Lighter is now part of Sparkling. That adds a second perpetuals venue next to Hyperliquid and a new kind of trade: Up/Down binary options on BTC and ETH, where you only call the direction and can never be liquidated. Both sit in the same self-custody account as your swaps, stocks and predictions.
Lighter is an application-specific zk-rollup on Ethereum designed for trading. Orders are matched off-chain at high speed, and cryptographic proofs of the matching are posted to Ethereum, so anyone can verify that trades and liquidations followed the rules instead of trusting the operator.
Lighter perps work like any perpetual future: margin in USDC, long or short, funding between traders and a liquidation price. In Sparkling you add “on Lighter” to a request, or pick the venue in manual mode, and the card sets out position size, entry level, the liquidation point and costs ahead of your signature. Margin, funding and mark price are explained on our page about perpetual futures.
Each Up/Down contract asks one question: will BTC or ETH be higher or lower at the end of a 15-minute window? You buy Up or Down shares in USDC; when the window closes, the result is settled with Chainlink price data and every winning share pays 1 USDC.
| Lighter perp | Lighter Up/Down option | |
|---|---|---|
| What you decide | Direction and size | Direction only |
| Leverage | Optional | None |
| Liquidation | Possible | Never |
| Maximum loss | Your margin | The price paid for the shares |
| Time frame | Open until you close | 15-minute window |
Up/Down options are close in spirit to short crypto markets on Polymarket; the difference is set out where we compare prediction markets.
About a minute once you hold USDC.
Both perps and Up/Down options use USDC from your account.
20 sec
For example “10 USDC on BTC up on Lighter” or “short ETH with 50 USDC on Lighter”.
20 sec
For an option: shares, price and potential payout. For a perp: size, entry and liquidation price.
10 sec
Sign, then watch the window close or manage the position.
10 sec
Availability varies by jurisdiction. Lighter products follow Lighter's regional rules and local law on derivatives.
Checked in late October 2026.
| Lighter perps and Up/Down optionsTelegram and web, one account | Selected regions |
|---|---|
| United States and United KingdomLighter products closed to residents | Unavailable |
| EU and NorwayLocal rules on retail perps and options | Unavailable |
Leveraged perps can be liquidated and lose your whole margin. An Up/Down option can’t be liquidated, but a losing share expires at zero, and 15-minute windows move fast. Proofs make the venue’s matching verifiable, not your trades profitable. Sparkling trading app lists the cost of each trade up front; the risk of trading remains yours and we give no investment recommendations.
An Ethereum-based trading venue whose order matching can be checked through zero-knowledge proofs.
No. You trade Lighter from your Sparkling account in Telegram or on the web.
BTC and ETH Up/Down contracts over 15 minutes, fully paid in USDC, with no leverage or liquidation.
1 USDC per share at the end of the window.
Both are available; name the venue in your request or let the agent suggest one, and compare the cards.
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