Risk Disclosure: Leveraged Forex and CFD Trading

Our Disclosure Obligation

This website is an independent editorial resource that reviews Swissquote for readers in the United Arab Emirates. We are not the broker, we are not affiliated with the broker, and we do not provide financial services, accounts, deposits or advice. Because leveraged forex and CFD trading carries a high risk of loss, we take on the obligation to set out that risk plainly here, so that any review we publish is read with the right expectations.

Nothing on this site is a recommendation to trade. The figures and descriptions below are general in nature and apply to leveraged retail trading as a category, not to any single firm. If you are unsure whether this kind of trading suits you, seek independent advice from a professional who is authorised to give it in your jurisdiction.

Retail Loss Rates

Across the retail trading industry, a majority of individual accounts that trade leveraged forex and CFDs lose money. Regulators in several markets require firms to publish the share of retail accounts that lose, and those disclosures commonly show figures well above half, often in the range of seventy to eighty per cent. The exact number varies by firm and by period, but the direction is consistent.

This is not a comment on any particular broker. It reflects the structure of leveraged trading itself, where costs, spreads and the mathematics of leverage work against the small account. A reader should assume, before opening any account, that the likely outcome for a typical retail participant is a net loss.

Past Performance

Past results say little about the future. A strategy that produced gains over a given period may have done so because market conditions suited it, and those conditions can change without warning. Historical returns are not a reliable guide to what will happen next, and no track record, whether published by a firm, a signal provider or another trader, removes that uncertainty.

Market prices are influenced by events that cannot be predicted: central bank decisions, geopolitical developments, economic releases and sudden shifts in sentiment. A reader who sees strong past figures should treat them as a description of what happened, not as evidence of what will happen.

Gaps and Slippage

Leveraged products can move sharply around news events. Prices may gap between the close and the next open, and orders may be filled at a level different from the one requested. This is slippage, and it can work against a position. Stop-loss orders are not a guarantee of the price at which a trade will be closed.

During periods of high volatility, spreads may widen and liquidity may thin. The result is that losses can exceed what a trader planned for, particularly when a position is held through a scheduled announcement or over a weekend. These are structural features of the market, not faults of any particular platform.

Leverage, Margin and Closure

Leverage multiplies both directions. It allows a trader to control a position larger than the deposit, which means gains and losses are both amplified relative to the money committed. A small adverse move can produce a loss that is large in proportion to the account.

When losses reduce the account's equity below the required margin, the firm may issue a margin call and, if the account is not restored, close positions automatically. Automatic closure can happen at a loss and at a time not chosen by the trader. For these reasons, trading should be done only with money one can afford to lose entirely, and not with funds needed for living expenses, debt repayment or savings. Readers with questions about this disclosure can use the contact form on this site.

More on this topic

Swissquote Review: A Bank-Grade Broker in the UAE

Swissquote UAE review: DFSA-licensed, FINMA-regulated bank

Swissquote Web Platform: A Practical Look

How Swissquote's web trading platform works for UAE traders: tools, order types, charts…

Swissquote Login: What UAE Traders Need to Know

How to log in to Swissquote from the UAE, reset your password, and secure your account with 2FA