About Synthetix
Synthetix is a decentralized protocol that has become a cornerstone of the on-chain derivatives ecosystem, enabling permissionless trading of synthetic assets, perpetual futures, and novel tokenized strategies. Since its inception in 2018, Synthetix has continuously evolved, now offering a comprehensive suite of trading tools including leverage tokens, vaults, automated strategies, and liquidity provisioning.
With the launch of Synthetix V3, the platform enters a new era of modularity and composability. Built to support builders, traders, and liquidity providers alike, Synthetix delivers a seamless DeFi infrastructure across multiple chains like Optimism, Base, and Ethereum. At its core lies a commitment to deep liquidity, advanced collateral models, and no-liquidation perpetual trading—all powered by smart contracts and the native SNX token.
Synthetix stands as one of the most battle-tested and advanced protocols for on-chain derivatives in the decentralized finance landscape. Since launching in 2018, it has pioneered synthetic asset trading, first through spot synths, and later through more sophisticated products like perpetual futures. With billions in historical trading volume, the platform now powers a dynamic ecosystem of applications including Synthetix Exchange, Synthetix Leverage, and DeFi apps like Toros and CyberDEX.
At the heart of the protocol is Synthetix V3, a modular system that breaks down derivatives infrastructure into highly composable components: Vaults, Pools, Markets, and Reward Distributors. Vaults are collateral containers that accept assets like SNX, ETH, and USDC. Pools aggregate liquidity from vaults and direct it to various markets. Markets offer the actual trading interface for users—such as perps and leverage tokens—while Reward Distributors allocate incentives dynamically.
A unique feature of Synthetix is its use of cross-margin accounts and debt pools. Instead of traditional order books, trades execute against pooled liquidity, ensuring minimal slippage and consistent execution. The entire system runs on decentralized oracles for pricing, removing reliance on centralized feeds and ensuring market fairness. Furthermore, Synthetix Perps V2 and V3 provide a completely non-custodial and no-liquidation trading experience, making it accessible and secure.
In addition to traders, Synthetix empowers developers through its Liquidity-as-a-Service framework and SDKs, allowing new apps to leverage deep liquidity instantly. The introduction of Leveraged Tokens—which auto-rebalance without margin calls—showcases how the protocol continues to push boundaries in DeFi usability. Liquidity providers earn from trader fees and incentive pools while minimizing active management through vault strategies.
Competitors in the on-chain derivatives space include GMX, Perpetual Protocol, and dYdX, but Synthetix remains unique through its robust liquidity design, modular architecture, and non-liquidating leveraged products.
Synthetix provides numerous benefits and features that make it a standout protocol in the DeFi derivatives space:
- No Liquidations: Trade with confidence using leveraged tokens that maintain target exposure through auto-rebalancing instead of forced liquidation.
- Cross-Margin Accounts: Manage risk more efficiently across multiple positions with pooled collateral, reducing the likelihood of account wipeouts.
- Permissionless Access: Fully on-chain and decentralized, Synthetix requires no KYC and offers seamless integration across major L2 networks.
- Multi-Collateral Trading: Users can trade with USDC, wstETH, tBTC, and more—without complex setups or manual conversions.
- Liquidity-as-a-Service: Builders can launch their own apps leveraging Synthetix’s deep liquidity and robust protocol infrastructure.
- Composable Leveraged Tokens: Fully ERC-20 compliant and auto-rebalancing, these assets integrate effortlessly across DeFi protocols and aggregators.
- Transparent On-Chain Execution: All trades are settled through smart contracts and priced by decentralized oracles, ensuring fair and visible outcomes.
Synthetix makes it simple to start trading or earning with powerful tools and integrations:
- Visit the Website: Head to Synthetix.io and select "Stake", "Trade", or "Earn" from the homepage menu.
- Connect Your Wallet: Use MetaMask or WalletConnect to link your wallet. Supported networks include Optimism, Base, and Ethereum.
- Trade Perpetuals: Go to Synthetix Exchange and access 90+ markets with multi-collateral support and up to 25x leverage.
- Mint Leveraged Tokens: Visit leverage.synthetix.io to mint auto-rebalancing tokens with up to 10x leverage.
- Stake and Earn: Use the Synthetix Liquidity App to deposit SNX or USDC into vaults and earn yield passively.
- Build on Synthetix: Developers can integrate with Synthetix V3 using SDKs and APIs available via their developer documentation.
- Bridge Funds: Synthetix Exchange has built-in tools to bridge assets between networks and fund your margin account with ease.
Synthetix FAQ
Synthetix Leveraged Tokens offer built-in, auto-rebalancing exposure that removes the need for margin management or liquidation risk. These ERC-20 compliant tokens rebalance automatically to maintain target leverage (e.g., 3x, 5x, or 10x), allowing users to trade volatility without the fear of being liquidated. Traders mint and redeem these tokens easily on leverage.synthetix.io, unlocking a simplified and stress-free leveraged trading experience on Synthetix.
Synthetix V3 introduces a modular architecture that separates liquidity, staking, markets, and rewards into independent smart contracts. Builders can launch new derivatives by tapping into existing liquidity pools through Vaults and Markets, while also customizing reward logic with Reward Distributors. This composability drastically reduces time-to-market for DeFi apps and enables faster innovation on top of the Synthetix protocol.
The 420 Pool is a delegated staking mechanism introduced in SIP-420, where stakers deposit SNX into a pool that allows the protocol to mint sUSD on their behalf. Unlike previous self-managed staking models, this system shifts debt risk to the protocol and simplifies user participation. The minted sUSD is deployed across DeFi to earn yield, while users passively collect rewards through Synthetix’s Liquidity App.
Cross-margin accounts in Synthetix V3 allow users to share collateral across multiple open positions, improving capital efficiency and reducing the risk of unnecessary liquidations. This setup is ideal for active traders managing multiple perps or leverage tokens, as it consolidates margin rather than isolating it per position. While efficient, it still requires careful management, especially in volatile markets. This system is active by default in Synthetix Exchange today.
Funding rates on Synthetix are dynamically calculated to maintain the peg between the perpetual contract price and its spot equivalent. The protocol uses decentralized oracles to fetch real-time prices and applies a mechanism where long or short traders pay each other depending on market imbalance. This aligns incentives and keeps the system in equilibrium, without relying on centralized market makers. More info is available in the official docs.