Open position

A trade you have entered but not yet closed, with its profit or loss still moving as the price moves. On a perpetual DEX it is backed by collateral and can be closed by you or force-closed by the protocol.

Definition

An open position is exposure you currently hold: a size, a direction, an entry price, and the collateral backing it. Its profit or loss is unrealised, meaning it changes continuously and becomes real only when the position is closed.

What the position panel is telling you

Every perpetual DEX shows open positions in a list, and the columns are the ones that decide your outcome.

Size is your exposure, not your money at risk in the sense of what you deposited. Collateral, sometimes labelled margin, is what you deposited. Leverage is the ratio between the two. Entry price is where the position started, mark price is what the exchange currently values it at, and liquidation price is where the position gets closed for you.

Unrealised profit and loss is computed from the mark price, which is why it can differ from what the last trade printed.

Why a position is not a set-and-forget object

Three things change underneath a position without you touching it. The mark price moves, which moves your equity. Funding or borrow fees accrue, which slowly reduce your collateral. And on a cross-margin account, a loss elsewhere can draw down the collateral supporting this position.

That last one is the one people are surprised by: the liquidation price shown on a cross-margined position is a function of the whole account, not just the trade in front of you.

Where you will run into it

The positions panel is where take-profit and stop-loss orders are attached, where partial closes are entered, and where the liquidation price you should be watching is displayed.