3am. Red portfolio. Liquidated. One tab open. I learned everything that night after my $5,400 evaporated into thin air. Back then, I thought leverage was just a multiplier for my gains, but I didn't realize I was paying a "silence tax" every single hour. Most traders focus on the volatility of $BTC or $ADA, ignoring the funding rates and exchange fees that act like a slow leak in a boat. Imagine you are trying to fill a bucket with water, but someone has drilled a hundred tiny pinpricks into the bottom. You might get a little bit of water in, but eventually, you are just working hard to keep a sinking vessel afloat.

Let’s look at the math that kills accounts. When you open a 50x long on $ADA, the exchange doesn't just...