Earn funding rate payments by positioning on the paying side of perpetuals.
Use this skill for:
Perpetual futures charge periodic funding payments between longs and shorts. When the funding rate is positive, longs pay shorts. When negative, shorts pay longs. A carry strategy positions on the receiving side and hedges with spot to remain market-neutral.
kraken futures historical-funding-rates PF_XBTUSD -o json 2>/dev/null
kraken futures historical-funding-rates PF_ETHUSD -o json 2>/dev/null
Compare rates across contracts to find the highest yield.
When funding is positive (longs pay shorts):
# Hedge: buy spot
kraken order buy BTCUSD 0.01 --type market -o json 2>/dev/null
# Carry: short perpetual (collect funding)
kraken futures order sell PF_XBTUSD 1 -o json 2>/dev/null
When funding is negative (shorts pay longs):
# Carry: long perpetual (collect funding)
kraken futures order buy PF_XBTUSD 1 -o json 2>/dev/null
# Hedge: sell spot
kraken order sell BTCUSD 0.01 --type market -o json 2>/dev/null
Annualized yield = funding_rate * funding_periods_per_year * 100.
Kraken funding periods are typically every 4 or 8 hours (varies by contract). Check contract specs:
kraken futures instruments -o json 2>/dev/null
Track funding accrual:
kraken futures accounts -o json 2>/dev/null
The unrealizedFunding field shows accumulated but unsettled funding.
Watch for funding rate flips:
kraken futures historical-funding-rates PF_XBTUSD -o json 2>/dev/null
If the rate flips direction, the position switches from collecting to paying. Exit or reverse.
Close both legs when carry becomes unprofitable:
kraken futures order buy PF_XBTUSD 1 --reduce-only -o json 2>/dev/null
kraken order sell BTCUSD 0.01 --type market -o json 2>/dev/null