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Funding is a recurring payment mechanism used by perpetual markets to help keep perp prices close to spot prices. If you trade perpetuals in Entry Finance, funding becomes part of the real cost of holding a position. It is especially important for positions that stay open across one or more funding intervals.

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What funding is

A perpetual contract has no expiry date, so the market needs another mechanism to keep the contract price anchored near the underlying spot market. That mechanism is funding. In practical terms:
  • funding is not the same as trading fees
  • funding is not charged only when you open or close a trade
  • funding is a periodic payment tied to holding a perpetual position over time

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When funding matters most

Funding matters most when:
  • you keep a position open for a long time
  • your position size is large
  • the funding rate is elevated
  • you hold the trade through multiple funding windows
For short intraday trades, the impact can be small. For swing trades or positions held overnight, it can become a meaningful part of PnL.

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When funding is applied

In the current Entry Finance interface, the market list and market header show funding as 8h Funding, Funding Rate, and Next Funding. That tells the trader two things:
  • funding is periodic, not continuous
  • the terminal already shows when the next funding event is approaching
The exact amount you pay or receive depends on the market rate and your open position at the time the funding event is applied.

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Who pays and who receives

The direction of the payment depends on the market’s current funding conditions. The simple trader-level idea is:
  • one side of the perp market pays
  • the other side receives
You do not need to memorize the full exchange logic to use the terminal well. What matters is checking the current funding rate before deciding whether you want to hold the position longer.

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How to estimate the holding cost

Funding should be treated like a carry cost or carry credit on an open perpetual position. Before holding a trade overnight, ask:
  1. What is the current funding rate?
  2. When is the next funding event?
  3. How large is my position?
  4. Am I likely to keep this position through one funding window or several?
The practical reading is:
  • a higher funding rate means a larger potential payment or receipt
  • a larger position size means a larger funding effect
  • more time held means more funding events can affect the trade
So even if price does not move much, a longer-held position can still change PnL because of funding.

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How to think about funding for overnight holds

When traders hold a position overnight, they usually care about more than entry and exit. They also need to think about:
  • whether funding is likely to help or hurt the trade
  • whether the expected move is large enough to justify the carry cost
  • whether holding through the next funding window still makes sense
This is why funding is not just a technical detail. It is part of the decision to keep a perpetual position open instead of closing and reassessing later.

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Where to see funding in Entry Finance

In the current terminal, funding information appears in several places:
  • the market list, where rows include 8h Funding
  • the market header, where you can see Funding Rate and Next Funding
  • the Positions tab, where position rows include funding
  • Funding History, where you can review funding payments or receipts after they happen
That gives the trader both a forward-looking view and a historical view:
  • use the header before entering or holding
  • use Funding History to confirm what actually happened

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Why funding and PnL can feel inconsistent at first

Many users expect PnL to move only because of price. On perpetuals, that is not always true. Your running result can also be affected by: So if the position size did not change but the running result still moved, funding may be part of the explanation.