When it comes to trading on OPNX, the Trading UI is a critical component that provides users with an overview of the price chart, depth chart, order book, trade ticket, market trade history, and collateral information. In this article, we will examine the key features of the OPNX trading experience to help you better understand how to navigate the platform.

Explore the annotated screenshot of the OPNX trading UI below:

The price chart is a highly customizable view of the price history and trading activity of the contract you have selected. It provides a graphical representation of the price movement over time, and various tools and customization options to enable you to conduct your own analysis and identify trading opportunities.

To access the depth chart, within the Price chart section, select “Depth”. The depth chart provides a visual representation of the current quantity and price level of open buy or sell orders in the order book. It enables you to visualize the depth of the market and determine the level of liquidity available for a specific contract.

The order book provides the numbers behind what the depth chart shows, indicating the sell and buy orders for a specific contract. The larger green or red number in the middle of the order book is the last traded price, and the white number to the right of it is the 'mark' or market or true price of the instrument, which is updated every 30 seconds.

The trade ticket is where you place your orders into the market and execute your trades. OPNX offers both limit and market orders. A limit order is where you decide the price, either executing a trade or adding an order to the book at a price defined by you, whereas a market order executes at the currently available market price. The top field labeled ‘USDT’ is where you enter the desired order price, the field labeled ‘BTC’ is where you enter the trade size/quantity of BTC, and the ‘USDT’ field below that is if you want to place a trade sized in USDT instead of BTC.

The trades section shows the essential details of all recently executed trades from all participants in the selected market. If the trade is in green, the taker order was a buy, and if red, the taker order was a sell. The time of the trade is given as well as the size of the trade.

The collateral information section provides essential details about the account, including available balance, portfolio margin, collateral balance, margin ratio, and margin gauge. These metrics are critical for understanding the amount of capital available for trading and managing risk.

The available balance displays the balance of the coins that correspond to the trading pair selected. In the spot books, it shows the balance of each asset of the pair in question minus currently open orders in an order book. In the derivative books, it shows the dollar value of all tradeable collateral in the account. If you have an open order in the spot book, it is still available as collateral balance.

Portfolio margin represents the minimum USD value collateral needed for either current open positions, open orders in the order book, or a combination of the two. It is an essential metric for managing risk and ensuring that you have enough collateral to cover your trading activities.

The collateral balance is the balance of all currencies that can be collateralized in the account. It shows the total amount of capital that can be used to trade on the platform.

The margin ratio represents the percentage of collateral used to support open positions, open orders, or a combination of the two. If the portfolio margin is under 50% of the collateral balance (under 50% margin ratio), then you can do whatever you want with the position, including adding to it.