Kraken Futures: The Complete, Actionable Guide

Everything you need to trade Kraken Futures with confidence—contract types, margin and leverage, funding and fees, order execution, hedging, basis trades, automation, and professional risk controls.

What Are Kraken Futures?

Kraken Futures are crypto derivative contracts that allow you to go long or short with leverage on assets like BTC and ETH. Positions are collateralized by margin and settled in crypto or stablecoin depending on the contract design. Futures are powerful tools for hedging, capturing directional moves, and deploying basis/funding strategies—provided you use disciplined risk management.

Key concepts you will master in this guide: the difference between perpetual swaps and dated futures, how funding and fees affect P&L, and how to size risk by stop distance rather than by maximum leverage.

Contract Types & Settlement

Perpetual Swaps

Perpetual futures have no expiry. They track the underlying via a periodic funding rate paid between longs and shorts. If the perp trades above the index price, longs usually pay; if it trades below, shorts usually pay.

Dated (Expiring) Futures

Dated futures have fixed settlement dates (e.g., weekly, monthly, quarterly). They are popular for basis trades—buy spot and sell futures (or vice versa) to capture the spread. At expiry, contracts settle to an index; P&L is realized automatically.

Linear vs. Quanto

Linear contracts are margined/settled in the quote asset (e.g., USDT/USDC) and simplify P&L; quanto contracts use a different collateral unit and can introduce conversion risk. Beginners should focus on linear perps.

Margin Modes, Leverage & Liquidation

Isolated vs. Cross Margin

  • Isolated: Margin is ring-fenced to the position; liquidations won’t consume the rest of your futures wallet.
  • Cross: Your available balance backs all open positions; can reduce liquidation risk for one trade but increases overall exposure.

Portfolio/Unified Margin

With advanced margin, the platform considers offsets (e.g., spot hedges) to calculate maintenance requirements. Use only if you understand scenario risk across assets and expiries.

How to Think About Leverage

Choose leverage last. Start with risk per trade (e.g., 0.25–1.0% of equity), define your invalidation, and compute size: position size = (equity × risk%) ÷ stop distance. Leverage simply closes the gap between your collateral and the notional required for that size.

Liquidation Mechanics

Liquidation is triggered when your margin falls below maintenance after fees and adverse moves relative to the mark price. Do not “use liquidation as a stop.” Place hard stops and honor them.

Funding, Fees & Index/Mark Prices

Funding on Perps

Funding is paid only if you hold a position across the funding timestamp. It can be a meaningful cost or benefit during strong trends. If you trade around funding, factor it into expected value or flatten before the window.

Trading Fees

Fee tiers usually differentiate maker (limit) vs. taker (market). Maker is typically cheaper. Over many trades, execution style materially impacts returns—use limit orders where practical.

Index & Mark Prices

The index price blends multiple spot venues to reflect fair value; the mark price helps protect against manipulation and is used for unrealized P&L and liquidation checks. Always watch the mark when managing stops and triggers.

Order Types & Execution Playbook

Core Order Types

  • Limit: Precise price, adds liquidity; pair with post-only to ensure maker.
  • Market: Immediate fill; reserve for emergencies or small size.
  • Stop / Stop-Limit: Automate exits or breakouts; link triggers to the mark price for consistency.
  • Trailing Stop: Follows the move and locks gains without fixed targets.
  • OCO: One-Cancels-the-Other—combine a stop with a take-profit.

Execution Tips

  • Plan entries at levels (retests, VWAP, prior highs/lows) rather than chasing momentum candles.
  • Size from the stop; adjust leverage to reach that size, not vice versa.
  • Scale out at structure (opposing liquidity, volatility multiples) and trail remainder.

Core Strategies (Hedging, Basis, Short-Term)

Hedging Spot BTC/ETH

Hold spot but want to neutralize risk temporarily? Short the corresponding perp or dated future. Track basis and funding so the hedge doesn’t leak value.

Cash-and-Carry Basis

Buy spot and sell dated futures when the term structure is rich; hold to expiry or unwind early if the spread compresses. Watch borrow rates, fees, and operational risk.

Short-Term Trading

Combine structure (HH/HL or LH/LL) with intraday anchors (e.g., VWAP re-tests) and strict stops. Record outcomes in R to evaluate edge independent of position size.

Risk Management Framework

  • Per-trade risk: 0.25–1.0% of equity.
  • Daily loss cap: 2–3%; stop for the day once hit.
  • Max concurrent exposure: Limit the number of correlated positions.
  • Isolated for experiments, cross for liquid majors with conservative sizing.
  • Funding awareness: Don’t let repeated funding windows turn a good idea into a cost center.
Futures amplify both profits and losses. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Your first line of defense is position sizing.

API, Automation & Alerts

Automating your futures workflow can cut slippage and improve consistency. If you use custom scripts or bots, enforce:

  • Idempotent order logic (no duplicate submissions on reconnect).
  • Hard stop placement with every entry; server-side if available.
  • Daily loss kill-switch and per-trade risk embedded in code.
  • Webhook alerts from your charting platform for manual confirmation when needed.

Quick Cross-Exchange Notes (Bitget, Bybit, MEXC)

Many active traders keep multiple venues for redundancy and spreads. For copy-trading infrastructure and conservative BTC-first strategies, some users also consider BITGET. Day-traders often compare liquidity and taker fees with BYBIT, while certain alt pairs occasionally show tighter quotes on MEXC. Always validate liquidity, funding, and fees before sizing up.

FAQs

What’s the difference between Kraken perpetuals and dated futures?

Perpetuals have no expiry and use funding; dated futures settle on a fixed date to the index, which is useful for basis trades and event positioning.

Is isolated or cross margin better for beginners?

Isolated. It ring-fences risk to a single position. Use cross only on liquid majors with conservative sizing and a clear plan.

How much leverage should I use?

Work backward from risk. If you risk 0.5% and your stop is 1% away, calculate the size and then choose leverage that achieves it—never the other way around.

Do fees and funding matter for intraday trading?

Yes. Taker-heavy execution and repeated funding can erode returns. Favor maker orders and be mindful of funding timestamps.

Can I hedge my spot BTC with Kraken Futures?

Yes. Short the corresponding perp or dated future to neutralize delta temporarily. Track basis and funding to keep the hedge efficient.