Pacifica vs Phemex

Pacifica or Phemex: which to use

Pacifica vs Phemex is a decentralized exchange against a centralized one. On Pacifica you trade from a self-custody wallet without ID, at 1.5 bp maker and 4 bp taker and up to 50x. Phemex requires KYC, holds your funds in an account, and charges 1 bp maker and 6 bp taker, with up to 150x. Phemex lists more perp markets, 132 against 77, and more real-world asset markets. Custody, ID and the maker versus taker balance decide it for most traders.

How each exchange is built

Pacifica is a decentralized exchange (DEX) on Solana. You trade from a self-custody wallet, and it matches orders on a central limit order book.

Phemex is a centralized exchange (CEX): you open an account with the company, and the account holds your funds. It also matches orders on a central limit order book.

Both exchanges match orders on a central limit order book. The difference for you is custody. On Pacifica your wallet holds the funds. On Phemex the account does, and you deposit into it before you trade.

Fees and what they mean

Pacifica's base tier is 1.5 bp maker and 4 bp taker, per Pacifica's fee page. Phemex's base tier is 1 bp maker and 6 bp taker, per Phemex's fee page.

A market order pays the taker fee to open and again to close: 8 bp per round trip on Pacifica, 12 bp on Phemex. A limit order that rests on the book pays the maker fee instead, 1.5 bp on Pacifica and 1 bp on Phemex. If you mostly rest limit orders, the maker gap is small. If you mostly take liquidity, the taker gap is larger.

Fees are only part of a trade's cost. Slippage, the price you move by eating through the order book, grows with size. The cost table above adds both at each size from $1k to $5M, and every exchange's trading cost sits on one page.

Markets and leverage

As of 1 October 2026 Phemex lists 132 active perps, 67 of them stocks, commodities, FX or other real-world assets. Pacifica lists 77, of which 24 are real-world assets.

Phemex allows up to 150x and Pacifica up to 50x on their highest-leverage markets; most markets allow less. Pacifica pays funding every hour on every market. Phemex pays every 4 hours or 8 hours depending on the market. Check a market's interval before you hold it: an hourly market settles 24 times a day, an 8-hour market three times. A positive rate means longs pay shorts, so the interval sets how often that payment lands on your position. The list further down this page shows the markets both exchanges have and each one's funding rate.

Who can use them

Pacifica asks for no ID. It is closed to the US, Canada, the UK, China, Russia, Ukraine, the Philippines and sanctioned countries. Phemex requires KYC, which unlocks spot and futures trading. An unverified account cannot withdraw at all.

Points and tokens

Pacifica has no token yet. As of 19 September 2026 its points and airdrop program was "Active". The exchange runs no vault that arb.sh tracks. See airdrops and points programs for what is running elsewhere.

Reading the numbers on this page

Pacifica publishes open interest as longs plus shorts, both sides of every position. Phemex publishes one side of open positions. For the same positions Pacifica's figure reads about twice as large, so the open interest row and chart above are not a like-for-like comparison of size.

Phemex publishes no TVL, as centralized exchanges publish none, so the TVL row and chart show Pacifica alone, as DefiLlama's figure for the exchange.

Which one fits you

• Pick Pacifica if you want to keep funds in your own wallet and trade without ID.
• Pick Pacifica if you trade with market orders: 4 bp taker against 6 bp.
• Pick Pacifica if you want every market on an hourly funding schedule, or want to follow its active points program.
• Pick Phemex if you prefer an exchange account and accept KYC.
• Pick Phemex if you rest limit orders: 1 bp maker against 1.5 bp.
• Pick Phemex if you need more than 50x, or want a wider list of markets, 132 against 77, including 67 real-world asset markets.