• Binance lists futures contracts for Popcat, Sun, and Alpaca, boosting trading options and market activity.
• ALPACA surges 70% post-listing; Binance also invests in four emerging Web3 startups from MVB Season 7.
• Binance adjusts futures contracts’ specs to manage risks; venture arm backs projects in AI, gaming, and DEX aggregation.

Binance, the leading global crypto exchange, has expanded its trading portfolio by listing futures contracts for three altcoins – Popcat (POPCAT), Sun (SUN), and Alpaca Finance (ALPACA). This move diversifies trading options on Binance Futures.

It has notably impacted the market prices of these altcoins.

ALPACA Skyrockets Over 70% Following Binance Listing

As of today, the ALPACA perpetual contract, which offers up to 75x leverage, began trading at 10:30 UTC. Subsequently, Binance introduced additional futures for POPCAT and SUN, scheduled to start trading at 13:00 UTC and 13:05 UTC respectively. These listings are integral to Binance’s strategy to enhance user trading experiences by offering a variety of high-leverage options.

“Derivatives are important financial instruments for price discovery, and leverage helps the market be more liquid and capital efficient,” a Binance Futures representative told.

The perpetual contracts for these altcoins feature a maximum funding rate of ±2.00%. Importantly, Binance may adjust the specifications of these futures contracts periodically based on market risk evaluations. Such adjustments can include changes to the funding fee, tick size, and margin requirements, ensuring flexibility in response to fluctuating market conditions.

The commencement of trading had an immediate impact on cryptocurrency values. ALPACA experienced a substantial surge, initially climbing over 70% and is still up by 52%.

In contrast, POPCAT and SUN saw more modest gains. After their initial surges, they underwent partial retracements.

“The sun is about to shine. To the SUN,” Tron founder Justin Sun said, announcing the Binance listing.

Meanwhile, Binance’s venture capital arm, Binance Labs, has announced investments in four emerging crypto projects. These projects were selected after a rigorous evaluation in Season 7 of the BNB Chain’s Most Valuable Builder (MVB) program. Despite over 700 applications, only a select few met the stringent criteria of this initiative.

“In Season 7, 13 standout teams were chosen for their extraordinary talent and innovation in the Web3 space. Four of these have secured investments from Binance Labs, significantly boosting their potential and impact,” BNB Chain wrote.

The projects receiving investments—Aggregate, Opinion Labs, SideKick, and Vooi—span a wide range of blockchain innovations. They include artificial intelligence (AI) data integration, opinion markets, social gaming hubs, and cross-chain decentralized exchange aggregators.

The MVB program, a collaborative effort between BNB Chain, Binance Labs, and CoinMarketCap (CMC) Labs, is dedicated to supporting high-potential Web3 projects. Participants in this program benefit from an extensive curriculum that includes personalized mentorship and insights from successful founders. Additionally, they receive support in infrastructure and marketing valued at up to $300,000.