Market Hours Handling

ETF prices are only available during market hours. This page explains how our oracle handles market closures.

The Challenge

Unlike crypto (24/7), ETFs trade on fixed schedules:

• US markets: 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM ET (plus extended hours)

• Korean markets: 9:00 AM - 3:30 PM KST

• Weekends and holidays: No trading

But Rubicon offers 24/7 perpetual trading. How do we reconcile this?

Our Approach: Price Freezing

When markets close:

1. Oracle captures last traded price

2. Price frozen until market reopens

3. Trading continues with frozen price

4. Funding continues based on mark vs frozen oracle

Market Open          Market Close         Market Open
     │                    │                    │
     ▼                    ▼                    ▼
[Live prices]────────[Frozen]────────────[Live prices]
   $225.00             $228.50               $225.00
      ↑                   ↑                      ↑
   Updating            Static              Updating again

Session Definitions

US Markets (SOXX)

Session	Hours (ET)	Oracle Status
Pre-Market	4:00 AM - 9:30 AM	LIVE (extended data)
Regular	9:30 AM - 4:00 PM	LIVE
After-Hours	4:00 PM - 8:00 PM	LIVE (extended data)
Closed	8:00 PM - 4:00 AM	FROZEN

Korean Markets (.KS)

Session	Hours (KST)	Oracle Status
Regular	9:00 AM - 3:30 PM	LIVE
Closed	3:30 PM - 9:00 AM	FROZEN

What Freezing Means

For Oracle Price

• Last valid price becomes the frozen price

• No updates until market reopens

• Used for liquidation calculations

For Mark Price

• May deviate slightly from frozen oracle

• Based on order book activity

• EMA smoothing continues

For Funding

• Funding rate based on mark vs frozen oracle

• If traders bid up the perp, longs pay shorts

• Creates incentive to trade close to oracle

Implementation

State Persistence

// Oracle state saved to disk
{
  "lastPrice": {
    "SOXX": "228.50"
  },
  "lastUpdate": "2024-01-15T21:00:00Z",
  "marketStatus": "CLOSED",
  "frozenAt": "2024-01-15T21:00:00Z"
}

Market Status Detection

function isMarketOpen(asset, timestamp) {
  // Check against market calendar
  // Returns: OPEN, EXTENDED, CLOSED
}

Submission During Closure

if (marketStatus === "CLOSED") {
  // Submit frozen price
  submit({
    oraclePxs: { "SOXX": frozenPrice },
    markPxs: [{ "SOXX": emaPrice }],  // EMA still updates
  });
}

Behavior by Scenario

Scenario 1: Weeknight Closure

Friday 4:00 PM:  Market closes, SOXX at $228.50
Friday 8:00 PM:  Extended hours end
                 Oracle: $228.50 (frozen)
                 Trading: Active
                 Funding: Active
Saturday:        Oracle: $228.50 (frozen)
Sunday:          Oracle: $228.50 (frozen)
Monday 4:00 AM:  Pre-market opens
                 Oracle: $226.00 (live)

Scenario 2: Holiday

Day before:      Market closes at 1:00 PM (early close)
Holiday:         Oracle frozen all day
Day after:       Normal open at 9:30 AM

Scenario 3: Gap Open

Friday close:    $228.50
Monday open:     $215.00 (gap down on news)

Impact:
- Positions at risk instantly at new price
- Stop-losses may gap through
- Liquidations at $215.00, not $228.50

Risk Implications

Gap Risk

When markets reopen:

• Price may jump significantly

• Stops don't protect against gaps

• Liquidations trigger at new price

Mitigation:

• Lower leverage for overnight holds

• Wider stops to account for gaps

• Consider closing before market close

Stale Price Risk

During closure:

• Perp price may deviate from "true" value

• News can't be reflected in oracle

• Funding reflects this deviation

Mitigation:

• Trading volume typically lower during closure

• Arbitrageurs correct deviations at open

• Funding compensates for deviation

UI Indicators

The trading interface shows:

Indicator	Meaning
🟢 LIVE	Market open, oracle updating
🟡 EXTENDED	Pre/after hours, oracle updating
🔴 CLOSED	Market closed, oracle frozen
⚠️ STALE	Oracle issue, check status

Calendar Awareness

Our system knows:

• Standard market hours

• Daylight saving time changes

• US market holidays

• Korean market holidays

• Early close days

We update the calendar annually and after exchange announcements.

Trader Recommendations

Before Market Close

• Review open positions

• Set wider stops if holding overnight

• Consider reducing leverage

• Watch for after-hours news

During Closure

• Understand you're trading against frozen price

• Monitor funding rate direction

• Be aware of gap risk at open

At Market Open

• Watch for volatility in first 30 minutes

• Gaps may trigger liquidations

• Spreads may be wider initially