The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has issued its product intervention measures affecting Retail client accounts with effect from 1 August, 2018. The measures mainly relate to leverage, margin close-out and negative balance protection.
Professional accounts are not subject to ESMA’s leverage restrictions.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 80.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
ESMA's measures do not affect Professional Accounts. See the differences between a Retail Account and a Professional Account in the comparison table below:
| Instruments Category | Retail Account | Professional Account |
|---|---|---|
| Forex | 1:30 | 1:300 |
| Indices | 1:20 | 1:300 |
| Commodities | 1:20 | 1:150 |
| Shares | 1:5 | 1:20 |
| Options | 1:5 | 1:5 |
| ETFs | 1:5 | 1:100 |
| Crypto | 1:2 | 1:20 |
| Criteria | Retail Account | Professional Account |
|---|---|---|
| Client Money Protection | ||
| Negative Balance Protection | ||
| Best execution for orders | ||
| Clear and transparent information | ||
| Financial Services Compensation Scheme | ||
| Access to FOS | - |
When Selling €15K of EUR/USD CFD at a Sell rate of 1.1750:
Clients who meet at least 2 of the following 3 criteria are eligible:
You have performed an average of at least 10 transactions per quarter, of significant size, over the previous four quarters on the relevant market1 (with Plus500 and/or other providers).
You will not be required to deposit this amount.
The size of your financial instrument portfolio2 exceeds €500,000.
You work/have worked in the financial sector, for at least one year in a professional position which requires knowledge of the related transactions or services.
1 Relevant Market - OTC Derivatives such as Leveraged CFDs, Forex, Spread Betting.
2 Financial instruments portfolio includes shares, derivatives (only cash deposits made to fund/profits realised from investing in derivatives), debt instruments and cash deposits. It does not include property portfolios, direct commodity ownership or notional values of leveraged instruments.
