Arbitrage glossary
Short definitions of the words that show up in the scanner — written around what each one changes for your trade, not as dictionary entries.
Spread
The price difference for the same asset between two markets — in arbitrage, the entire source of profit.
Funding rate
A periodic payment between longs and shorts that keeps a perpetual contract tied to spot — and differs from exchange to exchange.
Delta-neutral
A position whose value does not change when the market moves, because the long and short legs cancel out.
Basis
The gap between a futures price and the spot price of the same asset — the premium you collect in a spot-futures trade.
Perpetual contract
A futures contract with no expiry date, held to spot by periodic funding payments.
Order book
The live list of resting buy and sell orders — it decides what price your size actually gets.
Taker fee
What an exchange charges for removing liquidity with a market order — paid four times in a full arbitrage round trip.
Spot-futures arbitrage
Buying the asset on spot and shorting its futures contract to collect the basis, with no directional exposure.
Futures-futures arbitrage
Long the perpetual on the cheaper exchange, short it on the dearer one, and close when the two prices meet.
Trigger
A standing rule that opens both legs of a route automatically once the spread crosses your threshold.
Slippage
The difference between the price you saw and the average price you were filled at.
Whitelist (coin list)
A fixed set of coins a scanner is allowed to watch — convenient for the vendor, and exactly where the edge is lost.
Frequently asked questions
What is a funding rate in crypto?
A periodic fee paid between long and short traders on perpetual futures. Each exchange sets its own rate, so the same coin can pay you on one venue and charge you on another — that gap is funding arbitrage.
What does delta-neutral mean?
Your long and short legs cancel market direction: if the coin rises or falls, the two sides offset. Profit comes from the spread or funding gap converging, not from predicting price.
What is basis in spot-futures arbitrage?
Basis is the premium (or discount) of the perpetual versus spot. Buy spot and short the perp when the premium is rich, then unwind as basis compresses — price risk stays hedged.