Leverage Contagion

Exposure

Leverage contagion, within cryptocurrency and derivatives, describes the rapid transmission of solvency stress across interconnected positions utilizing high degrees of leverage. This propagation occurs when initial margin calls, triggered by adverse price movements, force cascading liquidations, impacting market participants beyond the originating position. The speed and scale of transmission are amplified by shared collateral pools and cross-margining practices common in centralized exchanges and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.