How bad are funding rates when holding a BTC short for months?
How bad are funding rates when holding a BTC short for months?
I’m considering opening a BTC short around 85k with a higher timeframe view (possibly holding for a few months if the thesis plays out).
What I’m still confused about is funding rates over long periods.
I know shorts can sometimes get paid during bullish conditions, but during bear markets/ranging periods funding can flip negative and shorts start paying. For people who have actually held BTC shorts for months:
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Did funding end up being a big deal overall?
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Did it noticeably eat into profits?
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Is using dated/quarterly futures a much better option for this type of trade?
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And for platforms like Hyperliquid/Binance perps, how bad can funding realistically get over 3–4 months?
Trying to understand the practical side before committing to a longer-term position.
Yes, in bear markets, dated tends to be better for shorting since the annualized premium is usually higher (can be -5% vs. -25% for perps).
Funding is not too bad on the short-side usually. Mostly it’s an issue for longs. Rarely do you see deeply negative funding rates for extended periods of time.
Have you not seen every short opened against btc the past week catch a licky in the first 24 hours and you want to open one? Just saying saylor ain’t buying this week you have a window of about 96 hours before things move higher again. I’d be opening a long if I was you. And front run saylors buys and then catch a short. Around 88k