How to Use BULK Exchange Testnet: Claim $1,000, Trade, and Climb the Leaderboard

You can claim $1,000 in paper USDC on BULK’s testnet right now. It’s free, it takes 2 minutes, and it probably contributes to your Aura points score.

This guide assumes you know nothing about BULK. We’ll cover setup, faucet mechanics, the ranking system, and the sub-account strategy that most people are missing.

Step 1: Connect Your Wallet

Go to early.bulk.trade.

Connect with Phantom, Backpack, or Solflare. Also connect your X/Twitter account when prompted — this is an explicit eligibility signal.

This registers your wallet as a master account on the BULK Network. The master account is your root identity — the only account that can claim the faucet, and the parent for all sub-accounts.

Step 2: Claim the Faucet

The testnet faucet gives you 1,000 paper USDC every 72 hours.

How to claim:

1. Navigate to the faucet in your account dashboard
2. Click “Claim”
3. 1,000 USDC is credited instantly

The 72-hour clock starts on your first claim. Claim immediately to maximize the number of cycles before mainnet.

Paper USDC has no real monetary value. But your trading activity and ranking have Aura point value — and Aura points likely determine your BULK token airdrop allocation.

Step 3: Create Sub-Accounts (Don’t Skip This)

This is the move almost nobody is making.

Each sub-account on BULK is a separate leaderboard entry. You can create up to 9 sub-accounts from your master account — giving you 10 total slots.

The competition rule: only your single highest-ranked account per wallet counts. Lower-ranked accounts get removed, and displaced traders move up.

Translation: run 10 accounts, and if one places in the top 20, you’ve won. The other 9 cost you nothing.

How to create sub-accounts:

1. Go to account settings → “Create Sub-Account”
2. Name it (1–32 characters, alphanumeric, hyphens, underscores)
3. Optionally seed it with USDC from your master account

Transfers between master and sub-accounts are gasless and instant. Each sub-account can have its own layout, leverage settings, and strategy.

Strategy ideas:

• Sub-account 1: Conservative (2–5x leverage, trend following)
• Sub-account 2: Aggressive (20–50x, short-duration scalping)
• Sub-account 3: Market neutral (long/short pairs using portfolio margin)

Step 4: Place Your First Trades

BULK’s testnet is a full perpetual futures exchange. Available markets:

• BTC-USD, ETH-USD, SOL-USD
• DOGE-USD, SUI-USD, BNB-USD, XRP-USD
• FARTCOIN-USD, GOLD-USD, ZEC-USD

Maximum leverage: up to 100x (varies by asset).

Order types:

• Market: Executes immediately at best available price
• Limit GTC: Rests on book until filled or cancelled
• IOC: Immediate-or-cancel, no resting
• ALO (post-only): Guaranteed maker fill or no execution

Conditional orders:

• Stop-loss and take-profit (mark price triggered, reduce-only)
• Range orders (OCO — one-cancels-other)
• Trailing stops (basis points from current price)
• On-fill orders (activate after parent order fills)

The execution model is real: same CLOB, same matching engine, same fair ordering system as mainnet. This is worth learning properly.

Step 5: Understand the Leaderboard

The formula: Cashflow ROI = Realized PnL / Capital Deposited

What counts:

• Closed positions only
• Realized PnL

What doesn’t count:

• Open positions — unrealized PnL has zero weight
• Funding payments and fees (excluded from the metric)
• Withdrawals (they don’t reduce your capital deposited denominator)

The practical implication: Close positions regularly. An open position that’s 50% in profit contributes nothing to your rank until you close it.

Update timing: 15-minute delay after realized fills. Don’t expect instant updates.

Check the leaderboard: early.bulk.trade/leaderboard

Prize Structure (Competition Reference)

The paper trading competition ran May 19–28, 2026, with a $50,000 prize pool:

No KYC. No entry fee. Global eligibility.

Tips to Maximize Your Score

Close trades frequently. Unrealized PnL is your enemy. Every profit needs to be realized to count.

Minimize your capital denominator. Cashflow ROI = PnL / Capital Deposited. Large deposits drag your ratio down. Deposit minimally, trade efficiently.

Use sub-accounts for parallel strategies. You lose nothing from having a low-performing sub-account alongside a high-performing one.

Set conditional orders. Stop-losses and take-profits let you step away while positions work. Don’t let a winner become a loser because you weren’t watching.

Use portfolio margin on hedged positions. Long BTC + short ETH? BULK’s correlation-aware risk engine frees up capital compared to isolated margin.

After the Competition: Keep Going

Even after the competition closes, the testnet remains your primary Aura points farming vector until mainnet goes live (~June 1).

Keep trading. Keep accumulating.

When mainnet launches:

• Real capital, real fees (2.2–3.5 bps taker, 0 bps maker during Genesis Phase)
• Referral program activates
• Aura points mechanics revealed
• Real trading volume starts generating validator fee revenue for BulkSOL holders

Risk Disclaimer

Testnet participation may or may not affect BULK token airdrop allocation — the Aura points mechanics are not yet publicly documented. Participation is not a guarantee of any specific BULK token allocation.

The June 1 mainnet date is a community inference, not an official announcement.

Not financial advice.

Back to cluster hub: BULK Token Airdrop Guide

Also in this cluster:

• Airdrop Checklist: Every Action Ranked
• BULK Aura Points Explained
• Paper Trading Competition Results

Related: What is BulkSOL? — the capital-committed Aura signal · Sub-Accounts: Why 10 Leaderboard Slots Matters · Glossary: Testnet, Aura Points, Leaderboard

Start trading on BULK testnet → early.bulk.trade

Track the leaderboard → early.bulk.trade/leaderboard