Perpetual Protocol is an on-chain perpetual contracts decentralized exchange (DEX) that allows traders to open leveraged long and short positions for various crypto assets. The project was launched in Taiwan and is backed by some DeFi heavyweights, such as Alameda Research and Multicoin Capital, to name a few.
While the DEX lets you trade various complex financial instruments, its most popular offering is the perpetual futures contract, with a leverage of up to 10x. Perpetual futures are like conventional futures contracts, except they have no expiry date.
The protocol facilitates trading through its highly innovative virtual automated market maker (vAMM), a system similar to the automated market maker (AMM) common among typical DEXs. One difference is there are no real crypto assets stored in the vAMM. Instead, they are stored in a smart contract vault that manages the collateral backing the vAMM.
Perpetual Protocol's native cryptocurrency, PERP, is used for staking rewards and governance. Additionally, 50% of trading fees generated by the DEX go into an insurance fund to provide a safety net and maintain solvency.
