Frequently Asked Questions

LedgerX LLC offers Bitcoin mini options, swaps and futures; and Ethereum Deci options and swaps. You can trade using mini/deci contracts that were designed to provide individual investors access to bitcoin and ethereum derivatives. 

LedgerX mini contracts are the standard contract size for all Bitcoin products listed on the exchange and is equal to one hundredth (1/100) of a bitcoin, or 0.01 BTC.

1 contract = 0.01 BTC; 100 contracts = 1 BTC.

LedgerX Deci contracts are the standard contract size for all Ether products listed on the exchange and is equal to one-tenth (1/10) of ethereum, or 0.1 ETH.

1 contract = 0.1 ETH; 10 contracts = 1 ETH.

LedgerX is a derivatives exchange, not a spot exchange, so our product structure is based on our contract size, which is 0.01 BTC/ 0.1 ETH.

Account

How can I contact LedgerX?

We're here to help! You can reach us by emailing support@ledgerx.com.

How can I open a LedgerX account?

You can open an account on start.ledgerx.com! The application is easy and only takes 5 minutes. Applications are generally approved within 24 hours. 

LedgerX customers are required to provide a document that reflects being a U.S. resident, including a driver's license, state ID, passport, passport card or permanent resident card. 

  • Full name
  • Email address
  • Date of birth
  • Address details
  • ID document
  • Social Security Number (SSN)
Can non-U.S. individuals open an account?
Not yet! Trading on LedgerX is currently only available to all United States individuals in all 50 states and the United States territories. We hope to expand to additional jurisdictions soon!

We are currently accepting company/institution applications for:
  • United States (US), Cayman Islands, or British Virgin Islands (BVI) entities
  • Entities wholly owned or managed by a United States entity/individual
How can I open a company account?
We are currently accepting company/institution applications for:
  • United States (US), Cayman Islands, or British Virgin Islands (BVI) entities
  • Entities wholly owned or managed by a United States entity/individual

Documents required for the company application:
  • Certificate of Good Standing
  • Organizational Documents such as LLC Operating or Partnership Agreement and Registration Certificate, Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws, or other organizational documents
  • Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policy. If your entity does not need an AML letter because it does not accept outside funds, please upload a signed document with this statement.
  • Beneficial Owner IDs
  • Legal Entity Identifier (can request from https://lei.bloomberg.com/ and it generally takes less than 24 hours). We are required to obtain this for regulatory reporting

Start your company application here.

We do not support self-directed IRA accounts or trust accounts right now. We hope to accept self-directed IRAs and trusts in the future.

What is an Eligible Contract Participant (ECP) and Block Trading?
Institutional accounts on LedgerX must qualify as an Eligible Contract Participant (ECPs). An Eligible Contract Participant (ECP) is a special category by the CFTC for entities (corporations, trusts, brokerage firms, etc.) or high net worth individuals that allows them to engage in certain financial transactions that are not open to all investors. Block trading and options portfolio netting are available to institutional accounts.

Participants can qualify as an ECP in a number of ways, such as meeting a net asset requirement: net assets exceeding $1 million for entity accounts hedging risk or $5 million for individual investors if hedging risk. If you qualify to be an ECP and are interested in learning more, you can contact us at sales@ledgerx.com.
Can I add another user to my account? 
Add/Edit users on the fly under the account settings tab of your profile.

1. Sign in to your LedgerX account and navigate to the "account settings" section. This can be found on the left-hand pane of your dashboard. 

2. Add users on an ad hoc basis and customize permission levels specific to each user.  View specifics on user permissions and roles. 

3. Easily navigate between Active/Inactive users. Users can have their own 2FA set up when their status gets switched to active. 

Note: To change your email address or phone number, contact support at support@ledgerx.com 

Funds Overview

What are fully-funded contracts?

LedgerX contracts are fully funded. LedgerX does not allow uncovered or naked short options positions. You must post the underlying when going short meaning you will post BTC/ETH for short calls and post the USD strike price for short puts.

When you buy an option, you will pay the seller the premium at the time of the trade. You need USD to buy options.

  • Buy Options: pay a premium in USD
  • Sell Calls: post BTC/ETH collateral
  • Sell Puts: post USD strike price collateral
Is there a minimum deposit amount?
There is no minimum deposit required but LedgerX does have a minimum trade size. For example, if you are looking to sell 20 call options, you will need to deposit 0.2 BTC to cover the collateral.

Bitcoin mini contracts: 1/100 BTC (0.01 BTC)
ETH Deci contracts: 1/10 ETH (0.1 ETH)

Note that we are a derivatives exchange, not a spot exchange, so our product structure is based on our contract size, which is 0.01 BTC/0.1 ETH.
Does LedgerX have trading and withdrawal fees?
View the LedgerX trading and withdrawal fees here. We do not charge delivery fees.

Trading

LedgerX offers mini options, mini futures and mini swaps on bitcoin and; Deci options and Deci swaps on ethereum. Our exchange is open 24x7. See full details here. 

Options

LedgerX options are European-style options that are only exercisable at expiration. The full contract specifications for LedgerX mini options are available here. LedgerX does not auto-exercise in-the-money options at expiration.

Option Collateral
Long (Buy) Call Pay premium in dollars (buy 100 BTC/ 10 ETH contracts, pay USD premium)
Short (Sell) Call Post BTC (sell 100 contracts, post 1 BTC); Post ETH (sell 10 contracts, post 1 ETH)
Long Put Pay premium in dollars (buy 100 BTC/10 ETH contracts, pay USD premium)
Short Put Post Strike in USD (sell 100 BTC / 10 ETH contracts, post cash equal to strike price)

Options Settlement

When you buy an option, you have two choices at expiration: exercise or sell your option.

There is no auto-exercise on LedgerX, meaning you must submit instructions to exercise. If you do not submit instructions, your options will expire worthless even if they are in-the-money (ITM).

The exercise window opens 72 hours before settlement on the expiration date. The exercise window closes at options settlement at 5pm ET on the expiration date. You can submit exercise instructions on the platform under Balances & History > Exercise Instructions

Read more on expiration and settlement here.

Futures 
LedgerX mini futures enable you to enter into a contract to buy or sell BTC at an agreed-upon price at a future date - but the price is set when you enter into the contract.  The full contract specifications for LedgerX mini futures are available here

Long futures position: Post amount in USD (e.g. Long 100 contracts, post USD) 
Short futures position: Post BTC (e.g. Short 100 contracts, post 1 BTC)


Futures Settlement

LedgerX futures contracts are physically settled and expire at 5pm ET on the expiration date. The final settlement price is the original trade price. Account balances are updated at settlement.

Long futures position: Receives BTC
Short futures position: Receives US dollar

Swaps
All participants can buy and sell Bitcoin in increments of 0.01 BTC with the LedgerX bitcoin mini swaps. 1 contract = 0.01 BTC, 100 contracts = 1 BTC.

Use US dollars to buy BTC and the BTC will be available for trading or withdrawal at 4pm ET. Sell BTC and receive US dollars immediately to your account when the trade executes.

Buy BTC: Post amount in USD (e.g. Long 100 contracts, buying 1 BTC with USD)
Sell BTC: Post BTC (e.g. Short 100 contracts, post 1 BTC)

Only ECPs can buy and sell Ethereum in increments of 0.1 ETH with the LedgerX ETH deci swaps. 1 contract = 0.1 ETH, 10 contracts = 1 ETH.

ECPs can use US dollars to buy ETH and the ETH will be available for trading or withdrawal at 4pm ET. Sell ETH and receive US dollars immediately to your account when the trade executes.

Buy ETH: Post amount in USD (e.g. Long 10 contracts, buying 1 ETH with USD)
Sell ETH: Post ETH (e.g. Short 10 contracts, post 1 ETH)

How can I trade via API?
You can connect and trade directly to our HTTP+ WebSockets API. Participants can view our API documentation here or view additional FAQs here.

Generate API keys in Settings > API Keys
Can I trade spreads on LedgerX?
We do not offer spread trading or margin on our retail platform (yet!). 

Portfolio netting is offered on our institutional platform. You can read more about portfolio netting here: Institutional Portfolio Netting

Can I trade on margin?
LedgerX does not currently support margin. Full collateralization is required for all trades. This means sellers post the whole amount of the contract size and product traded.  However, call option and put option buyers are only required to post the premium related to those contracts.
What are Physically Settled Contracts?
Physically settled contracts mean that the underlying asset (in this case BTC/ETH) will be delivered upon expiration in exchange for USD. All LedgerX contracts are physically settled.  

 Futures 

 Buyer receives BTC

 Seller receives US dollars

 Options 

 Call buyers that exercise receive BTC/ETH; and sellers on the other side receive the  strike price in cash 

 Put buyers that exercise receive cash equal to the strike price; put sellers receive BTC/ETH

 Swaps 

 Buy BTC/ETH with USD, receive BTC/ETH

 Sell BTC/ETH, receive USD

Regulation & Security

How is LedgerX regulated? 

LedgerX is a U.S. federally regulated exchange and clearinghouse. LedgerX holds three licenses with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC):

  • Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO)
  • Designated Contract Market (DCM)
  • Swap Execution Facility (SEF)

These licenses enable us to operate our exchange and clearinghouse in all 50 states in the US (including its territories), with access to certain international jurisdictions.

What is the CFTC?
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. Government and oversees and regulates derivatives markets, including swaps, options and futures on bitcoin and ethereum.  

What is a clearinghouse?
Clearinghouses hold and monitor risk in the regulated financial system, ensuring counterparties can meet the financial obligations represented by their positions. LedgerX maintains a Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO) license issued by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which authorizes us to clear fully collateralized futures, options on futures, and swaps (which include options on commodities).

All trades executed on LedgerX DCM are cleared by the LedgerX DCO.
How does LedgerX handle custody for US dollars?
Cash is held in custodial accounts at Customers Bank. View digital asset custody and insurance information
How does LedgerX custody digital assets?
We partnered with BitGo to provide multi-signature wallet services. Learn more about Custody & Insurance here.
Does LedgerX undergo financial and security audits?
LedgerX has undergone independent annual audits covering financials, cybersecurity systems, internal control mechanisms, and more.
  • Anti Money Laundering (AML):  LedgerX LLC has undergone a full analysis and review of our OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) procedures and AML processes, strategy, policy, controls and related technologies.
  • Financial Condition: Grant Thorton audited LedgerX financial condition and expressed an unqualified opinion (i.e., clean bill of health) that our financial statements were presented fairly, in all material respects, in accordance with US GAAP accounting principles.
  • Digital Currency: Because we custody bitcoin and ethereum on behalf of our clients, Grant Thorton conducted a thorough examination of how we hold digital assets.
  • Security: Praetorian, a trusted name in cybersecurity, performed an Information Technology (IT) Security Risk Assessment that evaluated the effectiveness of LedgerX's existing security controls.
  • Internal Controls:  LedgerX LLC has undergone an audit of our internal controls (technically known as a SOC I Type II Audit) to ensure that they are operating effectively and appropriately protecting client data.
  • Onsite IT systems: Every year, the CFTC examines one aspect of our operations with a special emphasis. Last year, this examination covered our onsite systems and safeguards.

Market Operations

LedgerX exchange is open 24x7. 

Order Types

You can place market orders and limit orders. To place a limit order, simply enter your desired Quantity and Price and click the Buy or Sell button.

What is a limit order?

A limit order (also known as resting order or pending order) allows you to set a price you would like to execute in the future and not immediately.

The trade will only execute once it reached the price entered. The order will not be filled if the price does not reach this level.

In a few words, a limit order sets the maximum or minimum price at which a trader is willing to buy or sell the underlying asset.

What are open orders?

Open orders are un-filled orders or trades that have not been executed and are not part of your positions. When you place an open order, bitcoin or dollars may be locked on your account to fulfill the order if it is executed against. This will be reflected in your Available for Trading balance. You can view all open orders at the bottom of your dashboard under the “open orders” tab. 

With our order system, you are allowed to use the same collateral against multiple orders, but as soon as one order is executed we'll cancel any other orders that do not have sufficient collateral. Your orders will remain open if you do have sufficient collateral to execute the other open orders.

To cancel an open order, click the x button and then “Cancel Order”

Where can I view my Balances?
You can view your Available for Trading and Position Locked balances by hovering over your available balance at the top of your LedgerX dashboard.

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Available for Trading Dollars and crypto available for trading. The amount of dollars and crypto locked in open orders are a subset of the Available for Trading balance. You can use the same dollars and crypto against multiple open orders. 
Position Locked The amount of dollars and crypto locked-in positions. When you close out of a short position, your locked dollars or crypto (BTC/ETH) for that position will be unlocked and moved into Available for Trading. 
Open Orders Collateral for an open order remains in available balances until filled or canceled. If the order is filled, then that collateral will move into position-locked funds. You can view all open orders at the bottom of your dashboard under the “open orders” tab. 

Note: Withdrawing Funds that are tied to an open order will cancel open orders. 

Available funds for withdrawal include your order funds. If you have open orders and request a withdrawal for your full Available balance, your open orders will be canceled when you submit the withdrawal. 

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Reporting Error Trades
The LedgerX error trade policy can be found in our rulebook (Rule 11.8 Error Trade Policy). Error trades must be reported within 10 minutes to errors@ledgerx.com. LedgerX will use the policy outlined in our rulebook to determine if the error trade request is valid and falls outside the No Cancellation Range. The no cancellation range can be found in our rulebook (Rule 11.11 No Cancellation Ranges). 

 

Please email errors@ledgerx.com to report error trades within 10 minutes of trade execution.

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