Exchange Divergence (price gaps)
What it shows
Comparison of derivatives markets across exchanges: Binance, OKX and Bybit. It shows differences in Funding Rates and Long/Short Ratios for the same coins, highlighting local market tensions (Tension Score). By default the comparison is combined, meaning it covers every exchange that reported data; the picker at the top narrows it down to a chosen pair of venues.
How to read it
Start with the tension bar: green means a consistent market, red (above 75) a clear cross-exchange anomaly. Then check what drives it: the funding spread, the LSR spread or an OI direction conflict. Large divergences have historically closed within a short time, accompanied by elevated volatility. A market description, not a trade recommendation.
Parameters
- Comparison scope: combined or a pair
- "Combined" compares every venue at once: the spread is the difference between the HIGHEST and the LOWEST reading, no matter how many exchanges reported (at least two). Picking a pair (e.g. Binance vs Bybit) recomputes the same formulas on those two venues only, as the third one no longer affects the result.
- Neutral reading: The "binance vs bybit vs okx" line under the coin symbol says which venues actually entered the calculation for that coin: a silent exchange is simply absent.
- How tension is computed (the formula)
- Tension is the average of two components, each on a 0-100 scale: the funding spread (a 0.05 percentage-point gap = 100) and the LSR spread (a 0.5 gap = 100). An OI direction conflict adds 25 points and the result is capped at 100. If both spreads are missing but a direction conflict exists, tension is 100. The scale is arbitrary but FIXED, so readings stay comparable over time.
- Neutral reading: The widget's warning has no monetary threshold: the bar colour comes from tension (40 or less green, above 40 up to 75 orange, above 75 red), and the red "Direction Conflict!" badge appears only when OI grew on one venue and shrank on another over the last hour. Data older than 2 hours does not enter the comparison at all.
- Tension Score
- Aggregated tension score (0-100): higher means larger divergence across exchanges (conflicting OI, wide spreads).
- Positive reading: A low score (40 or less, green bar): exchanges see the market similarly; readings are consistent and reliable.
- Negative reading: A high score (above 75, red bar): a strong cross-exchange divergence; historically such anomalies came with elevated volatility.
- Neutral reading: It measures cross-exchange divergence, not price direction. A high score does not say whether the market goes up or down.
- No tension reading
- A dash and an empty, dashed bar in the Tension column mean tension CANNOT be computed: there is no funding spread, no LSR spread and no OI direction conflict. It means "we don't know", not "the market is perfectly consistent".
- Neutral reading: A tension of 0 with a green bar is something else: the components are known and come out at zero, so the market really is consistent. A missing reading never gets a band colour.
- Funding spread
- The difference in Funding Rates between exchanges for the same coin, in percent.
- Positive reading: A spread near zero: the cost of holding a position is similar everywhere; the market is aligned.
- Negative reading: A wide spread (e.g. a few hundredths of a percent per 8h). Leverage demand diverges across venues; historically such gaps tended to close quickly, often with choppy moves.
- LSR spread
- The difference in the Long/Short ratio between exchanges. Small = both trader populations position similarly; large = each venue sees a different crowd.
- Neutral reading: A large LSR spread is an exchange-local signal: treat positioning readings more cautiously when it appears.
- Total OI & direction conflict
- Total Open Interest (USD) with a per-exchange breakdown. The "Direction Conflict!" badge appears when OI grows on one venue while shrinking on another, which means capital is flowing in opposite directions.
- Negative reading: A direction conflict alongside high tension: venues "disagree" about the market; historically such moments tended to be unstable.
- The "empty character" in the table
- A dash means there is NO comparable data, not a zero: fewer than two venues reported that reading, so the spread cannot be computed. Do not read it as "the gap is 0".
- Neutral reading: Zero is not a dash: when both venues reported an identical reading, the spread column shows 0.0000% or 0.00, which means it is a computed result rather than missing data. Shallow markets are quoted as numbers too: total OI below USD 1M is shown in thousands (e.g. 420K).
Example
BTC shows tension 82, a 0.03% funding spread and an OI direction conflict. In the combined view (Binance, OKX, Bybit) the venues pull in opposite directions. Switching to the Binance vs Bybit pair drops tension to 30, so OKX is the source of the divergence. Historically such divergence closed within hours, often with choppy price action. Context of elevated uncertainty, not a signal.