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What to Check Before You Open a Derivatives Account — MEXC
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.
What the screen actually shows (checked 2026-09-03):
- One Email/Phone Number field takes either; there is a separate Wallet tab beside it for connecting a wallet instead. - Referral Code sits in a collapsed row labelled 'Referral Code (Optional)'. It is closed by default and easy to miss. - Opening it and entering a code shows what the code pays back, on the form, before you sign up: 'Commission sharing: Spot 20.00% / Futures 20.00%'. - The terms checkbox is already ticked when the form loads. - After the email or number, a slide-the-puzzle check (GeeTest) runs before the code is sent. - The code is six digits and the screen says it is valid for fifteen minutes, with a resend timer of about a minute. - Google, Apple, Telegram and MetaMask sign-up are offered alongside; the app shows Google and Telegram, the web modal shows all four.
*Interfaces change. This was account owner's own screen captures, web modal and Android app; if what you see differs, trust the exchange.*
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:
- 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.
- 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."
- 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). These are MEXC's own published futures rates: taker 0.02%, maker 0%. At 10x, a taker round trip therefore costs 0.4% of your margin before the market has moved at all. 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 the screen actually shows (checked 2026-09-03):
- Security sits under the person icon, below Settings, in the app's account menu. - The page opens on Two-Factor Authentication with four rows: Passkey (marked Recommended), Google Authenticator, Email, and Phone Number. Each shows a tick when it is on. - MEXC's own line on that screen is to enable at least one 2FA -- not all four. - Anti-Phishing Code is a separate row below the four, showing the code masked once set. It is what tells a real MEXC email from a fake one. - Recent Login History, Device Management and Password sit under it. - A withdrawal address whitelist was not visible on this screen; it is set from the withdrawal flow rather than here. Do not tell a reader it is on the Security page.
*Interfaces change. This was a published third-party walkthrough reviewed 2026-09-03; UI facts only, wording and images not reused; if what you see differs, trust the exchange.*
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.