Crypto arbitrage scanner — spot-perp & cross-exchange, net APR after fees.

Spot-perp arbitrage is a market-neutral strategy that earns the perpetual futures funding rate by simultaneously holding a long spot position and a short perpetual futures position on the same asset. When the funding rate is positive (the common case in bull markets), short futures holders receive funding payments from long holders. Because the spot and futures positions offset each other, the trade has minimal directional exposure and earns the funding rate as yield.

Net APR is calculated as APR = net_hourly_rate x 8,760, where net_hourly_rate equals the funding rate per hour minus trading fees amortized per hour. For an 8-hour funding interval, the hourly rate is the 8-hour rate divided by 8. For Hyperliquid's 1-hour interval, the hourly rate equals the raw rate. Trading fees for opening both legs (spot buy + futures short) are subtracted from projected returns. This formula lets you compare annualized returns across exchanges with different funding intervals.

Spot-perp arbitrage covers Binance, OKX, Bybit, and Bitget — the four largest derivatives exchanges by open interest. Cross-exchange arbitrage scans price differentials across 12 centralized exchanges including the above four plus Gate.io, KuCoin, MEXC, HTX, and others. All data is fetched via direct exchange REST APIs with no third-party aggregator dependency.

The settlement countdown timer shows the time remaining until the next funding rate payment on each exchange. Most exchanges settle funding every 8 hours (Binance at 00:00/08:00/16:00 UTC, Bybit and OKX at similar intervals), while Hyperliquid settles hourly. Entering a spot-perp arbitrage position shortly before a high funding settlement maximizes the first payment captured, making the countdown a useful timing tool for trade entry.

Open interest indicates how much capital is positioned in a given futures contract, which directly affects how much size you can execute at the quoted spread. A 50% APR opportunity with only $500K OI may only support a $10-20K position before slippage erodes returns, while a 15% APR opportunity with $50M OI can support meaningful position sizes. The Arbitrage Scanner displays OI alongside APR so you can filter for opportunities that match your capital allocation.

Cross-exchange arbitrage exploits price differences for the same asset between two different exchanges — buying on the cheaper exchange and selling on the more expensive one. Unlike spot-perp arbitrage which earns periodic funding payments, cross-exchange arbitrage captures a one-time spread. The trade-off is that cross-exchange arb requires capital on both exchanges and may involve transfer delays, while spot-perp arb can be executed on a single exchange.

Arbitrage opportunities are recalculated continuously based on live funding rate and price data from all covered exchanges. Funding rates update before each settlement window, while cross-exchange price differentials update every few minutes. Settlement countdown timers tick in real-time. The near-real-time refresh ensures you see current opportunities rather than stale spreads that may have already closed.

Yes. The Arbitrage Scanner is available free on Sharpe Terminal with no account required. Both spot-perp and cross-exchange arbitrage views, net APR calculations, OI data, and settlement countdowns are accessible immediately. The same data is available through Sharpe's REST API, MCP server, and CLI tool for programmatic access.

Triangular arbitrage exploits price inconsistencies between three trading pairs on the same exchange — for example, BTC/USDT, ETH/USDT, and ETH/BTC. If the implied ETH/BTC rate from the two USDT pairs differs from the direct ETH/BTC quote, a trader can cycle through all three to lock in the spread. Opportunities are small (typically 1-10 bps) and short-lived (sub-second), so triangular arbitrage is dominated by market-making bots. It remains a useful concept for understanding cross-pair efficiency and explains why quote currencies stay tightly linked.

Statistical arbitrage (stat arb) uses quantitative models to identify temporary mispricings between correlated assets, then trades the expected mean reversion. In crypto, common pairs include ETH vs SOL, BTC vs ETH, and sector baskets vs individual tokens. A stat arb trader longs the relative underperformer and shorts the relative outperformer when their spread deviates from the historical norm. Unlike pure arbitrage, stat arb carries directional risk — if the correlation structure breaks down, the trade can lose money. Typical holding periods range from hours to days.

Funding rate arbitrage is a specialized form of spot-perp arbitrage that targets extreme positive or negative funding rates. When an altcoin's 8-hour rate exceeds 0.1% (~110% APR), going long spot and short perp on the same exchange captures the funding payment while neutralizing directional risk. The trade requires sufficient spot liquidity, low maker fees, and awareness of the rate cap. Risks include rate normalization during the holding period, liquidation on the short leg if the perpetual wicks higher, and exchange counterparty risk.

Net profit per funding interval = (funding_rate × notional_size) − (maker_fee × 2 × notional_size) — you pay maker fees on both legs (spot buy + perp short) when opening, and again when closing. Worked example: $10,000 notional, 0.01% 8-hour funding rate, 0.02% maker fee. Gross funding income = $1.00 per 8h window; fees = $2.00 each way = $4.00 round-trip. You need to hold the position for at least 4 funding intervals ($4 income / $1 per interval = 32 hours) just to break even on fees. Scale size or hold longer to generate real profit. Sharpe's scanner displays net APR after a standard 0.02% maker-fee assumption — override in settings if you have a lower tier.

At a minimum, the spread must exceed (maker_fee_exchange_A + maker_fee_exchange_B + withdrawal_fee / notional). For major CEXs with 0.02% maker fees on both legs and a $5 USDT withdrawal on TRC-20, a $10,000 cross-exchange trade breaks even at ~0.09% spread. Add slippage buffer (~0.05%), transfer time risk (price can move while the stablecoin is in flight), and a 1.5× safety margin — a practical threshold is 0.25–0.35% minimum spread for size under $50,000. Sharpe's cross-exchange scanner subtracts fees and shows net spread by default.

For USDT: TRC-20 (Tron) is cheapest (~$1) with 2–5 minute confirmation — best for large transfers where speed beats finality. USDC on Solana is fastest (~30 seconds, near-zero fee) but fewer exchanges support it natively. ERC-20 on Ethereum is the most universally supported but costs $3–20 in gas and takes 5–15 minutes. For sub-$1K transfers, USDC on Solana wins. For $10K+, USDT on TRC-20 is the default. Always check both exchanges support the network you're withdrawing on before initiating — mismatched networks are the #1 cause of lost funds in arbitrage workflows.

Spot positions cannot be liquidated (you own the asset outright), but the short perpetual leg can be liquidated if the perpetual wicks sharply higher. The risk is asymmetric: a 30% price spike liquidates the short and leaves you holding an expensive spot position whose unrealized gain only partially offsets the realized loss on the perp. Mitigate by using isolated margin on the perp leg with 3–5× the maintenance margin buffer, and cap position size such that a 50–100% price move would still leave you above maintenance. The smaller the leverage on the short leg, the safer the trade — 2–3× is the professional standard for spot-perp arbitrage.

No. In most jurisdictions (US, UK, EU, India), every leg of an arbitrage trade is a taxable event. Opening a spot long + perp short creates two cost bases; closing creates two realized P&Ls. Funding payments received are ordinary income. Even delta-neutral strategies can generate substantial taxable activity — if you do 500 spot-perp arb cycles, you have 2,000 individual taxable events. Use a crypto tax tool that supports derivatives (Koinly, CoinTracker, CoinLedger) and track fees separately (they're deductible against capital gains in most jurisdictions). Consult a CPA for your specific situation — this is general information, not tax advice.

Funding rate arbitrage uses perpetual futures (no expiry) — you earn periodic funding payments, and the trade can be held indefinitely or closed at any time. Basis trade uses dated futures (quarterly or monthly) — you capture the annualized basis (difference between spot and futures prices) that converges to zero at expiry. Funding rate arb has ongoing income but requires active rebalancing; basis trade has a known payoff at expiry but locks capital until that date. In bull markets both typically yield 10–40% APR on BTC and ETH. Funding rate arb is more common today because perps dominate crypto volume (>75%), but basis trades on CME futures are the preferred vehicle for institutional allocators who can't hold perps.