What are TradFi contracts?
TradFi is short for Traditional Finance. At AstralX, TradFi contracts allow traders to participate in price movements of traditional financial market instruments through contracts, such as precious metals, commodities, and foreign exchange. The trading pairs actually available are subject to those displayed on the trading page.
Trading TradFi contracts does not mean directly holding the underlying asset. For example, trading a gold-related contract does not mean acquiring physical gold; trading a foreign exchange-related contract does not mean directly converting the assets in your account into that currency.
How are TradFi contracts traded?
Traders can establish positions based on their assessment of the price of the underlying asset:
- When expecting the price to rise, you can go long; a price increase may result in a profit, while a price decrease may result in a loss.
- When expecting the price to fall, you can go short; a price decrease may result in a profit, while a price increase may result in a loss.
Contracts typically use margin to maintain positions and may allow the use of leverage. Leverage amplifies profit and loss from price movements relative to the margin invested; if the margin is insufficient to meet the requirements for maintaining a position, the position may be forcibly liquidated.
Which markets can be traded?
AstralX's current TradFi offerings cover categories including precious metals, commodities, and foreign exchange. For example, gold- and silver-related contracts reflect price movements in precious metals; foreign exchange trading pairs reflect relative price movements between two currencies. The quotation unit, contract size, minimum price movement, and margin requirements may differ between underlying assets.
Understanding profit and loss through an example
Suppose the quoted price of a gold contract rises from 3,000 USD per unit to 3,010 USD, and a trader holds a long position corresponding to 1 quoted unit. Under simplified conditions, excluding fees, the illustrative profit resulting from the price movement would be:
(3,010 − 3,000) × 1 = 10 USD
If an equivalent short position were held, the same price increase would result in an illustrative loss. This is not the actual contract face value or profit and loss formula for any AstralX trading pair; actual profit and loss also depend on the quantity represented by each lot/contract, position size, execution price, settlement method, and applicable fees. A 10 USD increase in the quoted price does not mean that every trade will produce exactly 10 USD in profit.
How do the trading hours differ from cryptocurrency contracts?
TradFi instruments are generally affected by the opening hours, closing hours, holidays, and daylight saving/winter time of their reference markets. You cannot assume that all trading pairs are traded 24 hours a day, every day of the year. AstralX's current offerings also list different opening, closing, and settlement periods for different categories.
During market closures or trading suspensions, some orders may not be executed; when the market reopens, prices may also differ from those before the closure. Before trading, you should check the current trading hours and holiday announcements for the selected trading pair, paying particular attention to the risks of holding positions over weekends.
Margin modes and forced liquidation
AstralX's current standard contract specifications list two margin modes: cross margin and isolated margin. Under cross margin, the available funds in the applicable account jointly support the positions; under isolated margin, positions use independently allocated margin. Forced liquidation may occur under either mode.
When the relevant position or account equity falls to or below the maintenance margin requirement, the system may trigger forced liquidation. During rapid market fluctuations, risk may increase within a short period; do not regard receiving a margin call as guaranteed buffer time before forced liquidation.
Trading costs and risks
The actual trading costs for TradFi contracts should be reviewed according to the rates and position-holding rules for the selected trading pair; different categories may be subject to different fee structures. Before placing an order, confirm the contract size, quotation unit, leverage, initial and maintenance margin, trading hours, and any trading and position-holding fees that may apply.
TradFi contracts are subject to both leverage risk and underlying market risk. Prices may move rapidly when economic data is released, significant events occur, markets close for holidays, or market liquidity declines, and orders are not guaranteed to be executed at the expected price.
Disclaimer
This article is provided for product information and educational reference purposes only. It does not constitute investment, trading, financial, or legal advice, nor does it constitute an offer to buy or sell any digital assets. The examples in this article are for illustrative purposes only and do not include factors such as transaction fees or funding fees; actual results may differ.
Product features, trading rules, fees, and page information may be adjusted. If this article differs from AstralX's latest announcements or the information displayed on the trading page, the applicable latest rules and actual page information shall prevail.
Digital asset contract trading involves significant risk. Leverage amplifies the impact of price fluctuations on margin, and you may lose all of the margin invested. Before trading, fully understand the product rules and make prudent decisions based on your financial situation and risk tolerance.