ApeX Protocol vs Gains Network Comparison
| 0.02% maker / 0.05% taker | Fees | 0.08% opening / 0.08% closing |
Cost comparison
The basis is a Bitcoin purchase worth €1,000, including all fees and spreads.
| 0.02% maker / 0.05% taker | Fees | 0.08% opening / 0.08% closing |
Pros & Cons
- No gas costs for users
- Perpetuals on equities, commodities and prediction markets too
- Around 90 crypto perpetuals, up to 100x leverage on BTC and ETH
- Operating since 2022 with no known loss of user funds
- Well-known backers
- Considerably lower volume than the market leaders
- Thinner order books in secondary markets
- No EU authorisation
- Support runs through community channels
- More than 270 pairs across crypto, forex, commodities and equities
- Forex and commodity trading without a conventional brokerage account
- Collateral in DAI, USDC or WETH
- Available on several chains
- Capital-efficient synthetic model
- Leverage up to 500x on crypto and 1000x on forex — barely manageable for retail traders
- Synthetic model with oracle dependence as a structural risk factor
- The counterparty is the protocol's liquidity vault
- No EU authorisation
Score Comparison
Features
- No gas costs
- Crypto, equity and commodity perpetuals in one interface
- Operating since 2022 without a known security incident
- Up to 100x leverage on the main markets
- Widest market list in this comparison
- Forex and commodities tradable on-chain
- Several chains and collateral types
- Synthetic model without custody of underlying assets
The five areas head to head
AI AnalysisFees & Costs
Perpetuals carry roughly 0.019% maker and 0.0475% taker fees, spot trading around 0.0425%. Users bear no gas costs. Referral programmes and rebates can lower effective costs further. As of August 2026.
Fees apply on opening and closing a position and run to a few tenths of a percent depending on asset class and pair, with holding costs on top. Network fees follow the chain in use and are low on Polygon, Arbitrum and Base. Exact rates vary by market and should be checked in the interface before trading. As of August 2026.
Usability & User Experience
The interface follows centralised exchange conventions and is immediately legible to users with futures experience. Access runs through a wallet connection without conventional registration. As of August 2026.
The interface is functional but busier than the pure crypto competitors given the market breadth. Anyone unfamiliar with synthetic trading should read up on oracle pricing and vault mechanics first. As of August 2026.
Features & Offering
The offering covers roughly 90 crypto perpetuals with up to 100x leverage on BTC and ETH and around 50x on most other pairs. Beyond that, perpetuals on equities and commodities and prediction markets are available — a breadth that is unusual in the segment. As of August 2026.
gTrade tracks more than 270 pairs synthetically — cryptocurrencies alongside forex, commodities, equities and indices. Collateral can be posted in DAI, USDC or WETH. Leverage tiers reach 500x in crypto and 1000x in forex depending on asset class. The protocol runs on Polygon, Arbitrum and Base. As of August 2026.
Details
| ApeX Protocol (by Bybit) | Company | Gains Network |
| Singapore | Headquarters | Decentralised, no registered office |
Verdict
Both providers are practically level in our overall rating (3.7 to 3.6).
Neither provider reaches 4.0 out of 5 in our rating, so we do not give an unreserved recommendation here.
ApeX — now operating as ApeX Omni — has run perpetual markets since 2022 and is backed by investors including Dragonfly Capital, Jump Crypto and Bybit-affiliated Mirana. No security incident involving loss of user funds is known, which counts for something in a segment with a short half-life.
Fees run around 0.019% for makers and 0.0475% for takers, and users bear no gas costs. The offering reaches beyond crypto: alongside roughly 90 crypto perpetuals at up to 100x leverage on BTC and ETH — around 50x on most secondary pairs — there are perpetuals on equities and commodities as well as prediction markets.
On scale ApeX sits clearly behind the volume leaders, which shows as thinner books in secondary markets. It is most interesting for users who want crypto and non-crypto perpetuals from a single interface. The platform holds no EU authorisation; perpetuals sit outside MiCA in any case, and tax reporting rests entirely with the user.
Gains Network runs gTrade, a platform that stands well apart from pure crypto perpetuals. Trading is synthetic: no underlying assets are custodied, only price differences are tracked. That allows a market breadth unmatched in this comparison — more than 270 pairs across crypto, forex, commodities and equities.
Leverage tiers are correspondingly extreme: up to 500x in crypto and up to 1000x in forex. Figures at that level are practically unmanageable for retail traders, with liquidation thresholds a fraction of a percent away. Collateral can be posted in DAI, USDC or WETH. The protocol runs on Polygon, Arbitrum and Base, with indices additionally on Solana.
The synthetic model carries a structural risk factor: prices come from oracle feeds and the counterparty is ultimately the protocol's liquidity vault. For users seeking forex or commodity leverage without a brokerage account, gTrade remains one of the few serious on-chain venues. The platform holds no EU authorisation; perpetuals sit outside MiCA in any case, and tax reporting rests entirely with the user.