When will the Bitfinex contract be delivered this week

Bitfinex perpetual contracts, with no fixed maturity, provide traders the flexibility to speculate on crypto assets without physical delivery, and delivery schedules vary based on the underlying asset.

Nov 08, 2024 at 11:08 am

1. Understanding Bitfinex Contracts and Delivery Schedules

Bitfinex, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, offers a range of perpetual contracts that allow traders to speculate on the future price of crypto assets without the need for physical delivery. These contracts have no fixed maturity date and can be held indefinitely.

The delivery schedule for Bitfinex contracts is determined by the underlying asset. For perpetual contracts based on cryptocurrencies, delivery typically occurs every eight hours, at 08:00, 16:00, and 24:00 UTC.

2. Identification of the Current Week's Contract Delivery Dates

To determine when a Bitfinex contract will be delivered this week, traders need to consider the following steps:

• Identify the contract's underlying asset: The underlying asset is the cryptocurrency or other asset that the contract is based on.
• Check the contract's specification page: Bitfinex provides specific information about each contract on its website, including the delivery schedule.
• Calculate the next delivery date: Based on the delivery schedule, traders can calculate the next delivery date for the current week.

3. Calculating the Next Contract Delivery Date

Once the trader has identified the contract's underlying asset and delivery schedule, they can calculate the next delivery date as follows:

• Determine the current time in UTC: Convert the local time to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
• Find the nearest delivery time: Identify the delivery time that is closest to the current time in UTC.
• Add 8 hours: If the current time is within 8 hours of a delivery time, the next delivery date will be in 8 hours. Otherwise, the next delivery date will be in 24 hours.

4. Example Calculation

Suppose a trader wants to determine the next delivery date for the BTCUSD perpetual contract. The current time is 10:30 AM UTC.

• Underlying asset: Bitcoin (BTC)
• Delivery schedule: Every 8 hours
• Nearest delivery time: 16:00 UTC
• Calculation: Since the current time is within 8 hours of 16:00 UTC, the next delivery date will be in 8 hours.

Therefore, the next delivery date for the BTCUSD perpetual contract is 16:00 UTC.

5. Additional Considerations

• Pre-delivery period: Bitfinex typically closes a contract for trading 10 minutes before the delivery time.
• Settlement price: The settlement price for a contract is determined based on the average price during the pre-delivery period.
• Settlement: At the time of delivery, traders who hold long positions will receive the underlying asset, while traders who hold short positions will pay the settlement price.

6. Trading Strategies

Traders can utilize various trading strategies around contract delivery dates:

• Scalping: Traders can take advantage of short-term price fluctuations around delivery time to profit from small price movements.
• Hedging: Traders can use contracts to hedge their positions and reduce risk during volatile periods.
• Arbitrage: Traders can exploit price discrepancies between different exchanges or contract types to generate profits.