VERSION HISTORY
Perpetual Contract Specifications
Fetches the article and compares it with Version 2.
▸Version 2October 13, 2026, 4:47 AM+8−0
Changes shown against Version 1.
Jan 1, 2026 | NQH6
Mar 17, 2026 | NQM6
Jun 16, 2026 | NQU6
Sep 15, 2026 | NQZ6
Dec 15, 2026 | NQH7
RTY-PERP (E-mini Russell 2000)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Jan 1, 2026 | RTYH6
Mar 17, 2026 | RTYM6
Jun 16, 2026 | RTYU6
Sep 15, 2026 | RTYZ6
Dec 15, 2026 | RTYH7
+ YM-PERP (E-mini Dow Jones)
+ Effective Date | Contract Code
+ Jan 1, 2026 | YMH6
+ Mar 17, 2026 | YMM6
+ Jun 16, 2026 | YMU6
+ Sep 15, 2026 | YMZ6
+ Dec 15, 2026 | YMH7
Energy
CL-PERP (Crude Oil)
Effective Date | Contract Code
April 14, 2026 | CLM6
May 12, 2026 | CLN6
Jun 11, 2026 | CLQ6
Jul 14, 2026 | CLU6
Aug 13, 2026 | CLV6
Sep 15, 2026 | CLX6
Oct 13, 2026 | CLZ6
Nov 12, 2026 | CLF7
Dec 14, 2026 | CLG7
Basis limits restrict how far a perpetual contract’s trading price can deviate from its Index Price. They function similarly to limit-up and limit-down rules, with upper and lower price boundaries defined relative to the Index Price.
The basis is the difference between the perpetual contract price and the Index Price, expressed in basis points:
Basis (bps) = ((Perpetual Price − Index Price) / Index Price) × 10,000
A positive basis means the perpetual is trading above the Index Price; a negative basis means it is trading below.
Each market has a specified basis limit. Trades cannot execute above the upper boundary or below the lower boundary. Trading within the permitted band can continue.
Basis limits help prevent excessive price dislocations during volatile or low-liquidity conditions.
Current Basis Limits
Basis limits currently apply to the following market:
Market | Limits
NQ-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
ES-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
RTY-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
+ YM-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
BTC-PERP | ±50 bps (±0.50%)
ETH-PERP | ±50 bps (±0.50%)
SHA-256 7fb9a22109015f7ed7902db63ed8ab87ad283fb11b5a0d0b224117dfcd37e313
▸Version 1October 11, 2026, 2:01 PM
First archived version.
Perpetual Contract Specifications
What Are Perpetual Contracts?
Perpetual contracts are derivatives that never expire. Unlike traditional futures contracts, they can be held indefinitely. Funding payments are made hourly to help converge the contract's price to the underlying asset's Index price.
Coming from CME futures? See Cross Margin & Leverage for Micro E-mini and E-mini equivalents, order-entry quantities, and a worked example.
Specifications
|
Settlement | USDC-margined, linear 1:1 contracts
Position Limits | No position or order size limits
Margin Requirements | Market-specific
Maintenance Margin | Half of the initial margin requirement
Mark Price
Mark Price is used for liquidation. Mid Price is used for unrealized PnL and account balances.
Index Price
The real-time market price of the underlying asset.
During market hours, Vest derives the index price from an aggregate of exchanges such as NASDAQ, NYSE, CME, and BlueOcean ATS.
Both the Mark Price and Index Price are constrained by threshold bands to safeguard against manipulation and prevent erratic price movements during periods of extreme market volatility.
Roll Schedule
Perpetual contracts tied to CME futures undergo a periodic roll to the next front-month contract. Rolls are executed during the CME maintenance window on the dates listed below. Prices, including index price, entry prices, liquidation prices, are all adjusted internally at the time of the roll so there is no impact to P\&L, position value or jumps in the prices.
Equity Indices
ES-PERP (E-mini S\&P 500)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Jan 1, 2026 | ESH6
Mar 17, 2026 | ESM6
Jun 16, 2026 | ESU6
Sep 15, 2026 | ESZ6
Dec 15, 2026 | ESH7
NQ-PERP (E-mini Nasdaq 100)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Jan 1, 2026 | NQH6
Mar 17, 2026 | NQM6
Jun 16, 2026 | NQU6
Sep 15, 2026 | NQZ6
Dec 15, 2026 | NQH7
RTY-PERP (E-mini Russell 2000)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Jan 1, 2026 | RTYH6
Mar 17, 2026 | RTYM6
Jun 16, 2026 | RTYU6
Sep 15, 2026 | RTYZ6
Dec 15, 2026 | RTYH7
Energy
CL-PERP (Crude Oil)
Effective Date | Contract Code
April 14, 2026 | CLM6
May 12, 2026 | CLN6
Jun 11, 2026 | CLQ6
Jul 14, 2026 | CLU6
Aug 13, 2026 | CLV6
Sep 15, 2026 | CLX6
Oct 13, 2026 | CLZ6
Nov 12, 2026 | CLF7
Dec 14, 2026 | CLG7
BZ-PERP (Brent Last Day Financial)
Effective Date | Contract Code
April 23, 2026 | BZN6
May 21, 2026 | BZQ6
Jun 23, 2026 | BZU6
Jul 23, 2026 | BZV6
Aug 24, 2026 | BZX6
Sep 23, 2026 | BZZ6
Oct 22, 2026 | BZF76
Nov 19, 2026 | BZG7
Dec 23, 2026 | BZH7
NG-PERP (Henry Hub Natural Gas)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Apr 6, 2026 | NGK26
Apr 21, 2026 | NGM26
May 19, 2026 | NGN26
Jun 18, 2026 | NGQ26
Jul 22, 2026 | NGU26
Aug 20, 2026 | NGV26
Sep 21, 2026 | NGX26
Oct 21, 2026 | NGZ26
Nov 18, 2026 | NGF27
Dec 21, 2026 | NGG27
Metals
GC-PERP (Gold)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Apr 21, 2026 | GCM6
May 27, 2026 | GCQ6
Jul 29, 2026 | GCZ6
Nov 25, 2026 | GCG7
SI-PERP (Silver)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Apr 21, 2026 | SIN6
Jun 18, 2026 | SIU6
Aug 20, 2026 | SIZ6
Nov 18, 2026 | SIH7
HG-PERP (Copper)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Apr 24, 2026 | HGN6
Jun 25, 2026 | HGU6
Aug 27, 2026 | HGZ6
Nov 25, 2026 | HGH7
PL-PERP (Platinum)
Effective Date | Contract Code
Apr 2, 2026 | PLN6
Jun 25, 2026 | PLV6
Sep 24, 2026 | PLF7
Dec 28, 2026 | PLJ7
Basis Limits
Basis limits restrict how far a perpetual contract’s trading price can deviate from its Index Price. They function similarly to limit-up and limit-down rules, with upper and lower price boundaries defined relative to the Index Price.
The basis is the difference between the perpetual contract price and the Index Price, expressed in basis points:
Basis (bps) = ((Perpetual Price − Index Price) / Index Price) × 10,000
A positive basis means the perpetual is trading above the Index Price; a negative basis means it is trading below.
Each market has a specified basis limit. Trades cannot execute above the upper boundary or below the lower boundary. Trading within the permitted band can continue.
Basis limits help prevent excessive price dislocations during volatile or low-liquidity conditions.
Current Basis Limits
Basis limits currently apply to the following market:
Market | Limits
NQ-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
ES-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
RTY-PERP | ±25 bps (±0.25%)
BTC-PERP | ±50 bps (±0.50%)
ETH-PERP | ±50 bps (±0.50%)
SHA-256 a747ff646bfaac4b367bba898582f036bd78604b9f6ea387c908ce7c15a11763