> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://continuum-ec12e897.mintlify.site/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # FAQ > Common questions about Continuum, paired tokens, the keeper, and integration. ## What is Continuum? A Solana protocol for **24/7 synthetic exposure to real-world assets**. Deposit USDC, get matched long and short tokens that track the asset's NAV. Sell either side on a DEX, hold to maturity, or redeem the pair back to USDC at any time. → [Introduction](/get-started/introduction). ## Is it like a perp DEX? No. Perp DEXs use funding rates, margin, and liquidations. Continuum has none of these - positions are pre-paid SPL tokens, the long/short pair has a constant-product NAV invariant that bounds combined value, and there's no leverage. The position **is** an SPL token; you can transfer it, deposit it elsewhere, or redeem it. ## What's the difference between long and short tokens? Both track the same underlying. The long token (`L`) appreciates as the asset price rises; the short token (`S`) depreciates reciprocally via the constant-product invariant `L_NAV × S_NAV = initial_l × initial_s`. A paired position has near-zero local delta - its value is bounded. To express direction, you sell one of the legs. ## Can I lose more than my deposit? No. Continuum has no leverage and no liquidations. Mint cost equals NAV × paired count, paid in full upfront. Even if the protocol shut down tomorrow, holders of L+S can redeem against the existing collateral vault — at full NAV while it's over-collateralized, or pro-rata for your fair share in the tail case where a large NAV move left it under 100%. You're never wiped out, and never behind a redemption queue. The only way to lose: you sell one leg and that leg appreciates while you no longer hold it. That's normal directional risk, not unique to Continuum. ## Can I just buy long-only? Yes - two paths: 1. **Mint paired, sell short leg**: `mint_paired(100 cUSDC)` → `0.104 QQQL + 49.95 QQQS` → sell the QQQS leg → end with `0.104 QQQL + ~49.5 cUSDC`. Long-only QQQ exposure with cash buffer. 2. **Buy directly**: skip the mint - `pool_swap` on the book for instant size, or a committed order (NAV ± 10bps at the next oracle print) for anything larger. Path 2 is the default for most users; path 1 is useful when you also want the short leg or a fee waiver. → [Trade flow](/flows/trade). ## Why "paired" if I can sell one leg? The protocol enforces **paired mint and redeem** for solvency. Once paired tokens exist, they're standard SPL tokens - you can do anything with them, including selling one leg. The pairing constraint is at the cUSDC ↔ token boundary, not at the token-trading layer. ## Why no funding rate? The constant-product NAV invariant `L_NAV × S_NAV = initial_l × initial_s` does what funding does in a perp DEX - it redistributes value between holders of the popular vs unpopular side. As `L_NAV` rises, `S_NAV` falls reciprocally. Combined pair value stays bounded. There's nothing extra to redistribute. ## How does the price stay anchored to NAV on the pool? A keeper bot runs an arbitrage loop. When pool price diverges from NAV by more than the pool fee, the keeper either mints fee-free at NAV and sells on the pool (if pool > NAV) or buys from the pool and redeems fee-free at NAV (if pool \< NAV). The cUSDC delta is the keeper's profit; the pool price moves toward NAV as a side effect. You can run the same arb loop. The fee-free single-sided path is gated to the keeper authority; paired arb is open to everyone. → [Keeper](/concepts/keeper). ## What if the keeper goes down? User mint and redeem still work - they go directly to the on-chain mint-redeem program, not through the keeper. NAV is read from the on-chain TWAP. What stales: * The TWAP itself stales after \~30s without keeper updates → risk state transitions to `ProxyMode`, mint pricing widens. * After \~120s of staleness → `Stress`, mint blocks. Redeem still works at last-fresh NAV. * Pool prices may drift from NAV until the keeper comes back. ## Can I run my own keeper? Yes. The reference implementation is [open source](https://github.com/continuum-markets/continuum/tree/main/keeper). Limitations: * The market's `keeper_authority` is a single pubkey today. Two keepers signing as the same pubkey will collide. * For full keeper privileges, you need to be the canonical operator (rotate via `update_keeper_authority`). * For paired-arb-only operation (no `keeper_*_single` privilege), no authority needed - anyone can run a paired-arb bot. → [Run a keeper](/keeper/running) · [External arb](/build/composability#2-arb-bot). ## What chain / network is this on? Solana. Devnet for MVP. Mainnet launches after audits + bug bounty maturity. ## What wallets work? Any Solana wallet that supports SPL tokens - Phantom, Backpack, Solflare, others. The frontend uses Solana Wallet Adapter; integration follows standard patterns. ## How are L and S tokens priced? ``` L_NAV = Market.user_twap_price (or initial_l_price if TWAP == 0) S_NAV = (initial_l_price × initial_s_price) / L_NAV ``` This is the on-chain protocol price. The book's base price stays within the per-market reposition gate (20-40bps) while markets are open and floats during closed hours. → [NAV math](/concepts/nav). ## What's the minimum mint? 10 cUSDC (`10_000_000` lamports). Below that, `BelowMinimum` rejects. ## What fees are there? | Fee | When | Default | | ------------------------- | ---------------------- | --------------------------------------------- | | `mint_fee_bps` | On `mint_paired` | 10 (0.10%) | | `redeem_fee_bps` | On `redeem_paired` | 10 (0.10%) | | Book spread | On `pool_swap` | 15-40bps half-spread (per market, vol-scaled) | | Committed spread | On `commit_swap` fills | 10bps from NAV, any size | | Worst-case quoting markup | On mint in `ProxyMode` | 2× confidence (variable) | | Solana network fee | On every tx | \~0.000005 SOL | Round-trip mint+redeem at NAV is \~20 bps total. ## What's the OI cap? Each market has a hard ceiling on `total_l_supply`. Mints reject when reached. Redeems remain open. Operators raise the cap as pool depth grows. Default is 250,000,000 cUSDC base units = 250M cUSDC nominal (the cap is wide; effective cap is governed by depth). ## Why is the protocol the sole LP? MVP simplification. The mechanics for user LP shares exist in git history but are off - re-enabling is planned (no committed timeline yet). For now, capital is operator-funded. ## Is there a token? Continuum's planned governance token is **CNTM**. Not yet live. The governance program is scaffolded but not wired to execution paths. ## Where do I report bugs? * Discord: [#dev-help](https://discord.gg/continuum) * GitHub: [continuum-markets/continuum](https://github.com/continuum-markets/continuum) issues * Bug bounty (mainnet): TBD before mainnet launch ## How can I get cUSDC for testing? Devnet has a faucet. → [Faucet program](/programs/faucet) · [Quickstart](/get-started/quickstart). ## Why "Continuum"? Synthetic exposure across the continuum of real-world assets - equities, indices, commodities, FX - accessible 24/7 from any Solana wallet. ## Can I integrate Continuum into my own product? Yes - please. Long and short tokens are SPL tokens. Paired mint and redeem are open to anyone. NAV is on-chain. CPI integration works. There are no licensing restrictions on integrating; the protocol is permissionless. For featured integrations on the docs and Twitter, drop a note in [#partners on Discord](https://discord.gg/continuum). → [Composability](/build/composability). ## Where do I find the source code? Protocol: [github.com/continuum-markets/continuum](https://github.com/continuum-markets/continuum). MIT licensed. The keeper, frontend, and programs all live there. This docs site's source: [github.com/continuum-markets/docs](https://github.com/continuum-markets/docs). PRs welcome. ## See also First-time mint flow. The full mental model. Every term explained. What to do when things fail.