Polymarket Enters the Perpetual Futures Market with High Leverage
Polymarket has launched perpetual futures markets, offering up to 20x leverage on assets including Bitcoin (BTC-USD), Ethereum (ETH-USD), stocks, and commodities. The platform's user base typically makes small trades—median of $10—with over 80% trading under $500 per transaction. Despite the low entry amounts, traders are exposed to notional positions far exceeding their cash deposits due to leverage. The global perpetual futures market reached an estimated volume of $90 trillion in 2025, according to Reuters and Kalshi estimates. Polymarket's expansion into this space introduces significant risk for retail investors; a mere 5% adverse move can wipe out positions entirely when using high leverage. Funding costs are applied against the full notional exposure, compounding potential losses. This development highlights how financial markets increasingly allow price movements themselves to be traded as products. Polymarket's entry into this space could reshape retail participation in leveraged trading but also raises concerns about volatility and risk management for inexperienced traders.
Topics: leverage notional exposure perpetual futures Polymarket retail traders