HTX vs Lighter Funding Arbitrage
28 shared markets · net of estimated fees · updated every few minutesHTX and Lighter both quote 28 of the same perpetual markets, so a delta-neutral position can be split across the two and collect the difference in their funding. The widest spread on a market with real depth is SNDK — long Lighter / short HTX at 55.9% net APR — but the median across all shared markets is 10.7%, which is the number worth planning around.
The long leg is whichever venue prices funding lower for that market. It is a property of the MARKET, not of the exchange, and it flips as rates move: here 11 markets go long on HTX and 17 on Lighter. 19 markets clear 5% net APR, 14 clear 10%.
How this pair behaves
HTX pays funding every 8h on 63 markets and every 4h on 52 markets; Lighter pays every 8h on 131 markets. Both sides settle on the same clock, so a position opened here collects or pays on both legs at once — the spread you see is the spread you get. HTX quotes 118 perpetual markets in total and Lighter quotes 131; the 28 they share are what this page ranks. Across its own book HTX runs a median funding rate of 10.9% and Lighter 10.5%, so the edge here comes from individual markets rather than from a standing gap between the venues.
Spreads by market
top 25 of 28 by net APR| Market | Long | Short | Net APR | Gross | 7d avg | Thin leg vol |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CASHCAT | Lighter | HTX | 64.1% | 103.9% | +31.7% | $31K |
| SNDK | Lighter | HTX | 55.9% | 57.5% | +3.6% | $9.4M |
| XAU | Lighter | HTX | 39.0% | 40.2% | +1.8% | $2.0M |
| STRC | Lighter | HTX | 36.6% | 41.6% | +16.7% | $164K |
| SOXL | HTX | Lighter | 33.8% | 40.3% | +7.9% | $358K |
| FIL | Lighter | HTX | 30.7% | 34.6% | +7.1% | $361K |
| AMD | Lighter | HTX | 28.6% | 29.9% | -6.1% | $81K |
| ADA | HTX | Lighter | 25.4% | 28.1% | — | $195K |
| TRX | HTX | Lighter | 21.3% | 23.5% | +9.3% | $49K |
| JUP | Lighter | HTX | 14.8% | 18.8% | +6.7% | $16K |
| XAG | HTX | Lighter | 13.1% | 15.8% | +12.7% | $306K |
| MU | Lighter | HTX | 13.0% | 14.7% | -6.7% | $179K |
| PAXG | HTX | Lighter | 12.2% | 14.6% | -16.3% | $192K |
| LTC | Lighter | HTX | 11.5% | 15.3% | +5.2% | $493K |
| AVAX | Lighter | HTX | 9.9% | 16.2% | +14.3% | $452K |
| ARB | Lighter | HTX | 9.8% | 14.5% | +4.5% | $82K |
| UNI | Lighter | HTX | 7.8% | 10.3% | +8.7% | $439K |
| ENA | Lighter | HTX | 5.1% | 10.1% | +4.6% | $238K |
| PENGU | Lighter | HTX | 5.1% | 13.5% | +27.3% | $43K |
| CRWV | Lighter | HTX | 4.5% | 8.8% | +2.2% | $46K |
| QNT | HTX | Lighter | 3.9% | 12.1% | -35.4% | $54K |
| META | HTX | Lighter | 3.3% | 5.3% | +11.8% | $103K |
| OPENAI | Lighter | HTX | 3.3% | 5.5% | +2.2% | $67K |
| MSFT | Lighter | HTX | 2.4% | 4.4% | -6.3% | $118K |
| BTC | HTX | Lighter | 1.6% | 2.7% | +2.5% | $228.0M |
Net APR subtracts entry and exit fees, both legs' bid/ask spread and estimated slippage from the gross funding spread. The 7-day average is historical gross funding for the same pair: a current rate close to it suggests the spread has persisted, one far above it is usually a spike that will decay.
Coverage note: HTX and Lighter share 28 markets, 3 of them with real depth — below the 10 markets / 5 liquid this page treats as full coverage, so this is a thin sample rather than a picture of the pair.
HTX vs Lighter — FAQ
How many markets can you arbitrage between HTX and Lighter?
28 perpetual markets are quoted on both HTX and Lighter right now. 19 of them show a net spread of at least 5% APR after estimated fees, and 3 have at least $1M of 24h volume on the smaller leg.
What is the best HTX / Lighter funding spread right now?
SNDK: long Lighter and short HTX for about 55.9% net APR after estimated fees, counting only markets with at least $1M of 24h volume on the smaller leg. The median across all 28 shared markets is 10.7%, so the top of the list is not typical.
Which side pays on the HTX / Lighter pair?
It varies by market: HTX is the long (funding-receiving) leg in 11 of the shared markets and Lighter in the other 17. The direction is set per market by which venue currently prices funding lower.
Trading the HTX / Lighter spread
The trade is one position split across two venues: long the exchange paying the more negative funding, short the one paying the more positive, in the same size. What limits it is not the headline APR but the smaller leg's liquidity, the fees on both sides, and how long the spread survives — funding decays and flips, often within hours. Venue detail: HTX funding rates · Lighter funding rates; the full calculation is in the methodology.