BRVX Glossary · Short selling · Updated September 24, 2026
Short selling is a position whose value rises when a price falls. In the stock market it means borrowing shares, selling them, and buying them back later to return them; with futures and perpetual contracts you simply open a short position, with no borrowing involved.
The formula
Short PnL Size × (Entry − Exit) ÷ Entry
With a perpetual contract there is nothing to borrow: the short is a position, not a loan of shares.
How it works
- Open short At entry
- Price falls PnL rises
- Close Buy back lower
Try it on NVDA/USDT
Live NVDA/USDT tariff. Simplified estimate: opening fee included, closing fee and funding not.
PnL at this move −20 USDT
- On your margin
- −20%
- Position size
- 500 USDT
- Move against you to liquidation
- 15.89%
Leverage works both ways: a small move against you can lose you the whole margin.
On this page
How a classic short works
A broker lends you shares you do not own. You sell them at today's price, and later you buy the same number back and return them. If the price fell in between, you keep the difference. If it rose, you pay it.
The short seller also pays a borrow fee for as long as the shares are out, and pays any dividends the company distributes while the loan is open.
Shorting with a perpetual contract
A perpetual future is a contract, not a share, so there is nothing to borrow. Going short is the mirror of going long: the position gains when the price falls and loses when it rises. There is no borrow fee and no hard-to-borrow list; the ongoing cost is funding.
- Short PnL = (entry price − exit price) ÷ entry price × position size.
- Losses on a short grow as the price rises, so a stop-loss and the liquidation price matter as much as on a long.
Short example on BRVX
NVDA/USDT on BRVX is a synthetic perpetual — no NVIDIA shares are borrowed or held. A 100 USDT margin at 10x opens a 1,000 USDT short. If the price falls 3%, the position gains about 30 USDT before costs; opening costs 0.5 USDT and closing about the same. If the price rises about 7.9%, the margin is used up and the position is liquidated.
Short funding on NVDA/USDT is currently 0.0023% per hour of notional.
Questions about Short selling
Can you short a stock without borrowing shares?
Yes, with a derivative. A short perpetual future or a CFD gives downside exposure without a share loan. You do not own or borrow the stock.
What is the maximum loss on a short?
On a classic short it is unlimited, because a price can rise without a ceiling. On a leveraged short with automatic liquidation, the position is closed before the margin runs out.
Can I short stocks on BRVX outside market hours?
Yes. BRVX stock perpetuals trade 24/7, including when the stock's home exchange is closed.
Leverage works both ways: a small move against you can lose you the whole margin.
Short selling: next steps on BRVX
Short selling on NVDA/USDT: pick 5x to 50x, 25x by default, margin in 6 tokens. At 50x, a 1% move is 50% of margin.
Read next: Futures trading, Long and short positions and Perpetual futures.
Leverage works both ways: a small move against you can lose you the whole margin.
Open NVDA/USDT in the app
Open appLeverage raises both gains and losses. Start with a size you are comfortable with. Not available to US persons.