Update Leverage (WebSocket)

Adjust leverage settings for trading markets through the WebSocket connection for rapid risk management and position scaling.

Endpoint

ws.send() wss://api.synthetix.io/v1/ws/trade

Request

Request Format

{
  "id": "leverage-1",
  "method": "post",
  "params": {
    "action": "updateLeverage",
    "symbol": "BTC-USDT",
    "leverage": "20",
    "subAccountId": "1867542890123456789",
    "nonce": 1704067200000,
    "expiresAfter": 1704067300,
    "signature": {
      "v": 28,
      "r": "0x1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef",
      "s": "0xabcdef1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef1234567890"
    }
  }
}

Parameters

Request Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`id`	string	Yes	Client-generated unique request identifier
`method`	string	Yes	Must be `"post"`
`params`	object	Yes	Contains the trading request payload with all fields flattened

Params Object Fields

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`action`	string	Yes	Must be `"updateLeverage"`
`symbol`	string	Yes	Market symbol (e.g., `"BTC-USDT"`)
`leverage`	string	Yes	Desired leverage multiplier as string
`subAccountId`	string	Yes	Subaccount identifier
`nonce`	integer	Yes	Incrementing nonce (Unix ms timestamp as number)
`expiresAfter`	integer	No	Optional expiration timestamp in seconds (0 = no expiration)
`signature`	object	Yes	EIP-712 signature

EIP-712 Type Definition

const UpdateLeverageTypes = {
  UpdateLeverage: [
    { name: "subAccountId", type: "uint256" },
    { name: "symbol", type: "string" },
    { name: "leverage", type: "string" },
    { name: "nonce", type: "uint256" },
    { name: "expiresAfter", type: "uint256" }
  ]
}

Response Format

Success Response

{
  "id": "leverage-1",
  "status": 200,
  "result": {
    "symbol": "BTC-USDT",
    "previousLeverage": "10",
    "newLeverage": "20"
  }
}

Response Fields:

Field	Type	Description
`symbol`	string	Market symbol
`previousLeverage`	string	Previous leverage setting
`newLeverage`	string	New leverage setting

Error Response

{
  "id": "leverage-1",
  "status": 400,
  "result": null,
  "error": {
    "code": 400,
    "message": "Leverage exceeds maximum allowed"
  }
}

Implementation Example

import { ethers } from 'ethers';
 
async function updateLeverage(ws, signer, subAccountId, symbol, leverage) {
  const nonce = Date.now();
  const expiresAfter = Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) + 30;
 
  // EIP-712 signature using SubAccountAction type
  const domain = {
    name: "Synthetix",
    version: "1",
    chainId: 1,
    verifyingContract: "0x0000000000000000000000000000000000000000"
  };
 
  const types = {
    SubAccountAction: [
      { name: "subAccountId", type: "uint256" },
      { name: "action", type: "string" },
      { name: "nonce", type: "uint256" },
      { name: "expiresAfter", type: "uint256" }
    ]
  };
 
  const message = {
    subAccountId: BigInt(subAccountId),
    action: "updateLeverage",
    nonce: BigInt(nonce),
    expiresAfter: BigInt(expiresAfter)
  };
 
  const sig = await signer.signTypedData(domain, types, message);
  const signature = ethers.Signature.from(sig);
 
  // Send request
  ws.send(JSON.stringify({
    id: `leverage-${Date.now()}`,
    method: "post",
    params: {
      action: "updateLeverage",
      symbol,
      leverage: leverage.toString(),
      subAccountId,
      nonce,
      expiresAfter,
      signature: { v: signature.v, r: signature.r, s: signature.s }
    }
  }));
}
 
// Usage: Set leverage to 20x for BTC-USDT
await updateLeverage(ws, signer, "1867542890123456789", "BTC-USDT", "20");
 
// Usage: Set conservative 5x leverage for ETH-USDT
await updateLeverage(ws, signer, "1867542890123456789", "ETH-USDT", "5");

Important Behavior

How Leverage Settings Work

When you update leverage for a market:

The new leverage setting applies to all future positions you open in that market
Existing positions retain their original leverage - they are NOT affected
The setting persists until you explicitly change it again

Example:

1. You have an open BTC position at 10x leverage
2. You call updateLeverage(subAccountId, "BTC-USDT", "25")
3. Your existing position REMAINS at 10x
4. Any NEW BTC positions will open at 25x

Can You Change Leverage on Existing Positions?

No, you cannot directly change leverage on existing positions. However:

For Isolated Positions: Use updateIsolatedMargin (REST API only) to add/remove margin, which changes effective leverage
For Cross Margin Positions: Leverage is fixed at position entry

Error Handling

Common Errors

Error Code	Message	Description
-32000	Invalid leverage	Leverage exceeds maximum allowed for symbol
-32001	Position exists	Cannot change leverage with open positions
-32002	Invalid symbol	Market symbol does not exist
-32003	Margin insufficient	Not enough margin for new leverage setting

Signing

All trading methods are signed using EIP-712. Each successful trading request will contain:

A piece of structured data that includes the sender address
A signature of the hash of that structured data, signed by the sender

For detailed information on EIP-712 signing, see EIP-712 Signing.

Nonce Management

The nonce system prevents replay attacks and ensures order uniqueness:

Use current timestamp in milliseconds as nonce
Each nonce must be greater than the previous one
Recommended: Use Date.now() or equivalent
If nonce conflicts occur, increment by 1 and retry

:::note SubAccountAction Exception SubAccountAction endpoints (getPositions, getOpenOrders, getOrdersHistory, getTrades, getFundingPayments, getSubAccount, getDelegatedSigners, getBalanceUpdates) do not require a nonce. Only the signature and optional expiresAfter parameters are needed. :::

Error	Description
Invalid signature	EIP-712 signature validation failed
Invalid market symbol	Market symbol not recognized
Nonce already used	Nonce must be greater than previous value
Rate limit exceeded	Too many requests in time window
Request expired	`expiresAfter` timestamp has passed

Next Steps

Place Orders - Use updated leverage for trading
Transfer Collateral - Manage margin requirements
WebSocket Authentication - Connection setup
REST Alternative - REST API comparison