Arbitrage is a low-risk cryptocurrency trading strategy. It involves simultaneously purchasing cryptocurrency in the spot market while taking an equivalent short position in the perpetual futures market, effectively hedging against price volatility. This strategy primarily generates returns through funding fees from perpetual futures. Depending on market conditions, the potential annualized yield can range from 10-50% during bear markets and exceed 100% in bull markets.

Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Pionex mainly offers Exclusive Products and Preferred Products. Products under the Exclusive category require users to meet certain conditions, while all users can access the Preferred products.

Product Comparison

Asset distribution: Please refer to the product page under [Details] - [Product]​

Purchase quota limit: Please refer to the product page under [Details] - [Purchase] - [AI Recommendation] - [Total Quota]​

Users can utilize the AI Recommendation function to quickly filter out products with higher APR that have available quotas, allowing them to easily purchase suitable products for better returns. All users are welcome to use this product until the purchase quota limit is reached.

Note: All the attributes mentioned above may change due to product updates or market fluctuations. Therefore, we recommend users refer to the Arbitrage product page in the app or on the web for the latest information.

How to Invest in Arbitrage

Although Pionex offers various arbitrage products, the purchase process for each product is generally similar. Below, we will demonstrate the purchase steps using the “Exclusive for New Users” product on the web and app.

Step 1: Download/update and log in to the latest version of the Pionex app to access Arbitrage Products.

Step 2: Click on [Earn] in the bottom right corner, then select [Arbitrage]. Choose the product you wish to invest in—in this case, “Exclusive for New Users”. Finally, click the [Purchase] button.

Step 3: Input the desired investment amount, then click [Purchase] followed by [Confirm] to complete your purchase.

Step 1: Open the Pionex website, log in to your account, click on [Earn] in the top menu bar, then click on [Arbitrage]. Choose the product you wish to invest in—in this case, “Exclusive for New Users”. Finally, click the [Purchase] button.

​Step 2: Input the desired investment amount, then click [Purchase] followed by [OK] to complete your purchase.

Q: Does Pionex Arbitrage support cross-exchange arbitrage — for example, buying on one exchange and selling on another to capture the price difference?

A: No. Pionex Arbitrage operates entirely within a single account on Pionex — it buys spot and opens an equivalent short position in perpetual futures to hedge, earning from the funding fee. The entire process happens within Pionex; it doesn't involve any third-party exchange, and it doesn't support connecting to external exchange APIs for automated arbitrage.
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​Q: How can I release the profit?
​​A: After selecting the arbitrage product you invested in, click [More] - [Release Rewards] - [Release All] to transfer your profits to your primary account.

Q: Can I set up a triangular arbitrage strategy on Pionex?

A: Not as a built-in bot. Pionex Arbitrage earns funding-rate income by holding spot and shorting the matching perpetual contract, and it runs entirely within a single Pionex account — the same as cross-exchange arbitrage. There is no ready-made triangular arbitrage bot, where you route through three pairs to capture the pricing difference between them.

You can still build one yourself. The Pionex API gives you spot order placement, balances and market data, so you can run your own triangular logic against your account — see Pionex API: Complete Guide. If you would rather not write the execution layer, the Signal Bot places trades from a TradingView strategy you write yourself.

Q: How can I redeem my invested principal amount?
​​A: After selecting the arbitrage product you invested in, click [More] - [Redeem], enter the amount you wish to redeem, and click [Confirm] to withdraw your principal.

Q: Why can't I see or tap the Redeem button for my principal?
A: If Redeem isn't available, it usually means your principal comes from your Growth Fund balance rather than your own deposited funds — Growth Fund principal belongs to Pionex and isn't freely redeemable like your own funds, though any profit earned still belongs to you.
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​Q: How can I view the asset distribution of the subscribed product?

A: Please refer to the product page under [Details] - [Introduction] - [Current Asset Distribution]

Q: Is the percentage shown on the Arbitrage product page an annualized rate?
​A: Yes. All rates displayed for Arbitrage products (APR%) are annualized percentage rates, assuming the current rate holds constant over a full year — not a daily return or a guaranteed total return.
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​Q: How frequently is the profit distributed to my account?

​​​​A: Once you purchase an arbitrage product, your order will start earning funding fees every 8 hours. The earnings are credited repeatedly until you redeem your principal.

Q: Why did I subscribe at 7:00 (UTC) but not receive interest at 8:00 (UTC)?
A: The accrual start time is the nearest funding-fee settlement point (00:00 / 08:00 / 16:00 UTC) after you place the order. Your first interest payout time = accrual start time + 8 hours. For example, if you subscribe to an Arbitrage product on Jan 1 at 7:00 (UTC), the nearest settlement point is 8:00 (UTC), so 8:00 becomes your accrual start time — this only marks the beginning of interest calculation. You will not receive interest at 8:00; you'll receive your first payout 8 hours later, at 16:00 (UTC).

Q: What is [Exclusive for New Users] product? If I have sign up Pionex for a long time ago, am I still eligible?

A: Yes. There’s no time limit—eligibility isn’t tied to account age. You can purchase it anytime while the subscription quota is available.

Q: What if the pair funding rate settlement frequency is 4 hours? So I receive the interest every 4 hours?

A: No, it will combine the interest generated within the 8 hours and distribute it accordingly with the schedule.

Q: Is there a lock-up period? I received a message stating that redemption is unavailable and must wait for a certain period.

​​​​A: There is no lock-up period, and you can redeem freely. However, due to a large number of orders being processed during the funding fee settlement, earnings are credited within the first 15 minutes after each 8-hour settlement cycle. During this 15-minute window, redemption is temporarily unavailable. After that, you can redeem at any time.

If you are using a Fixed Product rather than Arbitrage, different rules apply — see Fixed Product.

Q: How can I use a bonus coupon for an arbitrage product?
​​​​A: Please refer to the 'Arbitrage Bonus Coupon' article for detailed instructions.
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Q: In the case of a negative funding rate, will I incur any losses?
​​​​A: No, because the Pionex arbitrage product is protected by an insurance fund. A certain percentage of arbitrage profits is withheld to cover potential losses.

Q: When opening and closing spot and futures positions, there may be a spread that leads to losses. Will these losses also be covered by the insurance fund?
​​​​A: Yes, losses caused by extreme market conditions will also be covered by the insurance fund.

Q: If the price moves sharply in one direction, can my arbitrage position be liquidated?

A: Arbitrage holds an equal spot position and a perpetual futures short on the same asset, so a sharp one-sided move is largely offset between the two sides rather than producing a directional loss. On products where Auto-Rebalance is enabled, the two sides are automatically kept matched, and the insurance fund covers losses from negative funding-rate periods and extreme market conditions. Returns are still not guaranteed, and extreme market conditions remain the main risk.

Q: How can I know how much of my arbitrage profits are withheld for the insurance fund?
​​​​A: The exact percentage of arbitrage profits withheld for the insurance fund varies depending on the arbitrage product you use. We recommend checking the instruction page for each arbitrage product, where the insurance fund rate is specified.

Q: I’m currently a VIP and have subscribed to the “VIP Exclusive” arbitrage product. If my VIP status expires, will my allocation be forcibly closed, or will anything else change?

A: It won’t be closed automatically; the funds you’ve already subscribed will continue to operate as usual. However, if you redeem and then try to subscribe again, your VIP-exclusive allocation will show as 0, and you won’t be able to subscribe to VIP-type products at that time.

Q: Regular arbitrage products have a risk reserve. Why does the “VIP Exclusive” arbitrage product have none (shows 0%)?

A: This is a VIP-only benefit. The platform covers the risk reserve cost for VIP arbitrage.

Q: When will the purchase quota for the Arbitrage (Customizable) product reopen once it's used up?

A: The purchase quota does not reopen on a fixed schedule. Availability changes in real time as other users subscribe to or redeem the product, so we recommend checking the product page yourself from time to time — you'll be able to subscribe as soon as quota becomes available.

Q: Under what circumstances can Arbitrage result in a loss?

A: Arbitrage hedges price fluctuations by shorting a perpetual futures contract while buying an equivalent amount of spot, earning funding rate income. The product currently uses a combined margin mechanism that raises capital utilization to 90% (up from 75% under the previous bot-based mode), which leaves a relatively smaller margin buffer. Under extreme market conditions (such as a sharp short-term price swing or a large funding rate shift), a hedge position can still result in a loss order.

Q: If a loss order occurs, does the platform compensate for it? Is there a compensation cap?

A: Yes. The platform sets aside 10% of the funding rate income from each order as a risk reserve fund, specifically used to compensate loss orders under extreme market conditions.