What it does
Paradex brings perpetuals, spot markets and options into an exchange with shared margin infrastructure. The most useful distinction is between its trading interface and the chain beneath it: orders are matched by the exchange service, while cryptographic proofs and encrypted state updates support settlement on Ethereum.
Privacy here means that an ordinary observer cannot simply read every account’s positions from a public block explorer. It does not mean the operator cannot see orders. Paradex Cloud processes order data, and a named Privacy Council holds recovery-related decryption keys. This is a specific trust model to assess alongside liquidity, margin rules and the cost of a strategy.
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Which network does Paradex use?
Trading account state belongs to Paradex Chain, an Ethereum L2 using Starknet-derived technology. The current privacy specification describes encrypted state differences and validity proofs submitted to Ethereum L1. Do not confuse this with executing trades on the general Starknet network. Paradex Cloud still operates matching and handles the plaintext order stream.
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Where it stands out
- Private account queries make casual copying of individual positions harder than on a fully public account ledger. Operator visibility remains part of the design.
- Retail orders qualify for a published zero-trading-fee schedule. Their speed bumps and rate limits differ from standard API orders, so this is an order classification rather than a permanent account tier.
- Separate product, funding and incentive documentation helps distinguish trading economics from the XP score attached to participation.
What you can do
- 01Perpetuals, spot and options supported by a unified exchange account model.
- 02Vault tokenized funds provide access to managed strategies; manager terms, lockups and profit shares need separate review.
- 03XP Season 3 is documented as live, beginning 1 February 2026, with a shared pool of four million XP distributed weekly. No fixed end date is published.
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Who’s behind it
Paradex was incubated by Paradigm, the institutional OTC trading network. That company is distinct from the venture capital firm also named Paradigm. Official company commentary identifies Rob Shearer as leading Paradex and describes support from the incubator’s shareholders and strategic investor Jump Capital.
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Funding and investors
Official material confirms incubation by the Paradigm trading business and shareholder support, including a strategic relationship with Jump Capital. A separately priced Paradex funding round with a primary-source amount and date was not confirmed in this review; parent-company funding should not be relabeled as a Paradex raise.
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Referral benefits and conditions
The documented referee benefit is a 5% XP bonus on trading. It is a points benefit, not a 5% trading-fee discount or cash welcome reward.
Referral qualification and anti-abuse rules apply. The referrer’s XP share is separate from the trader’s bonus. The historical Trader Acquisition Program had its own dated window and is not presented here as an ongoing offer. No ArbuzDAO referral link is configured.
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Fees & availability
Fees and costs
Retail orders qualify for 0% maker and taker trading fees. Web-interface and interactive-API orders follow retail limits and a 300 ms speed bump; standard API orders default to pro treatment. The pro schedule starts at 0.003% maker and 0.045% taker, with volume tiers and applicable discounts. Continuous funding, spread and settlement or liquidation charges remain separate.
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Eligibility and availability
Private settlement is not anonymity from the exchange operator. The Privacy Council can decrypt data in the documented recovery process. Vault strategies can lose value and may impose exit conditions. XP is a score rather than a guaranteed cash or token payment.