ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

perpetual contracts

Perpetual contracts are like a never-ending agreement between two sides. It's like a bet where two sides agree that they will keep giving each other money based on how certain things change. The amounts can change, but the agreement to keep playing the game never ends. Perpetual contracts are often used in stock and commodity markets, where people use them to bet on what the prices of certain things will do in the future.