What is shorting?

Image:https://www.gate.io/futures/USDT/BTC_USDT

Short Selling, also known as “做空”, is an investment method used when anticipating a decline in the price of a certain asset. Contrary to the traditional “buy low, sell high” approach, the logic of shorting is “sell high, buy low”. Investors will first borrow a certain asset, sell it at the current price, and then buy it back at a lower price in the future to return it, thereby earning the price difference profit.

For example: if you expect a stock to be overvalued, you can borrow and sell it at 90 yuan per share first. If the stock later drops to 60 yuan, you can buy it back and return it, making a profit of 30 yuan per share.

How to execute shorting?

Shorting trades typically involve several key steps:

1. Obtain shorting permission
   Not all accounts or platforms automatically support shorting, investors need to ensure they have the relevant permissions, usually requiring the opening of margin or contract accounts.
2. Borrowed assets
   Borrowing the assets you want to short, such as stocks or cryptocurrencies, through a platform or brokerage.
3. Market sell
   Selling borrowed assets at the current market price, locking in an initial selling price.
4. Waiting for the market to adjust
   Investors wait for asset prices to fall so they can buy back at a lower price.
5. Buy back and settle the difference
   When the price drops to the appropriate level, investors buy back the assets at the market price and return them to the lender. The difference between the selling and buying prices, minus the costs, is the actual profit.

Common use cases of shorting

Shorting is not only for profiting from a decline, but also commonly used in the following scenarios:

1. Arbitrage strategies in volatile markets
   Investors can establish hedging positions between long and short positions, lock in arbitrage opportunities, and reduce one-sided risks.
2. Capture valuation bubbles
   When some assets are clearly hyped beyond their fundamentals, investors may short them to speculate on the price returning to rationality.
3. Hedging systemic risk
   Institutions or individuals holding large assets may use shorting indices or related assets for portfolio protection.
4. Flexibility in the digital asset market
   In the cryptocurrency market, shorting provides investors with the ability to trade in both directions, allowing them to participate regardless of market fluctuations.

Shorting strategy precautions

Although shorting has unique advantages, it also comes with high risks and complex costs:

• Loss is not up
  The asset price has unlimited upside potential, and as a seller, you must ultimately buy back at the market price. This theoretically results in unlimited potential losses.
• Additional margin risk
  If the price moves in an unfavorable direction, the platform or broker may issue a margin call or even force liquidation.
• Floating borrowing cost
  The cost of borrowing high-demand assets is often expensive and may continue to erode profits.
• Platform risk and liquidity constraints
  The cryptocurrency market is particularly so, with different platforms having different contract systems and clearing mechanisms, careless operations can easily lead to passive losses.
• Regulatory restrictions on risk
  Some countries or markets may restrict or even prohibit shorting in extreme cases, which may affect strategy execution.

Summary suggestion

Short selling provides investors with the potential to profit when the market falls, and can also be used as a risk management tool. However, due to its complexity, variable costs, and potential for significant losses, it is not suitable for inexperienced beginners to attempt lightly.

Investor advice:

• Fully understand the relevant principles before attempting to short.
• Practice using a demo account;
• Choose a reliable platform (such as Gate, etc.);
• Set stop loss carefully and manage leverage ratio reasonably;
• Always pay attention to market fluctuations and policy risks.

Mastering shorting is not only a part of improving investment skills, but also helps you understand the market operation logic from multiple perspectives.

For visual aids, please visit Gate’s BTC perpetual contract page:
https://www.gate.io/futures/USDT/BTC_USDT