Most venues margin each position on its own. Portfolio margin on Aevo looks at the whole account at once, so a perp and the option that hedges it are measured together. That is what makes a PERPS+ position cheaper to margin than the same two legs charged one by one.
ON THIS PAGE
Portfolio margin values your whole account at once, so a perp and the option that hedges it are measured together.
It is built from scenario margin (the worst of 15 simulated moves) plus floor margin.
It is available to accounts with more than $5,000 in assets, alongside cross and isolated margin.
Try the explorer below to see how a PERPS+ style hedge changes the worst-case loss.
01
What portfolio margin is
By default every Aevo account uses standard margin. Standard margin works out the requirement for each position separately and ignores offsetting or correlated positions, so a perp and the option that hedges it are each charged as if the other did not exist.
Portfolio margin asks a different question. It runs the whole account through a set of hypothetical market moves and measures the worst loss. Hedged positions offset each other in those moves, so the requirement falls. It is open to accounts with more than $5,000 in assets, and it sits alongside the margin type you already use: Aevo offers both cross and isolated margin on the same account.
02
How the number is built
Aevo’s documentation splits portfolio margin into two parts.
Scenario margin. Aevo reruns your portfolio under 15 scenarios. Each scenario moves the price of the underlying by 0%, 50% or 100% of a maximum move, up or down, and shifts implied volatility up, down or not at all. The worst loss across the 15 is the scenario margin.
Floor margin. Net short option exposure multiplied by a unit floor margin. It guarantees a minimum amount of coverage for short options.
Maintenance portfolio margin is the two added together. In the worked examples in Aevo’s documentation, initial portfolio margin is the maintenance figure multiplied by 1.25.
Spot move
IV up
IV unchanged
IV down
Up 100% of max
Scenario 1
Scenario 2
Scenario 3
Up 50% of max
Scenario 4
Scenario 5
Scenario 6
Unchanged
Scenario 7
Scenario 8
Scenario 9
Down 50% of max
Scenario 10
Scenario 11
Scenario 12
Down 100% of max
Scenario 13
Scenario 14
Scenario 15
The maximum spot move and maximum volatility shift are risk parameters set by Aevo’s team and reviewed periodically. The documentation lists initial ETH values of 20% for the spot move in either direction, a 50% volatility shift up and a 25% shift down. Treat live values as subject to change.
03
Try it on a PERPS+ style position
A PERPS+ position is a perp plus one or two options. The explorer below applies the scenario grid to that combination, so you can see how the worst-case loss changes when the options leg is on or off.
How a hedge changes the worst scenario
| Spot move | Perp alone | With hedge |
|---|---|---|
| -20% | -$2,000 | -$1,219 |
| -10% | -$1,000 | -$909 |
| Unchanged | $0 | -$197 |
| +10% | $1,000 | $739 |
| +20% | $2,000 | $1,731 |
Illustrative model, not a margin quote. It prices the options with Black-Scholes at zero interest, applies each scenario as an instant shock, and uses the scenario grid from Aevo’s documentation. Aevo’s live engine uses its own parameters and also applies floor margin and the rules for each market.
Two things to notice. A bought option (Limit My Loss) pays out in the scenarios where the perp loses, so the worst case gets shallower. A sold option (Get Paid to Hold) brings in premium but adds a risk on the other side and creates floor margin, so the saving is smaller.
04
Worked examples from Aevo’s docs
Aevo’s documentation includes two options-only examples at an ETH spot price of $1,300. They show the mechanism clearly, even though they do not include a perp.
Position
Scenario margin
Floor margin
Initial, portfolio
Initial, standard
Short strangle (1500 call, 1100 put)
$190.06
$26
$270.07
$358.85
Bull spread (long 1500 call, short 1700 call)
$4.52
$13
$21.90
$176.15
The bull spread is the clearest case. The two legs hedge each other, so portfolio margin asks for about 88% less initial margin than standard margin. The strangle is two short options with no offset, so the saving is smaller, about 25%.
05
What it means for PERPS+
PERPS+ attaches options to a BTC or ETH perp in one tap. In margin terms that is a hedged position, which is the case portfolio margin is built for.
PERPS+ mode
Options leg on a long perp
Effect in the scenario grid
Limit My Loss
Buys an out-of-the-money put
The put gains where the perp loses, so the worst scenario is shallower
Get Paid to Hold
Sells an out-of-the-money call
Premium comes in, upside is capped, and floor margin applies to the short call
Lock My Range
Buys a put and sells a call
Loss and profit are both bounded, at roughly zero net premium
On a short perp the legs mirror: a bought call, a sold put, or both. The options hedging page covers the three modes in detail.
06
What can back your margin
Most venues accept only USDC or USDT. Aevo’s perps and options settle in USDC, and the account also accepts other assets as collateral, each with its own collateral ratio. The value of an asset toward your margin is its balance times its price times its ratio.
Asset
Collateral ratio
Convert fee
Liquidation order
USDC
100%
0.00%
1
USDT
99%
0.01%
2
aeUSD
100%
0.00%
3
ETH
90%
0.10%
4
WBTC
90%
0.10%
5
weETH
85%
not available
6
Source: Aevo collateral framework documentation. Aevo updates collateral ratios based on liquidity and market conditions, so check the documentation for current values.
When your USDC balance goes negative, for example after buying an option or realizing a perp loss, Aevo converts collateral into USDC automatically, following the liquidation order above. Your equity stays the same, but its composition changes. If you hold ETH or WBTC as collateral, remember that a falling market lowers both your collateral value and your positions at once.
07
Cross, isolated and portfolio margin together
Margin style
What it measures
Trade-off
Isolated
Margin set aside for one position
A loss cannot touch the rest of the account, but the margin you set aside is tied up
Cross
One collateral pool backing every position
Capital efficient, and a large loss can draw on collateral that backs other positions
Portfolio
Risk across the whole portfolio, from scenarios and a floor
Lower margin for hedged books, and requirements can move when volatility or the risk parameters change
The leverage and margin lesson explains cross and isolated margin from first principles, and spot vs perp prices covers the prices that drive liquidation.
08
Know the risks
Lower margin is not lower risk. It lets you hold a bigger hedged book on the same collateral, which also means a bigger exposure if the hedge stops working.
Parameters change. Aevo sets the maximum spot move, maximum volatility shift and unit floor margin, and can change them. Your requirement can rise without your positions changing.
Hedges expire. A PERPS+ option has an expiry. When it ends the perp is unhedged again, and the margin treatment changes with it.
Collateral moves. Volatile collateral such as ETH and WBTC is haircut by its collateral ratio, and its value falls when the market does.
WHERE TO GO NEXT
Open a hedged position with PERPS+ on a BTC or ETH perp, see how unified margin shares collateral across products, or start with the crypto derivatives guides if margin is new to you. Browse every crypto perpetual market on Aevo with live mark and index prices. See every product side by side on the Aevo products page.
09
Frequently asked questions
What is portfolio margin?
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Who can use portfolio margin on Aevo?
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Does portfolio margin work with PERPS+?
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Can I use cross and isolated margin as well?
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What can I use as collateral?
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What are scenario margin and floor margin?
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Open the exchange
Perps and options in one account.
Launch Exchange ↗
MARGIN TYPES
CROSS, ISOLATED, PORTFOLIO
PORTFOLIO MARGIN
ACCOUNTS ABOVE $5,000
COLLATERAL
USDC, USDT, AEUSD, ETH, WBTC
RISK MODEL
15 SCENARIOS + FLOOR
PRODUCT / MARGIN / PORTFOLIO MARGIN
This page is for information only and isn’t financial advice. Options and perpetual futures are high-risk products and you can lose your full position. The explorer is a simplified illustration, not a margin quote.