How to start trading on Vest

1. Create an account

1. Sign up at next.vestmarkets.com with an email address or Google account, or connect an existing wallet such as MetaMask, Rabby or Coinbase Wallet. Email accounts need no wallet setup; wallet accounts need no email. source ↗

2. Deposit collateral

1. USDC is the only collateral on Vest. Email or Google accounts deposit USDC on Base or Arbitrum One, or buy crypto with a card through the built-in onramp; wallet accounts deposit USDC from any supported chain chosen at deposit time. source ↗
2. The minimum deposit is 1 USDC per transaction. Sending less than 1 USDC directly on-chain, outside the Deposit button flow, may result in loss of funds, and sending the wrong asset or network may too. source ↗
3. Direct USDC deposits are usually almost instant. If one does not show up, look for a Process Deposit button in the Deposit section, then refresh, then contact support. source ↗

3. Open your first position

1. With USDC in your Primary Account, pick a market, choose a side, set leverage and confirm. Leverage is set per market, up to 100x on Primary Accounts depending on the market. source ↗
2. Order types are Market, Limit and Scale, with Reduce Only and Take Profit / Stop Loss options. TP/SL can be attached on the Market and Limit forms or added to an open position later from the Portfolio. source ↗
3. When the Amount field is set to USDC it means position notional, not the margin you post. Estimated initial margin is notional divided by leverage; check the order preview before confirming. source ↗
4. Check the estimated liquidation price, shown as Liq. Price (Mark) on the order form, before you submit, and lower size or leverage if it is too close to the market. source ↗

4. Know how liquidation works

1. Every account uses cross margin, so your full balance backs all open positions. Maintenance margin is half of the initial margin requirement. source ↗
2. Mark price is used for liquidation, while mid price is used for unrealized PnL and balances. source ↗
3. A TP/SL trigger price is not a guaranteed fill: market execution can slip, a limit order may stay unfilled, and trading locks can prevent execution. source ↗

5. Withdraw

1. Press Withdraw from your Primary Account, enter the destination wallet address, choose the chain and enter the amount. Email or Google accounts withdraw on Base or Arbitrum One; wallet accounts can use any chain shown on the withdrawal screen. source ↗
2. The minimum withdrawal is 1 USDC. Withdrawals are instant until your rolling 24-hour total reaches $50,000; anything above that is subject to a 24-hour processing period. source ↗
3. A submitted withdrawal cannot be reversed, and funds are not automatically sent back to the address you deposited from, so check the address and chain first. source ↗

6. Common mistakes

1. Non-crypto markets follow the hours of their underlying. Single stocks are locked from Friday 8:00 PM ET to Sunday 8:00 PM ET, and positions held into a weekend lock cannot be adjusted or closed until the market reopens. source ↗
2. Funding is paid hourly. Basis limits stop trades from executing too far above or below the index price. source ↗
3. Funded Accounts (Vest Capital) cannot receive deposits, and Claim Profit is a separate flow from a withdrawal. source ↗

Before you trade

Perpetual futures use leverage: a small price move against you can liquidate your collateral. Start with a small amount and low leverage, and read the venue’s current fee and margin pages, which can change after this guide was checked.