Continuum Logocontinuum
Side by side

Continuum vs GMX: Cross-Chain Synthetic Comparison

Same idea, different chain, and a very different answer on who takes the other side.

GMX prices trades off a shared liquidity pool with no price impact and charges you a borrow fee for the privilege. Continuum quotes against a keeper-run bin book at NAV and charges nothing to hold a long. Different chains, different bills.

Continuum

Solana

Paired L/S Token Protocol

Chain
Solanaexcellent
Fee Model
Spread on the book, no borrow feeexcellent
Liquidity Model
Keeper-quoted bin book per leggood
Position Type
Transferable tokensexcellent
Funding/Borrow
None (shorts pay a volatility decay)good
Oracle
Pyth Networkexcellent
Composability
Full ecosystemexcellent

Pros

  • Solana settlement, so a round trip is under a second
  • Fees small enough to ignore on most sizes
  • Nothing accrues against a long: no funding, no borrow fee
  • The position is a token, usable anywhere on Solana

Cons

  • Solana only
  • Young protocol
  • Thinner liquidity than GMX at size

GMX

Arbitrum / Avalanche

Perpetual DEX with GLP

Chain
Arbitrum / Avalanchegood
Fee Model
0.1% position + borrowfair
Liquidity Model
GLP pool for all assetsgood
Position Type
Non-transferable contractsfair
Funding/Borrow
Hourly borrow feefair
Oracle
Chainlink + keepergood
Composability
Limitedfair

Pros

  • Live since 2021 with the track record to match
  • GLP is deep enough to absorb size
  • Trades execute at oracle price with no impact
  • Deployed on more than one chain

Cons

  • The hourly borrow fee is the real cost of a long hold
  • Positions cannot leave the platform
  • GLP holders are the counterparty to every trader

The verdict

GMX is the more proven venue and its GLP pool will take size that Continuum's book currently cannot. That matters more than anything else on this page if you trade large. Below that threshold, Solana's speed and the absence of a borrow fee do most of the work, and a token you can post as collateral elsewhere is worth more than one you can't.

Which one fits your case

Solana-native DeFi users

Continuum

Same chain as the rest of your positions, with tokens the ecosystem accepts

EVM chain preference

GMX

Live on Arbitrum and Avalanche

Large position sizes

GMX

GLP absorbs size that would push a bin book off the mark

Cost-sensitive trading

Continuum

No borrow fee, and Solana fees round to nothing

Yield on liquidity

GMX

GLP pays out trading fees to holders

Other comparisons

Continuum vs Synthetix: Solana vs Ethereum Synthetics

One pools debt across every minter. The other pairs each position against its opposite.

Continuum vs Jupiter Perps: Synthetics vs Perpetuals

A token you can walk out of the app with, against a position you cannot.

Synthetic Assets vs Wrapped Tokens: What's the Difference?

One holds the asset in a vault. The other only tracks its price.

See how it trades

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