New NFA Rules Cap the Leverage on Majors and Exotic Currency Pairs

Wed, Oct 28 2009, 15:00 GMT
http://www.fxstreet.com

Please be advised that the CFTC has recently approved rule-amendments of the U.S. regulatory body, the National Futures Association (NFA), to change the maximum leverage requirements for customers of forex dealer members (FDMS).

The amendments will limit the amount of leverage that can be used to trade what the NFA considers to be “major” and
“exotic” currency pairs – to be effective on Nov. 30, 2009. View the new maximum leverage rates here.

For all traders holding a forex account with the U.S. entity Global Futures & Forex, Ltd. (dba GFT), the NFA changes will
be implemented on Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009.

“Our customers should be aware of these new NFA requirements, and determine in advance how this may affect their
decisions and trading plan,” said Gary L. Tilkin, president and CEO, GFT.

If traders have open positions in these currency pairs at a higher leverage than the new maximum leverage required by the NFA, it will impact their margin requirement for those open positions.

“As always, exercise proper risk management and consider whether you need to deposit additional funds to be adequately capitalized for these new leverage rates, in accordance with your own trading plan,” said Tilkin.

As one option, GFT offers its customers the ability to change their lot sizes (e.g. 10,000, 20,000, etc.), which in addition to being properly capitalized is an alternate choice to trading higher leverage.

“We believe traders should understand how leverage can work both against you and for you, no matter which currencies they choose to trade, and that all traders should have choices to use leverage that is appropriate for his or her risk appetite,” said Muhammad Rasoul, executive vice president and COO, GFT.

GFT customers who reside outside of the US, Japan or Australia also have the choice to trade higher leverage by
smoothly and efficiently transferring their current account with their existing account settings to GFT’s U.K. affiliate (GFT Global Markets UK, Ltd.).

“We believe that it’s important for customers to work with a well-capitalized and regulated forex dealer, and we encourage traders to read more details about these regulatory changes on the NFA website,” said Rasoul.

View GFT’s latest capital numbers listed on the CFTC (Commodities and Futures Trading Commission) website as well as our regulatory record on file via the NFA (National Futures Association) website.

© 2009 “FXstreet.com. The Forex Market” All Rights Reserved. Every effort is made to provide accurate and complete information. However, with the thousands of documents available, often uploaded within short deadlines, we cannot guarantee that there will be no errors. Any republication or redistribution of FXstreet.com content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of FXstreet.com.
Trading foreign exchange on margin carries a high level of risk and may not be suitable for all investors. The high degree of leverage can work against you as well as for you. Before deciding to trade foreign exchange you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your initial investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with foreign exchange trading and seek advice from an independent financial advisor if you have any doubts.
Any opinions, news, research, analyses, prices or other information contained on this story, by FXstreet.com, its employees, partners or contributors, is provided as general market commentary and does not constitute investment advice. FXstreet.com will not accept liability for any loss or damage, including without limitation to, any loss of profit, which may arise directly or indirectly from use of or reliance on such information.