Ostium draws attention as an on-chain derivatives trading platform based on RWA

As derivative trading based on real-world assets (RWA) expands in the crypto market, Ostium is drawing attention. Ostium is an Arbitrum-based perpetual futures platform designed to allow direct trading of foreign exchange, indices, commodities, equities, and crypto assets from a wallet.

Ostium's core is synthetic perpetual contracts based on real-world asset prices. Users can trade forex, indices, commodities, equities, and crypto assets with up to 200x leverage by simply connecting a wallet. Instead of building a new on-chain order book, it leverages liquidity from existing traditional financial markets to achieve fast execution and low slippage. Trades are executed within 60 seconds, and the liquidation process is structured so that forced position reductions (ADL) do not occur.

The fee structure has also been simplified. Only an execution fee is charged when a position is opened, and no separate cost is incurred at liquidation. In addition, all trading and deposit/withdrawal data are recorded on-chain so users can directly verify asset changes and transaction histories.

The liquidity provision model is based on passive liquidity providers (LP), with the liquidity pool (OLP) acting as the market maker (MM). Ostium said, "We have recently introduced a dynamic liquidity model that separates the interests of LPs and traders," adding, "we are restructuring to improve capital efficiency and minimize market shocks."

Another feature is the ability to trade various RWAs instantly from a single wallet. Over the past month, Ostium has added about 10 assets including gold, the S&P 500, Nasdaq, Euro/Dollar, and Tesla. As global asset access has improved, trading volumes of RWAs such as gold and oil have in some cases risen to an 8-to-1 ratio compared with Bitcoin and Ethereum.

A point rewards program is also operated. More than 500,000 points are distributed weekly based on trading volume, LP deposits, and referral activities, and point boosts are applied during new asset listings or major economic events.

According to Ostium, since the mainnet launch at the end of last year, the number of users has exceeded 15,000. Cumulative trading volume reached $25 billion, open interest (OI) tripled from the previous quarter to $308 million. Year-to-date cumulative revenue is $11.8 million, and on major macro events daily fees have exceeded $350,000. Recently, it expanded its trading scope with RWA-based equity derivatives on platforms such as Coinbase and Robinhood and the listing of new crypto assets.

Ostium's development is led by Ostium Labs, and co-founders Kaledora Kiernan-Linn and Marco Antonio are growing the project with personnel from traditional finance and crypto backgrounds. To date, it has raised $7.9 million in funding from General Catalyst, LocalGlobe, SIG, GSR, AllianceDAO, Soma Capital, and others.