What Are Perpetual Funding Rates? A Worked SEI Example

A hypothetical SEI ledger example illustrates how perpetual futures funding rates work, showing a $30 funding transfer that equals 0.75% of one trader's starting collateral and 0.375% of the other's. The example demonstrates that funding transfers are proportional to position size rather than account equity, which is why the same $30 payment represents a different percentage impact for each trader. Funding rates are periodic payments between long and short perpetual futures holders, designed to tether perp prices to spot prices—longs pay shorts when rates are positive and vice versa when negative. The SEI-based illustration matters for traders on perpetuals venues because funding can become a material cost or revenue line item, particularly for leveraged positions where small rate deviations compound against collateral. Traders should watch funding rate intervals, cumulative funding paid or received over a hold period, and how rate mechanics vary across exchanges and chains like Sei before entering positions.