Margin requirements change on weekend and holidays

In this article we want to remind you that for positions opened from 22:00 (GMT+2) on Friday until 02:00 (GMT+2) on Monday, the maximum leverage is changed to 1:200. Margin requirements are also calculated according to these changes. The margin on these positions will be recalculated after the opening of the trading session, namely, after 02:00 (GMT+2) on Monday, based on the amount of funds in the client’s account and the leverage chosen by him earlier.

For you to understand how the margin is changing, we want to share a few examples below. Please, pay your attention to them.

Example 1. Opening and closing transactions during the period of IMR* (Increased Margin Requirements)

A trader opens an order before the onset of increased margin requirements and the margin on the account counts to 100 USD. Then the trader decides to open another order; however, IMR have come into force. It means that the margin for the second order is recalculated according to leverage of 1:200 and is 250 USD now, although under normal conditions the margin would be 50 USD. The total margin for the two orders is 350 USD. The trader closes the first transaction on Friday, 23:30 GMT+2 when IMR are still active. So the margin of 250 USD remains for an open order.

Note! The margin is recalculated only for those orders that are opened during the period of increased margin requirements. If the order was opened before IMR, the margin remains the same.

Example 2. Opening transactions during IMR and their closing after the period of IMR

The trader opens the first transaction before IMR come into force. Then he opens the second transaction during the IMR period. The margin for the second transaction is recalculated according to leverage of 1:200 and is 500 USD. The total margin is 700 USD now. After 02:00 (GMT+2) of Monday, the margin on the second order is recalculated according to the leverage of the trading account. The total margin is 300 USD now. The trader closes the second order, and the margin becomes 200 USD.

Please note that if you open a transaction during the period of IMR, but close it when margin requirements return to their previous value, the leverage and margin will be recalculated for this transaction!

Example 3. Opening a hedging position during the period of IMR

The trader opens a position to buy the USD/CAD currency pair several hours before increased margin requirements come into action. The margin is calculated as usual. After IMR have entered into force, the trader decides to open the opposite transaction to sell USD/CAD. However, since the opening of the second order will lead to the hedging of the first order, and the margin for hedged positions is zero, the total margin on the trading account will be zero as well.

Note! The margin on hedged positions is 0 on all types of JustMarkets accounts.

Example 4. Partial hedging during IMR

The trader opens the first order, and the margin is 200 USD. Then the trader opens a second order, the margin of which is 300 USD, and the total margin is 500 USD now.

The trader opens the third order when IMR are already active. The third order partially hedges positions opened earlier. Notice that orders that were opened closer in time to opposite orders are hedged first. Therefore, in this case, the second order and 1 lot of the first order are fully hedged. 1 lot to buy USD/CAD remains unhedged, and the total margin becomes 100 USD.