> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.atoma.fi/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.atoma.fi/getting-started/rwa-markets.md).

# Why RWA Markets

Atoma trades RWA perpetuals only: perpetual contracts on stocks, indices and commodities, such as the S\&P 500 and gold.

## Same exposure, different contracts

In crypto, a Bitcoin perpetual tracks the same asset on every venue. RWA venues list the same exposure in different forms: an index perpetual on one venue, a perpetual on the ETF that tracks that index on another. The two contracts are priced from different references and fund independently, which opens price differences that cannot exist between identical contracts.

### Pair types

| Pair type                      | Structure                                                                                                                       | Example                                                        |
| ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Single market to single market | The same contract listed on two venues                                                                                          | Gold perpetual on one venue against gold perpetual on another  |
| Index to ETF                   | An index perpetual against the perpetual on the ETF that tracks it, with the ETF side sized by the ratio between the two prices | S\&P 500 against SPY, Nasdaq-100 against QQQ                   |
| Stock to stock listing         | Two contracts on the same stock quoted at different price scales, on the same venue or on two venues                            | SK Hynix against SKHY                                          |
| Perpetual to spot              | An ETF perpetual against the spot token of the same ETF                                                                         | QQQ perpetual against QQQ spot, SPY perpetual against SPY spot |

### Markets

| Asset class | Examples             |
| ----------- | -------------------- |
| Indices     | S\&P 500, Nasdaq-100 |
| Stocks      | SK Hynix, SanDisk    |
| Commodities | Gold, WTI crude oil  |

How each pair is traded: [Statistical Arbitrage](/strategy/statistical-arbitrage.md).

## The hedge moves less

![Annualized volatility: Gold 14%, S\&P 500 17%, Ethereum 68%, Bitcoin 52%](https://1248180640-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2Fbixb58v1nJ6JAZwGeVWQ%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-43fcd9a85808013a49e40760a4e1a85742a83094%2F04_volatility.png?alt=media)

Smaller price swings mean smaller margin swings. The hedge sits far from its liquidation threshold, so positions need fewer forced unwinds and re-hedges, and capital stays deployed and earning.

## Fewer players, more edge

Crypto funding arbitrage is a crowded, industrialized trade. Almost no market-neutral desks run RWA perpetuals, so the opportunity is still open.

## Funding driven by macro flow

RWA funding comes from macro hedgers and directional flow, not crypto sentiment. It keeps paying through crypto drawdowns instead of collapsing with them.