Same 20x, same entry, opposite fates: how the midterm-night ETH range treated longs and shorts on Bitunix

Advanced tier. Bitunix ETHUSDT perpetual data, fetched at 10:55 AM ET on Nov 4, 2026:

• 24h open 2,299.29
• 24h low 2,225.01
• 24h high 2,449.92
• Last 2,421.72, mark 2,422.23, index 2,422.88
• Funding 0.01% per 8h, with a +/-0.3% cap

The low sits 3.23% under the open. The high sits 6.55% above it. Total range: 224.91, or 10.11% measured from the low.

The setup

Both traders enter at the 24h open, 2,299.29, at 20x. For the liquidation line we use Bitunix's own 0.5% maintenance example rate, so a 20x position has 5% initial margin minus 0.5% maintenance before it is closed. This is a simplified isolated-margin model and ignores fees and funding.

Long liquidation: 2,299.29 x (1 - 0.05 + 0.005) = 2,195.82 Short liquidation: 2,299.29 x (1 + 0.05 - 0.005) = 2,402.76

Case A: the long

The night's low was 2,225.01. That is 29.19 above the long's liquidation line, a cushion of about 1.31% from the low. The long felt every bit of the dip, but survived and now sits on a gain of roughly 122 per ETH at the current last price.

Case B: the short

The high was 2,449.92, which is 47.16 above the short's liquidation line. The short was closed somewhere on the way up, before ETH even reached the current price. At 10x the same short would have had its line at 2,299.29 x (1 + 0.10 - 0.005) = 2,517.72. The high stayed 67.80 below that. Survived, but deep underwater.

Why this is an advanced problem, not a beginner one

This is the part most guides skip. Liquidation math is easy once you know the formula; the hard part is knowing which distance to feed it. Most traders size from a symmetric guess: "ETH moves maybe 5% on an event night." Event ranges are rarely symmetric. Here the drop leg was 3.23% and the squeeze leg was 6.55%, roughly double. A position sized for the average move survives one direction and fails the other.

Three habits that handle asymmetry better:

1. Size each side for the longer leg you have seen recently, not the average. If you are short into a headline, assume the squeeze leg is the long one.
2. Measure distance from mark, not last. At 10:55 AM ET, mark was 0.51 above last on Bitunix ETHUSDT. Small today, but in a fast squeeze the gap is where stops and liquidations race each other.
3. Watch the funding cap. Bitunix ETH funding is at 0.01% now, with room up to 0.3% per period. A squeeze that drags funding toward the cap adds a carry bill on top of the price loss for whichever side is paying.

Q&A

Q: Would cross margin have saved the short? A: Only if the account had spare balance to absorb about 47 per ETH of extra loss. Cross margin does not move the line for free, it borrows from the rest of your wallet. On a night with this much range, that can turn one bad position into a much larger account drawdown.

Q: Is the 0.5% maintenance rate exact for every size? A: No. It is Bitunix's example rate. Larger positions sit in higher risk-limit tiers with higher maintenance, which pulls the liquidation line closer.

Q: Does BTC show the same asymmetry? A: Check it yourself. Pull the 24h open, low and high for $BTC.USDT and compute both legs the same way.

Your turn

Run the two-leg check on $ETH.USDT, then on $BTC.USDT, $SOL.USDT, $XRP.USDT and $DOGE.USDT. Which coin had the most lopsided midterm-night range, and which side of it were you on?