# Cash and Carry Scanner: Live Funding Trades After Basis and Fees

As of 2026-10-04 15:35 UTC, ArbTide found 555 cash-and-carry trades with a positive estimated 30-day return after fees. The best: buy PUMPBTC spot on Gate at 0.00847 and short the perpetual on MEXC at 0.00864, earning 993.16% funding APR for an estimated 1012.23% APR over 30 days.

**A cash-and-carry trade buys a coin on the spot market and shorts the same amount in perpetual futures, collecting funding while funding is positive.** The two legs cancel out on price, so the return comes from funding and the entry basis. The table on this page shows the best spot and perp pair per coin. For the theory, read [what is a cash-and-carry trade](/learn/what-is-a-cash-and-carry-trade).

## How it works

1. **Find a coin with positive funding.** When the perpetual trades above spot, longs pay shorts. See [what is a funding rate](/learn/what-is-funding-rate).
2. **Buy spot** at the ask, on the same exchange or another one.
3. **Short the perpetual** in equal size at the bid. You are now [delta-neutral](/learn/what-is-delta-neutral-trading).
4. **Collect funding** at every interval while you hold.
5. **Exit** by selling the spot and closing the short, ideally when funding falls or the basis has closed.

## Reading the scanner

The scanner covers exchanges where ArbTide collects spot prices, perpetual prices and funding rates together, so venues that publish only one of these are left out.

Choose a holding period (7, 30 or 90 days) above the table. The estimate changes with it, because fees are paid once while funding accrues over time.

- **Route**: the spot market you buy and the perp you short. A Same exchange badge means both legs sit on one venue, which avoids transfers.
- **Est. APR (holding period)**: the annualized return after basis and fees, if funding stays at its current rate. The line below is the net return over the whole period. Formula: funding APR × days ÷ 365 + basis − fees.
- **Funding APR**: the perp's current funding annualized (rate ÷ interval hours × 8,760), with the raw rate per interval underneath.
- **Basis**: (perp bid − spot ask) ÷ spot ask. A positive basis means the perp you short is priced above the spot you buy, which adds to the return when the gap closes. See [basis in crypto](/learn/what-is-basis-in-crypto).
- **Fees**: taker fees on both legs, entry and exit, at default rates. The line below shows the break-even period: (fees − basis) ÷ funding APR × 365 days.
- **24h volume**: trading volume for the coin; markets under $100,000 are excluded.

To judge a row, start with break-even days. For example, assume fees of 0.2%, a basis of 0.05% and funding of 15% APR: break-even is (0.2% − 0.05%) ÷ 15% × 365 ≈ 3.7 days. If the coin's [funding history](/funding-rates/btc/history) shows the rate has stayed positive for weeks, a short break-even is reassuring. If the rate spiked in the last interval, the Est. APR is unlikely to last. The [basis calculator](/tools/basis-calculator) and [funding rate calculator](/tools/funding-rate-calculator) let you test your own numbers.

## Costs and risks the scanner does not include

- **Funding changes**: the estimate assumes today's rate for the whole period. Funding resets every interval and can turn negative.
- **Short-leg liquidation**: a sharp rally raises the margin needed on the short. If the spot sits on another exchange, it cannot cover the loss directly. See [what is liquidation](/learn/what-is-liquidation).
- **Transfers**: routes across two exchanges need inventory on both, or withdrawals and network fees to move coins.
- **Slippage** beyond the top of the order book on entry and exit. See [what is slippage](/learn/what-is-slippage).
- **Basis at exit**: the estimate assumes the basis closes. If the perp trades below spot when you exit, you give back part of the return.
- **Exchange risk** on every venue holding your capital.

More detail is in [arbitrage risks](/learn/arbitrage-risks) and the [methodology](/methodology).

## When it works best

Cash and carry pays best during sustained bullish periods, when many traders hold leveraged longs and funding stays positive for days or weeks. Same-exchange routes on liquid coins are the simplest to run and monitor. Longer holding periods spread the fixed fees over more funding payments, so steady, moderate funding often beats a brief spike. When funding is negative, the mirror trade is [reverse cash and carry](/carry/reverse).

## Frequently asked questions

### How does a cash-and-carry trade earn money with perpetuals?

The trader holds spot and an equal short perpetual, so price moves cancel out. While funding is positive, longs pay shorts, and the short leg collects that funding every interval.

### What does Est. APR mean on the scanner?

Est. APR is the annualized return for the holding period you choose, after the entry basis and taker fees on both legs. It assumes funding stays at its current rate and the basis closes when you exit. The line below it is the net return over the whole period.

### What is the break-even period?

It is how many days of funding at the current rate are needed to cover fees minus the entry basis: (fees − basis) ÷ funding APR × 365. When the basis already covers the fees, the scanner shows the trade as covered at entry.

### What happens if funding turns negative?

The short leg starts paying funding instead of receiving it, so the trade loses money each interval. Most traders close the position if negative funding persists.