Futures
Access hundreds of perpetual contracts
CFD
Gold
One platform for global traditional assets
Options
Hot
Trade European-style vanilla options
Unified Account
Maximize your capital efficiency
Demo Trading
Introduction to Futures Trading
Learn the basics of futures trading
Futures Events
Join events to earn rewards
Demo Trading
Use virtual funds to practice risk-free trading
CFD
Stock CFD Derivatives
US Stocks
Access real US stocks and ETFs
HK Stocks
Trade quality Hong Kong-listed stocks
Korean Stocks
SK Hynix
Real Korean stocks and top assets
Stock Futures
High leverage, 24/7 trading
Tokenized Stocks
Backed by real stock assets
IPO Access
Unlock full access to global stock IPOs
GUSD
3.8%
Mint GUSD for Treasury RWA yields
Stocks Activities
Trade Popular Stocks and Unlock Generous Airdrops
Launch
CandyDrop
Collect candies to earn airdrops
Launchpool
Quick staking, earn potential new tokens
HODLer Airdrop
Hold GT and get massive airdrops for free
Pre-IPOs
Unlock full access to global stock IPOs
Alpha Points
Trade on-chain assets and earn airdrops
Futures Points
Earn futures points and claim airdrop rewards
Promotions
AI
Gate AI
Your all-in-one conversational AI partner
Gate AI Bot
Use Gate AI directly in your social App
GateClaw
Gate Blue Lobster, ready to go
Gate for AI Agent
AI infrastructure, Gate MCP, Skills, and CLI
Gate Skills Hub
10K+ Skills
From office tasks to trading, the all-in-one skill hub makes AI even more useful.
#跟单日记 Making trades in the crypto space—can copy-trading really make money?
Now most exchanges have a copy-trading feature. Open the exchange’s copy-trading page and you’ll see the whole screen filled with “monthly earnings of 500%-1000%” from trading pros. Newcomers look at that and feel an itch—like they’ve found a secret wealth code. No need to learn trading skills; just click a button and you can lie back and earn.
The truth is: you think you’re copying homework, but you may end up copying into a trap that someone else dug for you.
Copy-trading is basically trading derivatives. You see all those “celebrity trader” leaderboards, so it’s hard not to feel the urge to copy them!
However, the bigger exchanges are relatively okay. The unknown exchanges are different: their data is designed so you’ll see what they want, and to win your trust.
“Coaching teachers” who lead trades have two main income sources.
1、Trading fees (fanyong). If it’s normal trading, that’s fine. But some people lead others to trade frequently. Every time they trade, they earn a commission cut. They don’t care whether the people below can make money.
2、Client losses (eating the customer’s loss). This only exists on smaller, less-known exchanges. They pre-arrange cooperation with the exchange, then they share the proceeds. That’s also why copy-trading with small capital often seems to make money. Once the capital size grows, losses become the main reason—so you hear things like “so-and-so small exchange has run away” all the time.
There are also some “trade-leading teachers” who use two accounts: one goes short and the other goes long. That way, no matter which way the market moves, they won’t lose—they still earn the trading fee commission. Then they only post the trades that are “correct” in their朋友圈 (WeChat/ Moments), which is why you end up only seeing profitable trade screenshots. This method attracts more small-time newcomers to copy-trade.
Copy-trading also has another big drawback: timing issues. For example: if Bitcoin goes to 80,000 and someone enters a long position first, then people who copy in later will push the price up. The later someone enters, the higher their entry cost becomes. If it’s 100x leverage, then moving the price up by just 1 point gives them a 100% return. Closing positions is similar too: the first one to close goes first, and the later closers get a lower closing price. That causes the profit of later closers to shrink, and they may even end up losing.
So copy-trading must be done cautiously. Playing around with small capital is fine, but the bigger the capital, the bigger the risk. The odds of making money by copy-trading are just like going to a casino.
The above analysis only represents personal viewpoints and is not investment advice.
Now, most exchanges have a copy-trading function. When you open the exchange’s copy-trading page, the whole screen is filled with “monthly profits of 500%-1000%” from so-called trading experts. Newcomers can’t help feeling itchy—like they’ve found a wealth password. You don’t need to learn trading skills; just press a button and you can lie down and make money.
The truth is that you think you’re copying homework, but you might end up copying into a trap set by someone else for you.
Copy-trading is basically futures trading. When you see those “celebrity trader” ranking lists, it’s hard not to feel impulsive to copy them!
However, the top exchanges are at least somewhat different. For those unknown exchanges, it’s not the same—they design the data to make you see it and earn your trust.
The “mentors” who lead trades have two income sources.
1. Trading fees fanyong. If it’s normal trading, it’s fine, but some people frequently lead others to trade. Every time they trade, they earn a commission markup. They don’t care whether the people below can make money.
2. Taking customer losses. This only exists in small, untrusted exchanges. They agree on cooperation with the exchange in advance, then they split the profits. That’s also why copy trading with small capital will often make money; once the capital size increases, the main reason they start losing is that. So that’s why you often hear that some small exchange “runs away” or stops operations.
There are also some trading mentors who use two accounts—one places a short, the other places a long. That way, no matter which direction the market goes, they won’t lose. But they still earn the trading-fee commission markup. Then they’ll only show off in their朋友圈 whichever trade is correct. That’s why you usually only see the profitable trades, and this is how they attract more newbies to copy-trade.
Copy-trading also has a major drawback: timing issues. For example: if Bitcoin hits 80,000 and someone goes long first, then when copy traders enter afterward, they push the price higher. The later people enter, the higher their entry cost becomes. If it’s 100x leverage, then when the price moves up by just 1 point, they earn 100% profit. When closing positions, it’s the same—whoever closes first is the one who gets out at the higher price, and the later people close at a lower price. This causes the profits of later closers to shrink, and it can even lead to losses.
So copy trading must also be cautious. It’s fine to play with small capital, but the bigger the capital, the higher the risk. The probability of making money by copy-trading is basically the same as going to a casino.
The above analysis only represents personal views and does not constitute any investment advice.