Q. How do I open a Demo Account?
Go to our open a demo page
Q. How do I open a Live Account?
Go to our open a live account page
Q. Are the Demo platform and the Live platform the exact same?
While the bank quotes are identical on both the Demo and Live platforms, our ECN technology allows customers to place their own limits orders into the system and display them for other customers. Obviously, “demo” orders cannot interact with a live market, so the ECN trades from customer to customer work from demo clients to demo clients and from live clients to live clients, but demo orders do not display in the live market.
Q. Are mini accounts allowed?
Yes, on our system, 1 lot is considered 10,000 units of the currency, which is what would previously have been considered a “mini.” If you wish to trade 100,000 units, which would previously have been considered a “full” lot, you simply trade 10 lots at a time.
Q. What is the Minimum trade size?
The minimum trade size is 0.1 lot (1 lot = 10K)
Q. What is the Maximum trade size?
300 lots.
Yes. Our platform’s hedging capability allows clients to simultaneously buy and sell the same currency pairs in order to minimize the risk from abrupt changes in the market.
Q. If I have multiple accounts can I view both accounts at once?
Yes. By downloading software in different location in you computer, you can log in at once to view your accounts.
Q. What are the best trading hours across the 24-hour day?
Forex is based on global bank trading hours. Volume for the day picks up when the Asian banks become active, which is around 8 pm EST. You will see more activity in pairs related to the JPY during these periods. Europe is the center of activity of the forex markets, and volume picks up more as the European countries operate, which begins around 2 am EST. The volume continues into the North American daytime, and then usually starts to subside around 1 pm EST as the North American banks are the only ones left open.
Q. What is your policy on news trading?
We consider trading on news to be extremely risky in the forex markets. Unlike other platform, we do not “lock out” our customers at all during news. However, banks have to react to news just as retail customers do. If the news is big enough, everyone wants to go in the same direction. The forex markets can actually “gap” as banks pull their orders in one direction. In extreme cases, it can be very difficult to execute during news spikes, and traders are trading these at their own risk. Our platform does provide tools to control your executions better during news in the form of “stop limit” orders, which other platforms typically do not offer. These orders can be used to make sure that you don’t get filled far away from where you were trying to get filled if the news causes an instantaneous and substantial move in the markets. We suggest that no trader use market orders for news.
Q. What are the minimum system requirements?
The minimum system requirements are the following:
- Operating System: MS Windows NT(SP4), 2000, XP
- Memory: 256MB RAM
- CPU: Pentium II 600 MHz
- Internet: 56 kbps
Q. Does realized P/L include the gross commissions?
No. The realized P/L is after net of the gross commission.
Q. Can you trade on two accounts with the same platform and computer?
Yes. You can log into different account to trade at the same time.
Q. Can I be logged in at two locations at once?
No. Our software will not allow two simultaneous logins without special parameters being placed on the account.
Q. What is the minimum deposit when opening a new account?
The current minimum deposit is $1000. Margin leverage is up to 200:1.
Q. How do I deposit funds into my account?
Please visit our deposits information page
Q. Why do I pay interest, when is it paid, and how is the amount determined?
Trades settle in two business days in the spot Forex market. If you sell 10,000 Euros on Tuesday, you must deliver 10,000 Euros on Thursday, unless the position is held open and rolled over to the next day. As a service to our traders, SNC automatically rolls over all open positions to the next settlement date at 5:00pm EST. Roll over involves exchanging the expiring position for a position expiring the following settlement date. The positions being exchanged are not valued at the same price. If a trader is long the currency bearing the higher interest rate, the position being "sold" is worth more than the position being acquired. The reverse is also true; if a trader is short the currency bearing the higher interest rate, the trader is acquiring a position worth more than the one being "sold". The amount of the difference varies based on the currency pair, the interest rate differential between the two currencies, and fluctuates day to day,
At 5:00 PM each day, funds are subtracted from or added to accounts with open positions because of this automatic roll over. When there are bank holidays in either settlement country the normal rollover schedule does not apply.
Q. How do I withdraw funds and what are the fees for doing so? How long will it take to receive my funds?
Assuming that the cash is available in the account at the time we receive your request, funds can be wired or mailed out of your account the same day. You can even close a position and request the funds immediately. Please see the fund withdrawal instructions page for more detail.
Q. Can I open an account if I am a non-US resident?
Applicants residing outside of the U.S. must submit a valid passport or picture ID and a proof of residence. |
