The index price is meant to show the true value of digital assets. It acts as a buffer against market ups and downs by gathering price data from multiple exchanges instead of just one, providing a clearer and more complete picture of fair market value. The index price also plays a key role in calculating the mark price and is determined as the weighted average of the underlying asset’s prices across major spot exchanges.
At Gate, the USDT-M contract index prices are derived from data across exchanges such as Gate, Binance, OKX, Bybit, Bitget, Coinbase, KuCoin, and MEXC.
Gate selects suitable index components for each trading pair based on market conditions and periodically updates their weightings.
Gate also reserves the right to adjust the index components and their weightings at any time without prior notice.
1. Factors Included in the Index Price
The index price is calculated using spot prices from selected exchanges (index components) and their respective weightings. Details on the components, their weightings, and historical index prices are available on the Contract Details page.
2. Index Component Breakdown
Gate currently sources a diverse set of index components, including spot prices in USDT or USD on external exchanges. For U.S. stock-linked contracts, Gate also includes equity prices from U.S. exchanges such as NASDAQ and the NYSE.
All index component prices, including those for U.S. stocks, are provided continuously on a 24-hour basis. U.S. stock markets operate in multiple sessions: the full trading period spans from 4:00 to 20:00 (UTC-4), covering pre-market trading (4:00–9:30), regular trading (9:30–16:00), and after-hours trading (16:00–20:00). The market remains closed from 20:00 to 4:00 (UTC-4).
During pre-market, regular, and after-hours sessions, Gate uses real-time prices from U.S. exchanges as index component prices. During the market closed period, the most recent closing price is used to maintain continuous pricing. This mechanism ensures 24-hour pricing coverage for U.S. stock index components.
| U.S. Stock Trading Session | Pre-Market Session | Regular Session | After-Hours Session | Market Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price Source | Real-Time Price | Real-Time Price | Real-Time Price | Closing Price |
It is important to note that compared to the regular trading session, the order book during pre-market and after-hours sessions tends to be thinner, with reduced liquidity. As a result, short-term price spikes may occur in U.S. stock index component prices, potentially causing price fluctuations in the contract market. These stock quotes are part of publicly available market data and can be accessed via websites, trading platforms, or APIs.
3. Index Price Calculation
The index price is calculated using a weighted average of the prices and weightings of each component.
The formula is as follows:
Index Price = Spot Price of Component A × Weight of Component A + Spot Price of Component B × Weight of Component B + Spot Price of Component C × Weight of Component C + ⋯ + Spot Price of Component F × Weight of Component F
Taking BTCUSDT as an example, the index price is derived from spot prices on six exchanges: Binance, Bybit, Gate, OKX, KuCoin, and MEXC.
BTCUSDT Index Price = 55840.01 × 16.67% + 55827.57 × 16.67% + 55824 × 16.67% + 55819.9 × 16.67% + 55840.01 × 16.67% + 55824.4 × 16.67% = 55840.5
Gate reserves the final right to interpret the product.
