Article 5 · Hyperliquid

Hyperliquid's funding “floor”: how much the carry pays and what breaks it

The spot-versus-perpetual carry paid a few points a year, less and less over time, and it isn't a safe arbitrage.

Read the full article on Substack (in Spanish)

An educational tool, not investment advice. Historical figures, computed with the Modeler's engine; past performance does not guarantee future results.

How much did the spot-versus-perpetual carry pay over the last year?

5.5%a year, carry with portfolio margin

3.0%with an unleveraged short (1x)

−28.3%spot only, unhedged

5.5%BTC

5.2%ETH

−0.8%SOL

8.9%HYPE

Coin → a year, carry with portfolio margin

Annual return on capital

Long spot and short the perpetual: it collects the funding rate with no price risk, except when something breaks.

How it's computed

Real Hyperliquid history from Sep 1, 2025 to Aug 31, 2026 (365 days).

Main figure: differs from the article From the article: Over the last 12 months (through Sep 28, 2026), the carry returned 4.9% on capital in BTC, 5.0% in ETH and 7.9% in HYPE with portfolio margin. The Modeler gives 5.5% with data through Aug 31, 2026 and whole months.

Open it in the Modeler

How much does margin borrowing eat into the BTC carry?

7.1%a year, carry with portfolio margin

5.1%with standard 2x margin

−0.29%its worst drawdown

7.7%0%

7.3%3%

7.1%5%

6.9%8%

6.6%10%

Margin borrow rate → a year, carry with portfolio margin

Annual return on capital

Since BTC spot trading began on Hyperliquid; the borrow rate is the annual rate paid on the margin.

How it's computed

Real Hyperliquid history from Feb 14, 2025 to Aug 31, 2026 (564 days).

Main figure: differs from the article From the article: Since spot trading began, the BTC carry with portfolio margin has returned 6.9% a year net, with a worst drawdown of −0.29%. The Modeler gives 7.1% with data through Aug 31, 2026 and whole months.

Open it in the Modeler