Contract rolling involves maintaining long or short exposure by closing a position on an expiring contract and re-establishing it on the next available contract. The next contract becomes available to trade at 6 PM ET, 2 days before expiration of the front month contract.
During the roll period, open interest moves from the expiring front month contract to the next available contract. This will become the lead month contract due to increased open interest and trading activity.
If you don’t roll your position, it will expire on the expiration date. Margin funds will be released to your account, and any profits or losses will be credited or debited to your Coinbase Financial Markets (CFM) account.
Roll your position
You can roll your futures position into the next contract automatically or manually.
Automatic rolling of all positions
If you opt in to automatic rolling, all of your futures positions will roll automatically one day before contract expiration (between 8 AM and 3 PM ET). Positions on expiring contracts will close, open orders will be canceled, and positions will reopen on the next contract. Note: Pending orders won’t be re-established on the new contract.
The rolling algorithm first submits a closing order (closing leg) on the expiring contract, then an opening order (opening leg) on the next contract to re-establish your position. It aims to limit costs by initially submitting a passive order. If that’s not fulfilled in a reasonable time, it submits a market order.
Note: Contract rolls aren’t guaranteed if market liquidity is insufficient.
To opt in, toggle Automatic contract rolling in Coinbase Advanced Settings.
Additional details
The cutoff to opt in is 6 PM ET, 2 days before the contract expiration.
Example: For a contract expiring on January 31, opt in by January 29 at 6 PM ET for your position to be rolled on January 30. If you opt in later, automatic rolling will take effect on the next expiry.
Roll orders can’t be canceled once in progress.
Order details are available on the Orders page (Type = "Roll open" and "Roll close").
You may receive email confirmations for orders.
Troubleshooting automatic rolls
Automatic rolls might not occur due to:
Not opted in: Ensure you’ve enabled automatic contract rolling in Coinbase Advanced Settings.
Insufficient funds: CFM’s rolling algorithm checks for sufficient funds before proceeding.
Liquidity issues: Insufficient liquidity on the expiring or next available contract can prevent a full roll.
Manual rolling of a single position
You can manually roll positions in two ways:
The “roll position” button: Two days before contract expiration, use the “Roll position” button on the position details screen to submit a market order that closes your position on the expiring contract, then another market order that re-opens the position on the next contract. (This option won't be available if you’re opted into automatic rolls.)
The order form: Submit an opposing order to close your position on the expiring contract (sell if long, buy if short), then submit an order to open your new position on the next contract.
To learn more about futures, go to our full list of Coinbase futures articles.