OKX's neutral strategy account is only open to VIP users, regular users do not have this access entry. If you are not a VIP (including trial VIP), it is normal that you cannot find the "Neutral Strategy Mode" in settings, and there is nothing wrong with your account. Even if you are a VIP, you still need to meet several hard prerequisites: your account is under cross-currency or portfolio margin mode, no isolated margin positions, no option holdings, no active flexible borrowings, no running strategies that generate virtual sub-accounts (grid, copy trading etc.), and your current Delta equity ratio is no higher than 0.2. After meeting all requirements, you can access the setting through 3 entries: select the mode directly when creating a sub-account, modify it in the sub-account management page, or switch it in the VIP permissions section of your personal center.
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What problems does this account solve
The Delta neutral strategy account mode is a dedicated package of OKX features built for arbitrage users, with finer risk and limit management based on strategy dimensions. It does not change the products you trade, it changes how the platform recognizes your positions.
Under regular strategy mode, if you hold spot long BTC and perpetual short BTC, the platform treats them as two separate positions, each occupying separate margin and participating in independent ADL sorting. The neutral strategy mode recognizes hedging positions of the same underlying as a group, and brings two tangible benefits: separate USDT borrowing limit calculation, and hedged positions are ranked lower in the ADL queue.
The independent borrowing limit only applies to USDT. For all other currencies, no matter which strategy mode you use, all sub-accounts share the same limit of the parent account. For example, a VIP5 user has a general USDT strategy limit of 50 million USDT. If some of his sub-accounts are switched to neutral strategy mode, these accounts can get an extra 15 million USDT limit, calculated separately without occupying the general limit. The exact limit number will change along with your VIP level and platform adjustments, refer to the actual number displayed on your account page.
Risk Control Boundary: Delta Equity Ratio is the Only Hard Switch
The core risk control metric for neutral strategy accounts is the Delta equity ratio, calculated as account Delta divided by account equity. This number fully defines what operations you can and cannot do, with no exceptions.
| Delta Equity Ratio | Status and Restrictions |
|---|---|
| ≤ 0.2 | Normal operation |
| 0.2 | Restrict asset withdrawals from the trading account |
| ≥ 0.3 and Delta > 500,000 USD | Cancel all active limit orders, market orders, take-profit and stop-loss pending orders; API batch order placement is disabled |
The conditions to lift restrictions are stricter than the trigger conditions: after the ratio exceeds 0.2, you need to lower it to 0.15 or lower to resume normal withdrawals; after the ratio exceeds 0.3, you need to lower it to 0.25 or lower to resume normal pending order functions. That means you cannot test the edge of the limit repeatedly, you have to reserve sufficient buffer space.
A common easy-to-misunderstand rule: the Delta calculation makes adjustment for net long positions. If the net Delta of BTC, ETH or SOL is positive (long), the system will adjust it against account equity, capping the adjusted value at zero; net short positions are calculated normally. This rule is designed to encourage users to hedge spot longs with short contracts, instead of diluting short risks with long contracts. If you run the standard spot long + perpetual short arbitrage, this adjustment works in your favor; if you use the reverse structure, you need to calculate the adjusted Delta clearly by yourself.
Unavailable Features After Activation
Neutral strategy mode has more feature restrictions than regular mode, confirm you do not need the following features before switching:
Account mode: Cannot use spot mode or futures mode, you must stay under cross-currency or portfolio margin mode
Position mode: Isolated margin is not supported
Trading products: Options, spot grid, futures grid, spot DCA, futures DCA, smart arbitrage, Crypto Earn, signal strategies, dip-buying and take-profit strategies are all unavailable
Financial products: Flexible borrowing, Dual Investment are unavailable
Transfer: Borrowed asset withdrawal is not allowed (non-borrowed assets can be withdrawn normally when meeting margin requirements)
Collateral setting: You must use the "All currencies" collateral mode, custom collateral currency selection is not supported
If you are currently running active grid strategies or holding option positions, you need to close or move these positions first before switching. The switching operation will not handle these positions automatically, the system will detect unmet requirements and block your operation.
Exact Setup Paths
There are 3 entries for different scenarios, pick the one that is most convenient for you.
Set up when creating a sub-account: Select "Neutral Strategy Mode" in the strategy mode options during the sub-account creation process. This is the cleanest way, the new account runs under neutral strategy rules from the very start, no extra condition check friction during switching.
Modify existing sub-account: Enter the sub-account management page, find the target sub-account, select strategy mode in the "More actions" menu, switch it to neutral strategy. Note this setting only takes effect for the current sub-account, it will not affect other sub-accounts.
Switch for main account or current account: Find VIP permissions in your personal center, locate the strategy mode setting option there. After you set strategy mode for the main account, sub-accounts will not follow the setting automatically, you need to configure them one by one.
API users can call POST /api/v5/account/set-trading-config to set the strategy mode, this interface can only modify settings for existing accounts, it cannot create a new account and set the mode at the same time.
Checklist When Switching Fails
If you meet the VIP requirement but still cannot complete the switch, check the following items in order:
Account mode: Is your account already under cross-currency or portfolio margin mode? If you are using spot mode or futures mode, switch it first.
Isolated margin positions: Do you have any active isolated margin positions? Close them or switch them to cross margin mode.
Options and borrowings: Do you hold any option positions or active flexible borrowings? Clear all of them.
Virtual sub-account strategies: Do you have any running strategies such as grid trading, copy trading? Stop or close all of them.
Delta equity ratio: Is your current ratio higher than 0.2? If yes, adjust your positions to lower the ratio first.
Borrowing limit: Have you hit your current maximum USDT borrowing limit? Check and make repayments if needed.
The switch will be blocked if any of the above conditions is not met. The system will not tell you exactly which requirement you failed, so you need to check them one by one.
Important Regional Difference to Note
OKX's Delta neutral strategy mode was not launched globally at the same time. According to official public information, the first batch of markets that launched the feature on November 7, 2025 include Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines), South Korea and CIS regions, other markets will get access gradually later. If your region is not on the first launch list, you may not see the entry even if you are a VIP. This is a regional eligibility issue, not an account configuration error. The fact that you can open the related page does not mean your account has the usage eligibility, refer to whether the actual entry is displayed on your interface.
Should You Open This Account
If you are already a VIP, and you are running or plan to run hedging strategies such as funding rate arbitrage, basis arbitrage, the neutral strategy mode is worth activating. The extra USDT borrowing limit and ADL ranking protection bring you tangible benefits, at the cost of losing access to grid, options and other features, plus the requirement to strictly monitor your Delta ratio. You should never use this mode if you hold a large amount of unhedged exposure.
If you only make a few hedging trades occasionally, or your main trading method is grid trading, options, isolated margin leverage, activating this mode will only add unnecessary restrictions for you. Under regular strategy mode, you have no Delta equity ratio related withdrawal limits and no unexpected order cancellation risk, with full feature availability.
Non-VIP users do not need to consider this option at all, the entry does not exist. If your trading volume is approaching the VIP threshold, you can wait until you meet the requirement, then follow the checklist above to prepare step by step.
A leading global cryptocurrency platform,suitable for both beginners and experienced traders.
New user benefit: 20% off trading fees upon registration!！
