Part 6, Strategy Trading Series — Price Lock

Foreword

We all encounter such scenarios: when prices rise continuously, directly chasing the rally means the price is too high; if you want to wait for a pullback before buying, you worry you won't be able to get in. Similarly, when prices drop continuously, selling directly means the price is too low; if you want to wait for a rebound before selling, you worry the rebound will be too weak to close your position.

At this point, you can consider using the Price Lock feature. Price Lock can alleviate the FOMO of chasing rallies during sharp upward moves, or the panic of cascading sells during sharp downward moves.

1. What Is Price Lock

Price Lock is an irrevocable strategy Trading order — a limit order that meets certain conditions. You can select Price Lock to ensure that regardless of market movements, users can execute a certain percentage or all of their digital assets at a more favorable price. The core mechanism of Price Lock is option arbitrage, which enables the Price Lock product's functionality. Therefore, it cannot guarantee 100% execution at the limit price on the expiration date. This feature is primarily implemented through OKX's powerful backend system algorithms and trading strategies. You only need to understand how the feature works — there's no need to dig into the underlying principles. The following is an example of a put-call parity arbitrage:

The core function of Price Lock is to ensure traders can buy at the bottom and sell at the top, thereby minimizing costs and maximizing returns. Simply put, when buyers worry they won't be able to buy at the bottom and sellers worry they won't be able to sell at the top, Price Lock is an ideal choice.

2. Applicable Scenarios for Price Lock

In spot trading, when traders placing limit orders encounter a significant deviation between their limit price and the market price, Price Lock can ensure that users execute a certain percentage of their assets at their limit price within a custom expiration time.

Scenarios where Price Lock is suitable:

1. One-sided markets with minimal pullbacks, where markets are prone to FOMO or panic. In such cases, users who want to buy at a lower price or sell at a higher price would find this particularly suitable. As shown below:

2. Some ranging markets where the expected highest and lowest prices of the range do not exceed the locked price range — meaning when buying, the expected lowest price of the range is higher than the lock price; when selling, the expected highest price of the range is lower than the lock price. In such cases, Price Lock has an advantage over limit orders. As shown below:

Not suitable scenarios:

However, when prices break through the lock price in a ranging market, Price Lock is not suitable. This is because the lock price is only compared against the price on the expiration date. After the expiration time, if the user's locked buy price is lower than the price at expiration, or the locked sell price is higher than the price at expiration, only a partial percentage of the position can be executed. In such cases, using limit orders is more advantageous than using Price Lock. As shown below:

3. Product Advantages and Disadvantages

Product Advantages

1. Ensures users can buy or sell assets at their psychological price in a certain proportion, maximizing returns as much as possible.

2. Compared with regular limit order Trading, Price Lock is fee-free.

3. After selecting the Price Lock product, users don't need to constantly monitor market fluctuations — simply wait for execution on the expiration date, saving time and effort.

Product Disadvantages

1. Before the expiration date, users cannot cancel orders. Liquidity is locked, and the principal cannot be withdrawn until after execution on the expiration date.

2. Since this product only focuses on the price at expiration, price fluctuations during the holding period have no impact on the final execution. Therefore, the greater returns potentially available from price swings before expiration cannot be captured due to inability to execute — this entails high opportunity costs.

3. With a fixed lock price, the longer the time until expiration, the higher the guaranteed buy or sell ratio, but the longer the funds remain locked, resulting in higher opportunity costs. Therefore, in such cases, users need to carefully weigh time and capital costs to manage risk prudently.

4. How to Use Price Lock

Select 【Price Lock】 from the strategy list; or when placing a limit order, if the price meets the conditions, the system will recommend the 【Price Lock】 feature.

As shown below, using ETH/USDT buying as an example: when using 【Price Lock】, enter a lock price of 1800, quantity of 1 ETH, and expiration date of 2022/08/26. After entering these parameters, within the 30-second countdown, the system automatically calculates the 【Guaranteed Purchase Ratio】. In this example, the guaranteed purchase ratio is 25.65%, meaning after the delivery time on August 26 at 16:00, even if the price is above 1800, you can still buy 25.65% * 1 = 0.2565 ETH. If the price is less than or equal to 1800, the full amount will be executed at 1800.

5. Precautions

1. If the selected date has expired, the price inquiry will fail and display 【No quote available】. In this case, try adjusting the expiration date and try trading again.

2. After placing an order, the order cannot be revoked. Your funds will be locked until the expiration date. After delivery is complete, you can view them in Assets.

3. Currently, Price Lock supports only BTC/USDT and ETH/USDT trading pairs. Additional trading pairs will be added gradually.

4. It is recommended that you read the OKX Price Lock product description in full, carefully evaluate your own risk tolerance, and make rational decisions.

OKX Web has launched a Strategy Square, offering a variety of strategy types to meet diverse investment needs. It also supports one-click copy of expert strategy parameters. You can access Strategy Square here to start your strategy trading journey.

Key Takeaways

Disclaimer

This article may contain product-related content not applicable to your region. This article is intended to provide general information only and makes no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of any information. The views expressed are those of the author alone and do not represent the views of OKX. This article is not intended to provide any advice, including but not limited to: (i) investment advice or investment recommendations; (ii) offers or solicitations to buy, sell, or hold digital assets; or (iii) financial, accounting, legal, or tax advice. Holding digital assets (including stablecoins) involves a high degree of risk and may fluctuate significantly or become worthless. You should carefully consider whether trading or holding digital assets is appropriate for you based on your financial situation. For questions specific to your circumstances, please consult your legal/tax/investment professional. Any information (including market data and statistics, if applicable) appearing in this article is provided for general reference purposes only. Although all reasonable precautions have been taken in preparing this data and these charts, we make no representation as to the adequacy, accuracy, or completeness of any facts expressed herein and accept no liability for any factual errors or omissions. © 2025 OKX. This article may be reproduced or distributed in its entirety or in excerpts of 100 words or less, provided that such use is for non-commercial purposes. Any reproduction or distribution of the entire article must prominently state: "This article is copyrighted © 2025 OKX, used with permission." Permitted excerpts must cite the article name and include attribution, for example, "Article name, [author name (if applicable)], © 2025 OKX." Portions of this content may have been generated or assisted by artificial intelligence (AI) tools. Derivative works or other uses of this article are not permitted.

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