Course Content
Introduction to Forex Market
Start with the basics; what is the forex market, who are the key players, learn about market structure and size, what are the advantages of forex trading, and why you should trade forex. Learn how to setup a free practice account so you can try everything you learn.
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Basic Terminology
Learn the basic terminology used while trading forex. Get familiar with basic terms such as currency pairs, types of orders, pips, spreads, margins, and leverage.
0/2
Synchronize Time and Place for Forex Trading
Delve into what is traded in the forex market, major currency pairs, cross currencies, and exotic pairs. Find out when the forex market is the most active and how money is made from trading.
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Get Equipped for Forex Trading
Familiarize yourself with the basic tools needed to successfully trade forex. Learn how to analyze charts, trend lines, and time-frames. Discover what trading strategies are at your disposal, such as; scalping, day trading, long vs. short trading, swing trading, and many more.
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Fundamental Forex Trading Strategies
Discover the factors that most commonly influence the market and what impact they can have on your trading decisions. Learn how and when to use fundamental analysis, and the importance of a good economic calendar which details upcoming economic events.
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Technical Forex Trading Strategies
Learn how to use technical analysis to evaluate the market and acquire a better understanding of the most popular trading strategies. You’ll learn about price action, support and resistance levels, chart patterns, and the importance of technical analysis.
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Fibonacci Technical Indicator
The Fibonacci Indicator is one of the most commonly used indicators. Receive an in-depth explanation of what the Fibonacci indicator is and how to use it when trading. Start creating your personal trader's toolbox.
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More Technical Trading Indicators
A profitable trader has many tools at his disposal. Learn about the essential tools used by traders such as; Moving Averages (MA), Relative Strength Index (RSI), Stochastic, Bollinger Bands, Parabolic SAR, ADX, and Pivot Points.
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Killer Combinations for Trading Strategies
The key to using forex indicators is to which to use together. Learn more about the Elliott Wave prediction pattern, divergence trading, carry trading, currency correlation strategies, and retracement/reversal strategies. Learn which indicators to use together for the best results.
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Forex in Relation to Stocks and Commodities and Trading with MetaTrader
Learn about the inter-relationship between stocks, commodities, and indices to the forex market. Take your first steps and learn how to master the MetaTrader trading platform.
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Forex Trading Course
About Lesson

The Risks of Leverage

You have already learned about leverage’s significance and its possibilities. With leverage, you can multiply your profits and earn much more than your actual money could have made. But in this section, we will discuss Leverage’s consequences. You will understand why irresponsible leverage might be devastating for your capital. The number one reason for traders’ commercial demise is high leverage! Necessary: Relatively low leverage can create tremendous profits for us! Leverage- Controlling a large amount of money while using a small part of your own money and “borrowing” the rest from your broker.

Required Margin Actual Leverage
5% 1:20
3% 1:33
2% 1:50
1% 1:100
0.5% 1:200

Remember: We recommend you not work with a leverage of more than x25 (1:25) under any conditions! For example, you should not open a standard account (USD 100,000) with USD 2,000 or a mini account (USD 10,000) with USD 150! 1:1 to 1:5 are good leverage ratios for large hedge funds, but for retail traders, the best ratio varies between 1:5 and 1:10. Even very experienced traders who consider themselves big risk lovers do not use leverage of more than x25, so why should you? Let’s study the market first, earn some real money, and get some experience working with low leverage, then move to slightly higher leverage. Some commodities can be very volatile. Gold, Platinum, or Oil move hundreds of pips in a minute. If you want to trade them, your leverage must be as close to 1. You should protect your account and not turn trading into a gamble. Example: This is what your account would look like when you open a USD 10,000 account:

Balance Equity Used Margin Available Margin
USD 10,000 USD 10,000 USD 0 USD 10,000

Let’s assume you open a position with USD 100 initially:

Balance Equity Used Margin Available Margin
USD 10,000 USD 10,000 USD 100 USD 9,900

Assume that you decide to open 79 more lots on this pair, meaning a total of USD 8,000 will be in use:

Balance Equity Used Margin Available Margin
USD 10,000 USD 10,000 USD 8,000 USD 2,000

Right now, your position is very risky! You are totally dependent on the EUR/USD. If this pair goes bullish you win a lot of money, but if it goes bearish you are in trouble! Your equity will decrease as long as EUR/USD loses value. The minute the equity falls under your used margin (in our case USD 8,000), you will receive a “margin call” on all your lots. Say you bought all 80 lots at the same time and at the same price: 25 pips decrease will activate a margin call. 10,000 – 8,000 = USD 2,000 loss because of 25 pips!!! It can happen in seconds!! Why 25 pips? In a mini account, each pip is worth USD 1! 25 pips scattered over 80 lots are 80 x 25 = USD 2,000! At that exact moment, you lost USD 2,000 and are left with USD 8,000. Your broker will take the spread between the initial account and your used margin.

Balance Equity Used Margin Available Margin
USD 8,000 USD 8,000 USD 0 USD 0

We still have not mentioned the spread that the brokers take! If in our example the spread on the pair EUR/USD is fixed at 3 pips, the pair needs to decrease only 22 pips for you to lose USD 2,000! Important: Now you understand why it is so important to set a Stop Loss for every position you open!! Remember:  In a mini account, each pip is worth USD 1; in a standard account, each is worth USD 10.

Change in your account (In %) Margin required Leverage
100% USD 1,000 100: 1
50% USD 2,000  50: 1
20% USD 5,000  20: 1
10% USD 10,000  10: 1
5% USD 20,000    5: 1
3% USD 33,000    3: 1
1% USD 100,000    1: 1

If you buy a pair with a standard lot (USD 100,000) and its value goes down 1%, this is what would happen with different leverages: High leverages, such as x50 or x100, could produce astronomical gains of tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars in a very short time! But you should only consider this if you are prepared to take serious risks. A trader can use these high ratios only in extreme conditions when the volatility is low, and the price direction is almost 100% confirmed, probably around the time the US session closes. You can scalp a few pips with high leverage because the volatility is minimal, and the price trades in a range, which makes the direction easily detectable in the short term. Remember: The ideal combination is low leverage and significant capital on our accounts.

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