> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.buoy.finance/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.buoy.finance/getting-started/glossary.md). # Glossary Quick reference for every term you'll meet in the Buoy app and these docs. ### Vault An isolated on-chain fund. Each vault has its own Leader, share token, capital, performance fee, and track record. Vaults never share funds with each other. ### Leader The trader who created and manages a vault. The Leader trades the pooled capital on Hyperliquid perps and earns the vault's performance fee. Leaders **cannot withdraw or redirect depositors' funds** — this is enforced by the smart contracts. ### Buoys (shares) Your vault shares — an ERC-20 token named `buoy` + the vault's ticker (e.g. `buoyABC`), held in your own wallet. Your Buoys represent a proportional claim on the vault's assets and can be transferred like any token. ### NAV (Net Asset Value) The total USD value of everything a vault holds: idle USDC, spot balances, and every open perp position across all venues, minus withdrawals already owed to users. ### Share price NAV divided by the total number of Buoys in circulation. This is the live performance index of a vault — it starts at 1 USDC and moves with the Leader's trading results. ### TVL (Total Value Locked) The vault's NAV expressed in USD — the total capital under the Leader's management. ### APR (30D) The headline return figure, computed the same way Hyperliquid computes vault APR: the vault's dollar PnL over the trailing 30 days divided by the equity that produced it, extrapolated ×12 when positive. A losing month is shown as the raw **past-month return**, un-annualized — losses are never extrapolated. A vault younger than 30 days annualizes over the full window rather than its short life, so a good first day can't explode into an absurd number. ### Current APR A shorter-horizon view: the simple annualized return over the last 7 days. Useful for spotting a vault whose recent behaviour differs from its 30-day headline. ### Max Drawdown The largest peak-to-trough drop in the vault's share price so far — a quick gauge of how bumpy the ride has been. ### Performance fee The Leader's cut of **new profits**, set at vault creation (up to 50%). Charged via a high-water mark, so it only applies to gains above the vault's previous best share price. There are no other protocol fees on your capital. ### Referral fee The slice of every performance fee that funds the referral program rather than going to the Leader (currently 10% of the fee), fixed per vault at creation. Not an extra charge — a split inside the fee. On-chain it is called `protocolFeeShareBps`. ### Referral code / referral link Every wallet's invitation handle — the first eight characters of the wallet address, attached to the app's vault list as `?ref=CODE`. Nothing to create, no eligibility, no way to take someone else's. ### Referrer / Invitee The two sides of an invitation. The **referrer** shared the link and earns a share of the referral fee on everything their invitees hold; the **invitee** joined through it and earns a share of the referral fee on their own deposits. Both are paid in USDC. An invitation is activated with one wallet signature before the invitee's first deposit, and it's permanent. ### Rewards Distributor The contract that holds the referral fee (converted to USDC) and pays referral rewards. It pays whatever Buoy's backend signs as a wallet's lifetime total, minus what it has already paid that wallet. ### High-water mark (HWM) The highest share price a vault has ever reached. Performance fees are charged only on gains above this mark — after a loss, the Leader must first recover to the old high before earning fees again. ### Request Any deposit or withdrawal you submit. Requests are settled asynchronously by the fulfiller at the vault's live NAV, and can be cancelled if left unsettled past the timeout. ### Fulfiller The protocol's settlement service. It watches for new requests, values the vault from live Hyperliquid data, mints shares for deposits, and pays out withdrawals. It cannot move vault funds to any outside address. ### Pending / Locked / Fulfilled / Cancelled The lifecycle states of a request. **Pending** — submitted, waiting for settlement. **Locked** (withdrawals only) — your payout amount is fixed and shares are burned; the USDC is being freed up. **Fulfilled** — done: shares minted or USDC paid. **Cancelled** — you reclaimed your funds after the timeout. (In the API, a paid-out withdrawal is reported as `released`.) ### Slippage floor (min shares / min out) The minimum you can receive from a request, shown before you confirm. Deposits have a minimum share amount; withdrawals a minimum USDC amount. Settlement can never give you less. ### HyperEVM Hyperliquid's EVM-compatible chain (chain ID 999) — where the Buoy contracts, your wallet, USDC, and your Buoys live. The native gas token is **HYPE**. ### HyperCore Hyperliquid's high-performance trading engine, where the vault's actual spot and perp trading happens. Vault capital is bridged between HyperEVM and HyperCore automatically. ### HIP-3 markets Builder-deployed perp markets on Hyperliquid, beyond the default perp DEX. Vault capital can trade on these venues. ### HIP-4 / outcome markets Prediction markets on Hyperliquid, where each position is a share in a specific outcome. Vaults can trade them like any other venue; the vault page labels them by market name and side. ### Unified account The HyperCore account mode Buoy vaults run in: **one** spot USDC balance collateralizes spot, the default perp DEX and every HIP-3/HIP-4 market automatically. Margin is drawn and returned as positions open and close, so nothing has to be moved between venues by hand. ### Builder A trading terminal, platform or market operator whitelisted by the protocol that a Leader may route trades through. Builders charge a small fee on trades, capped by the vault's contract (0.1% by default) and only after the Leader explicitly approves it. ### Trading agent A HyperCore API wallet registered for a vault, which the Leader uses to sign trades. It can trade the vault's capital but never withdraw it. Agent approvals expire on HyperCore (Buoy registers them for the 180-day maximum and re-registers them automatically), and a Leader can rotate to a new one at any time. ### Vault badges (risk level / strategy) Two labels a Leader declares about their vault — risk level (*low* / *mid* / *high*) and strategy style (*market neutral* / *directional* / *long biased*). Self-reported, shown on the vault card. ### Minimum leader share (skin in the game) A percentage of the vault's Buoys the Leader must keep holding for anyone else to deposit, chosen at creation (0–50%) and fixed forever. Checked at every non-Leader deposit; never restricts withdrawals. Shown in the vault header as **MIN. LEADER SHARE**. ### TVL cap A ceiling on a vault's net value in USDC, set by the Leader. Deposits that would push the vault over it are refused; trading can still carry the value above it. Shown under **TVL** as *cap X USDC*. ### Depositor whitelist / position cap A Leader-managed list of addresses allowed to deposit into a vault, each with a **position cap**: the most net capital (deposits minus withdrawals, in USDC) that address may have in the vault. While the whitelist is on, unlisted addresses cannot deposit and every deposit must go to the depositor's own wallet. Withdrawals are unaffected. Vaults with it on show a **WHITELIST** badge. ### Deposit limits The collective name for the three rules above. Set by the Leader (the minimum leader share only at creation), enforced by a shared **VaultPolicy** contract that a vault consults on every deposit request, and never on withdrawals. See [Deposit Limits](/for-vault-leaders/deposit-limits.md). ### Request fee (native fee) A small fixed fee in HYPE (currently 0.01 HYPE) paid with each deposit or withdrawal request. It covers settlement costs and is not refunded if you cancel. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.buoy.finance/getting-started/glossary.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. 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