For market participants
Market participants help discover what a software listing might be worth.
You can buy and sell listing positions while a market is live. If a listing is acquired, market participants receive acquisition payout. If it expires, they receive their share of the USDC reserve. You can also lose money if price moves against you or expiry payout is below your cost basis.
What market participants usually care about
- What am I buying? A listing position tied to one software acquisition outcome.
- How can I exit? Sell while trading is active, hold through acquisition, or hold through expiry.
- How do I get paid? Acquisition payout or expiry reserve distribution.
- What should I watch? Price can fall, acquisitions may not close, DD can change the outcome, and expiry payout can be below your entry price.
What you buy
Each listing has its own tradeable position. Trades use USDC.
The position is not equity, governance, or a revenue share. It is part of the Assetmarket listing flow:
- It can be bought or sold while the listing market is live.
- It can unlock protected information at position thresholds.
- It receives payout if the listing is acquired or expires.
Ways to exit
Sell while the market is live
You can sell your position back to the market while trading is active. Your execution depends on the USDC reserve, current position size, and price impact.
Large sells can receive less than the displayed price because the price moves during the trade.
Hold through acquisition
If a listing is acquired, market participants receive acquisition payout through platform-managed distribution. The buyer's accepted offer fixes the purchase price used for market participant payout.
Hold through expiry
If a listing expires without an acquisition, market participants receive their share of the remaining USDC reserve.
How price moves
Assetmarket uses automated pricing.
- Buying increases the active position size and moves price up.
- Selling reduces the active position size and moves price down.
- Positions can keep expanding at higher prices while the listing market is live.
Every trade has a 1% fee. The fee is taken before USDC enters the reserve, which keeps the reserve accounting clear.
Information thresholds
Position size also controls information access.
| Threshold | Requirement | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | None | Public listing data |
| 1% | Listing position + signed NDA with identity verification | Protected data access |
| 2% | Listing position + term sheet | Offer eligibility |
The identity check applies only when someone requests protected data. It is part of the NDA signing flow before non-public information opens.
Thresholds are based on current position size. If the total position size changes, the amount needed for 1% or 2% changes. Buying to reach a threshold can also move the market price.
What happens during DD
When a buyer submits an accepted offer:
- The listing can enter the offer and DD stages.
- Other market participants can keep trading unless the live app indicates otherwise for a specific state.
- The buyer's position is recorded for gradual sell unlock.
- The listing timer pauses during the active acquisition process.
The gradual unlock rule applies to the offer submitter and DD participant accounts, not to ordinary market participants.
Before using real funds
Check:
- How buying, selling, acquisition, and expiry work.
- Whether the displayed price and price impact fit your plan.
- Whether an offer, DD path, or closing process is active.
- Whether expiry payout could be below your entry price.
For money flow and full risk details, see What happens to my money and Safety and risks.