On Friday 2 November 2018 at 08:00 GMT we will be implementing new standard margin rates for CFDs, as a result of the continued uncertainty surrounding the Brexit negotiations.
These margin rates will remain in effect until further notice, as we continue to monitor the geopolitical and market situation closely.
What will the margin rates be?
The following table gives you an overview of the affected instruments on your account.
CFDs
CFDs
Minimum margin from 2 November
UK 100
5%
EU Stocks 50
4%
Swiss 20
4%
France 40
4%
Netherlands 25
4%
Germany 30
4%
You can check the upcoming changes to margin rates and collateral requirements for your respective margin profile in the trading platform under ‘Account – Margin and Collateral’ from Friday 19 October 2018 and onwards.
Margin Monitor Feature
From Monday 22 October, a new ‘Margin Monitor’ feature will be available in GTS Web and GTS Pro, to complement the existing Margin and Collateral changes module. This gives you an overview of the positions that are affected by margin changes, and shows the current and simulated margin after all changes have been applied.
Access to the Margin Monitor
The Margin Monitor will be available through an icon on the Account Toolbar (on the Account Summary in GTS Pro). The Margin Monitor is also available in My Account.
How does this impact your trading?
If you have open positions in any of the affected markets, please ensure that you monitor your positions carefully and maintain sufficient funds in your account to meet the increased margin requirements during this period of turmoil.
We recommend you keep the following in mind, especially when trading during periods of potential market volatility:
Consider placing relevant resting orders in advance. Market liquidity may vary substantially, and trade/quote requests may be unavailable at times as existing resting orders and new market orders are filled as priority
Market orders are not guaranteed to be filled at any specific price – they will be filled “at best” according to available market price when processed
Stop Loss orders are converted to Market orders once triggered, so are not guaranteed to be filled at your stop order level – gaps in available liquidity can result in significant slippage on Stop orders
Using Stop Limit type orders (rather than Stop Market) can be very beneficial as they allow the client to specify the worst acceptable immediate fill rate after triggering, and they will rest in the order book if not able to be filled immediately
Buying options (i.e. puts to protect long positions and calls to protect short positions) could be a hedging vehicle suitable for market uncertainty since they offer protection at the fixed Strike price, rather than Stop orders where fills on gapped prices can occur
More information
If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].
