV and TRX will be supported.

Also, only limit order type is included in the simulation, but more algo orders like stop limit, advanced limit, etc. could be involved when it is officially launched. Generally speaking, OKEx USDT-margined futures almost have no difference with other similar products in the exchange platform other than the margin type (USDT, not cryptocurrencies), and it also applies the similar scheme, including fixed and cross margin models, 0.01–100 leverages, etc.

After getting the overview of this product, I move forward to have a try and make an order there. The overall system runs quite smoothly, and as you can see, in the simulation, there is 10,000 USDT virtual equity offered to the users so that people can have some real experience. No matter long or short position I have opened, the user interface also follows the similar structure with other future products, thus I don’t have to spend more time studying all the different buttons over there.
The difference is that the P&L in USDT futures is calculated in USDT, not cryptocurrencies. Frankly speaking, it is easier for me to check the profit or loss because the unit is always USDT. Also, I don’t have to switch between different cryptocurrencies if always holding USDT as the margin.

In the USDT futures products, daily settlement process will help users to move unrealized PnL into realized PnL so that the asset can have more liquidation. Hedging instruments like insurance will also be offered to assist traders with more efficient experience.
02 Some other products to be launched soon
As reported, in addition to the futures products, OKEx will also launch the USDT Perpetual Swap at the beginning of Dec officially, and the simulation will get started at end of November. With all these comprehensive USDT-margined products, I personally thought OKEx is trying to show the ambition to explore more market share in the crypto derivatives market. Lennix Lai, Financial Market Director at OKEx, has proved this by saying, “OKEx could roll out further USD-based stablecoin derivatives to provide similar, simplified hedging instruments.”
To this end, OKEx has launched the USDT-margined products which may have the potential to attract more retail users to trade crypto derivatives on the exchange platform. I will follow up with this, and update once there is any further information.
