What to Check Before You Open a Derivatives Account — Bybit

Ten minutes of setup before you fund anything saves the two most expensive mistakes new derivatives traders make.

Most guides start at "click sign up". That is the least important step. Here is what actually determines whether the account works out.

1. Check whether the venue is authorised where you live

This is not a formality. Exchanges are licensed jurisdiction by jurisdiction, and using one that is not authorised in your country can mean no legal recourse if something goes wrong, sudden withdrawal restrictions, or the app disappearing from your store overnight. Check the exchange's own terms for restricted jurisdictions, and check your national regulator's register. If your jurisdiction is restricted, stop here. Nothing below is worth the exposure.

2. Decide your loss budget before you see a chart

Write down a number you can lose entirely without changing your life. That number is the account. Not "the amount I'll start with and top up later" — the total. Every sizing decision later refers back to it, and if you skip this step you will size against your net worth by accident.

3. Set up security before you deposit, not after

Three things, once, in this order:

1. Authenticator-app 2FA, not SMS. SIM-swap attacks are the single most common way retail crypto accounts are drained. An authenticator app removes that path entirely.
2. Withdrawal address whitelist. Once enabled, withdrawals can only go to addresses you pre-approved, usually with a 24-hour delay on adding new ones. This converts "attacker drains account instantly" into "attacker waits 24 hours while you get an email."
3. Anti-phishing code. A phrase you choose that appears in every genuine email from the exchange. Any email without it is a phishing attempt, and phishing is how most account compromises begin.

4. Understand what you are being charged before you trade

Two numbers matter and most people never look them up: the taker fee (crossing the spread) and the maker fee (posting a resting order). On a 10x position a 0.06% taker round trip costs 1.2% of your margin per trade before the market moves. Run your own numbers in the fee calculator.

5. Know which product you are opening

Spot, perpetual futures, and copy trading are three different risk profiles sharing one login. Spot cannot liquidate you. Perpetuals can, and will, if you size wrong. Copy trading hands sizing decisions to someone whose drawdown you have not examined. Open the account, but do not assume the default product is the one you want.

What to do next

Nothing, for 24 hours. Set up security, leave the account unfunded, and come back. The urge to deposit immediately is the same urge that later becomes the urge to average down.

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