Leverage is the technique of using a loan in order to increase the size of a trade or investment, which in turn increases the potential risk and reward. Common examples may be a company borrowing money in order to fund investment in a new shop or factory, or a homeowner using a mortgage to finance a property which they hope to sell at a profit.
In foreign exchange markets the rate may only change by a fraction of a penny a day, so in order to boost potential earnings a broker will offer a loan to a trader to multiply the size of their trade allowing bigger gains from a smaller position.
Broker | Our Rating | Description | Minimum Deposit | Regulation | Visit | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
| $100 | Central Bank of | Visit Broker AVATrade ReviewT1 ROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $1 | IFSC | Visit Broker FBS Markets. ReviewROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $5 | CySEC, IFSC, ASIC | Visit Broker XM Group ReviewROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $10 | CySec | Visit Broker IQOption Review | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| €100 | FCA, CySec, ASIC : | Visit Broker Plus500 ReviewT1 ROTW | Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76.4% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. | |
![]() |
| $100 | ASIC, CySEC | Visit Broker Easy Markets ReviewT1 ROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $5 | FSC | Visit Broker HF Markets Ltd. (HotForex) ReviewROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $100 | CySec | Visit Broker FXPrimus ReviewROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() |
| $100 | CySec | Visit Broker Markets.com ReviewT1 ROTW | Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 73% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. | |
![]() |
| $1 | RAFMM, The Federal | Visit Broker InstaForex ReviewROTW | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk | |
![]() | 10 | Visit Broker OLYMP TRADE Review | Risk Warning: Your capital may be at risk |
The use of leverage is a key aspect of Forex trading.
Forex trading contracts are very large, but brokers permit their clients to access small parts of them using leverage.
When an investor first opens up an account with a broker, one of the first options to be chosen is the level of leverage obtained.
Usually, the amount of leverage provided is either 50:1, 100:1 or 200:1, depending on the broker and the size of the position the investor is trading.
Leverage of 200:1 is usually used for positions of $50,000 or less. Many traders have “mini-accounts,” so that, to trade $100,000 of currency, with a margin of 1%, an investor will only have to deposit $1,000 into his or her margin account.
The leverage provided on a trade like this is 100:1. Leverage of this size is significantly larger than the 2:1 leverage commonly provided on equities and the 15:1 leverage provided by the futures market.
This would ordinarily seem terribly risky, but traders are never asked to “cover their margins” in forex trading.
Currency prices usually change by less than 1% in a given day. Should a major shift take place, the broker has an automatic “stop” in place that will prevent your account from losing more than the cash or credit it has in place.
This is why it is difficult to trade forex with less than US$10,000 (or the equivalent) on hand even in a mini-account – a sizable shift in the value of one currency can devour all the money in an account in a matter of seconds.
To avoid such losses, forex traders usually implement a strict trading style that includes the use of stop and limit orders.
Your capital is at risk. Trading in Forex and Contracts for Difference (CFDs) is highly speculative and involves a significant risk of loss. The information contained in this publication is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. This website is provided for informational purposes only and in no way constitutes financial advice. A featured listing does not constitute a recommendation or endorsement.
Forex Trading.Company was established to provide global traders a deep and insightful source of information on forex trading strategies and indicators. With guides for everyone from beginner traders in Bangladesh to advanced strategists in Hong Kong we want the world trading community to benefit from our in-depth broker comparison + reviews, features, and commentary. We list the world's top regulated and authorised brokers suitable for a global audience.
We aim to think global, act local with our website, so that whether you're in Asia, Europe or Africa you can gain from our content on the world's biggest market.