> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.spend.market/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.spend.market/markets/elastic-markets.md). # Elastic Markets Spend Market run on a two-phase lifecycle we call "Elastic Markets." Every market opens as a parimutuel pool, and if it draws enough capital, it graduates to a full order book. On the Spend Market site these two phases appear simply as *Early Pool* and *Open Market*; this handbook prefixes them with Phase 1 and Phase 2 for clarity. * **Phase 1: Early Pool.** A parimutuel pool. You buy outcome tokens against a shared pot; prices are implied by the ratio of capital across outcomes; collateral is locked until the market resolves or graduates. * **Phase 2: Open Market.** When the pool clears a threshold, the market graduates to a central limit order book (CLOB) and trades like a standard exchange: limit orders, market orders, exit anytime. The structure follows the interest. Markets that earn volume grow a real book; markets that don't resolve straight from the pool. Both are by design. The system adapts to the demand each market actually attracts. Phase 1 is for conviction. Phase 2 is for exits and precision. --- # 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.spend.market/markets/elastic-markets.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. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.