What is Leverage?

[ereanoraella 10]

Hi guys,

 

Have a good day. What is correct the meaning - Leverage? Explain me.

[fxeconomist 11]

Leverage is amount of money added proportionally to your deposit (50, 100, 500) when you open an order. While your order is active you can't lost more than your trading margin. When you close your order leverage money return to liquidity provider. For example I trade 1:500 leverage with Hotforex, which means that for one full trade lot (100K $) I need only 200$ free margin.

[SIUYA 11]

you can look through all the definitions on the net, but when it comes to trading think of it this way.

If your gross exposure to an instrument or portfolio is more than your cash in an account you are using leverage.

This will then apply to futures - as they are traded on margin.

Options - as they can give you extra convexity

shares - if you are trading on margin

shorts - because technically your losses may be greater than what is in your account.

 

 

fxeconomst is incorrect when he says - "While your order is active you can't lost more than your trading margin"

 

The broker will chase you for any extra losses your account sustains as a result of gaps and stops not being sufficient to cover your margin.

[MilaRose 10]

Leverage can be created through options, futures, margin and other financial instruments. For example, say you have $1,000 to invest.

[BlueHorseshoe 10]

  SIUYA said:

you can look through all the definitions on the net, but when it comes to trading think of it this way.

If your gross exposure to an instrument or portfolio is more than your cash in an account you are using leverage.

This will then apply to futures - as they are traded on margin.

Options - as they can give you extra convexity

shares - if you are trading on margin

shorts - because technically your losses may be greater than what is in your account.

 

 

fxeconomst is incorrect when he says - "While your order is active you can't lost more than your trading margin"

 

The broker will chase you for any extra losses your account sustains as a result of gaps and stops not being sufficient to cover your margin.

 

Hi SIUYA,

 

What does the term 'gearing' mean? Is this simply the amount of leverage that is used?

 

Kind regards,

 

BlueHorseshoe

[ereanoraella 10]

I thanks to all given such information about Leverage. I too thanks to spent time....

[SIUYA 11]

  BlueHorseshoe said:

Hi SIUYA,

 

What does the term 'gearing' mean? Is this simply the amount of leverage that is used?

 

Kind regards,

 

BlueHorseshoe

 

I think it is pretty much the same definition - interchangeable, but while levergae is expressed as a % gearing might be expressed as a ratio.

I also thought that gearing was more the coloquial expression - that family is geared to the hilt, v the more formal business definition - that firm has a leverage ratio of 300% on its assets.

It seems only a few places use this expression but it seems appropriate given the use of gears to increase/decrease speeds!

 

Usually if say you have 4: 1 (or 400%) leverage, it means you have gearing of 4:1.

 

 

........side bar deviation

 

Its an interesting issue as there are lots of definitions around, and I have seen some argue that if say for every $1 in an account, $1 is borrowed this is 100% geared.....which is why one needs to be clear about how they define many things, and exactly what it is they are getting. Which is why I pretty much look at things from an 'exposure' point of view.

 

an example....

when the marketing of 130/30 funds are bandied about then one might think this means it has greater than 100% leverage. However most often the gearing might only be 30%-60%, and some would argue that it is Net Exposure neutral (hence the introduction of gross and net exposures to often disguise gearing IMHO), as the long 30%, v short 30% offset each other......

In my terminology I would say the fund has the potential to have an additional 30-60% gearing/leverage through its gross exposure, but even though its net exposure is likely to be neutral, you still have gearing/leverage.

All too often leverage is hidden, or implicit in many things and yet we over look it - Taleb talks about this in his recent book and like him or hate him, if you look at the leverage you can get in some things in life particularly the leverage from convexity and optionality it changes how you look at things.

 

As an old market maker we often had a lot of gross exposure, a lot of leverage and were highly geared, but we also had a lot of net neutral exposures with low risk. Think of what it costs to buy calls, sell stocks on margin.....and do this many, many times, with offsets whereby puts are sold, or other offsetting calls are also sold.

 

...i deviated a little from my first answer

[realforexer 10]

Leverage is the ability of a trader to control a big market with a small investment, and this leverage is given by broker. For instance For example, to control a $100,000 position, your broker will set aside $1,000 from your account. Your leverage, which is expressed in ratios, is now 100:1.You can now controlling $100,000 with $1,000.

[CapitalBosters 10]

The use of various financial instruments or borrowed capital, such as margin, to increase the potential return of an investment.

[prax 10]

  ereanoraella said:

Hi guys,

 

Have a good day. What is correct the meaning - Leverage? Explain me.

 

leverage it's more like a loan from your brokers, makes your deposit would worth higher than initial amount, i used 1:500 on my Armada markets account means, my deposit are worth 500x times, and can made any transaction equal to 500x, have the same potential but also a risk. here's a simple video brief how forex trading works, move to 1:06

explanation.

hope this would help.

[realforexer 10]

The power given to traders by brokers to control a bigger amount of money in the forex market; Leverage works like a two edged sword, it can help you make profits quickly and you can loose your account as well from using a large leverage.

[CapitalBosters 10]

According to me Leverage is the use of various financial instruments or borrowed capital, such as margin, to increase the potential return of an investment.

[nhn 10]

  ereanoraella said:

Hi guys,

 

Have a good day. What is correct the meaning - Leverage? Explain me.

 

“Leverage” in general terms simply means borrowed funds.

[nhn 10]

  MilaRose said:

Leverage can be created through options, futures, margin and other financial instruments. For example, say you have $1,000 to invest.

 

Is this explanation complete? It left me hanging

[Taskin Ahmed 10]

It's one kind of loan that we get from our trading broker. Therefore have so many brokers who are offer high trading leverage. But,personally, I always like to trade small trading leverage.

[alizabailey 10]

The leverage is the term used in financial management which means the amount of debt used by the firm. if the firm have more debt than equity the firm is said to be highly leveraged.

[Forex Grandeur 10]

When an investor decides to invest in the Forex market, he or she must first open up a margin account with a broker. Usually, the amount of leverage provided is either 50:1, 100:1 or 200:1, depending on the broker and the size of the position the investor is trading.

[spareappeal 10]

leverage is the most important thing that you should have in trading ... it increases your probablity of being in benifits

[SurtiTrader 10]

Leverage means the advantageous condition of having a relatively small amount of cost yield a relatively high level of returns.

[piphunt 10]

  Quote

Leverage means the advantageous condition of having a relatively small amount of cost yield a relatively high level of returns.

 

Exactly, go detail in trading, higher leverage allow you to trade higher volume with less fund.

[divyanshisharma 2]

Leverage is an investment strategy of using borrowed money — specifically, the use of various financial instruments or borrowed capital — to increase the potential return of an investment.Leverage can also refer to the amount of debt a firm uses to finance assets.

[CrazyCzarina 17]

Leverage has slightly different meanings in personal finance, investing and business. But in each case, leverage is the use of debt to help achieve a financial or business goal. Leverage is the use of borrowed funds to increase one's trading position beyond what would be available from their cash balance alone. Forex traders often use leverage to profit from relatively small price changes in currency pairs. Leverage, however, can amplify both profits as well as losses.