Editorial only. Trading CFDs is high-risk — most retail accounts lose money. We are not a broker and not a financial adviser. Capital at risk. Verify regulation and terms directly with each broker before opening an account.
Learn Forex Trading
Independent research and education. No paid placements. No financial advice.
Guides & Analysis
Independent research. No paid placements. No financial advice. More in the journal.
What Does FCA Regulated Mean? FCA Regulation Explained for Traders
What FCA regulated means for your money: segregated client funds, FSCS cover up to £85,000, retail leverage caps, and how to check the FCA register.
ESMA Rules Explained: Forex Leverage Limits & Negative Balance Protection
What is ESMA and what leverage can EU retail traders get? 30:1 on major pairs to 2:1 on crypto, plus negative balance protection and the 50% close-out.
Spread vs Commission in Forex: Which Pricing Actually Costs More?
Spread-only vs raw spread plus commission: how forex brokers charge, how to turn both into one cost per lot, and the break-even point for each.
How Leverage Works in Forex — Margin, Examples and Why It Wipes Accounts
What leverage means in forex, how margin and stop-outs work, worked examples at 30:1 and 500:1, and how to choose the leverage you use. Capital at risk.
MetaTrader 4 vs MetaTrader 5: Which Should You Use?
MetaTrader 4 or 5: which should you use? Most brokers still offer MT4 alongside MT5 (11 of the 15 on our file). The comparison that actually matters.
How to Spot a Forex Scam Broker: 12 Red Flags
How to spot a forex scam broker: 12 red flags to check before you deposit, from fake regulation and withdrawal traps to cold contact, and what to do next.
Best Forex Brokers for Scalping 2026
Scalping needs tight spreads, no-dealing-desk execution and terms that allow high-frequency trading. How the main raw-spread brokers compare on all three.
Pepperstone vs IC Markets 2026: Fees, Regulation and Platforms Compared
Pepperstone vs IC Markets from each broker's own pages: which entity you join, raw-account commissions, a one-lot EUR/USD cost worked out, swap and platforms.
Is Forex Trading Legal in Norway? Finanstilsynet Rules, Leverage and Tax
Yes, forex and CFD trading is legal in Norway. Finanstilsynet's rules (30:1 on major pairs, negative balance protection, 50% close-out) and how tax works.
ECN vs Market Maker Brokers: Which Execution Model Is Better?
ECN vs market maker brokers: who fills your order, where the conflict of interest sits, what each costs per lot, and how to tell which your broker uses.
Forex Risk Management: Position Sizing and Stop-Loss Rules
Most accounts are destroyed by oversized positions, not bad entries. How the 1% rule, position sizing and stop placement keep you in the game.
Forex Swap and Rollover Fees Explained (With Examples)
Hold a forex position overnight and you pay or earn a swap. How rollover interest is calculated, when it turns positive, and how it eats longer trades.
Prop Firm Challenges Explained: How Funded Trading Accounts Work
How prop firm challenges work: pass an evaluation, trade the firm's capital, keep a profit share, plus the drawdown rules and the catch most adverts hide.
Binary Options vs CFDs: What's the Difference (and What's Banned)?
Binary options pay all-or-nothing on a yes/no bet and are banned for retail traders in the EU, EEA and UK. How they differ from CFDs, and the legal route.
Leverage Limits by Instrument: Why Gold Gets 20:1 and a Single Share Gets 5:1
Retail CFD leverage caps run from 30:1 on major pairs to 2:1 on crypto, a ranking of how fast each market can hurt you. Read the ladder, price the risk.
Elective Professional Client Status: The Tests, and the Safety Net You Give Up
What an elective professional client is: the firm's assessment, the two-of-three test (10 trades a quarter, €500,000, a year in finance) and what you lose.
The 50% Rule: Exactly When Your Broker Is Legally Required to Close You
Brokers must close retail CFD positions at 50% of required margin, not at half your account. The margin close-out rule explained with worked examples.
1000:1 Leverage: What the Extra Zeros Actually Cost You
Same brand, same platform, thirty times the leverage, because you were routed to a different legal entity. What 1000:1 leverage costs and what you give up.
Why No Regulated EU Broker Will Give You a Deposit Bonus
A 100% deposit match is illegal to offer retail clients in the EEA and UK, which makes a bonus the fastest one-glance test of who you are dealing with.
What Is Forex, Actually? A Straight Answer Before Anyone Sells You Something
What forex trading actually is: what a currency pair is, what you are really buying, and the loss figures brokers must publish before you open an account.
Forex Rules by Region: Why the Same Broker Gives You a Different Deal
Leverage caps, hedging, negative balance protection and who may accept you as a client, compared across the EEA, UK, Australia, the US and offshore.
How the Forex Market Was Born: The Day Money Stopped Being Gold
Until 1971 currencies were pegged to the dollar and the dollar to gold. How one announcement created today's forex market, and why exchange rates move.
Black Wednesday: The Day a Trader Beat the Bank of England
16 September 1992: the UK spent an estimated 40% of its reserves defending the pound, raised rates twice in a day and lost; Soros made about £1 billion.
Fifteen Minutes That Bankrupted Brokers: The 2015 Swiss Franc Shock
On 15 January 2015 the Swiss National Bank dropped its franc floor without warning. The franc jumped about 20%, brokers failed and traders owed money.
Forex Market Fundamentals: Structure, Interbank Network & Market Participants
How the forex market is structured: the interbank network, liquidity providers, ECNs, the 24-hour trading cycle and how currency quotes work.
Price Action Trading & Candlestick Anatomy: Pin Bars, Engulfing Patterns & Wick Rejections
Price action trading explained: candlestick anatomy, pin bars, engulfing patterns and wick rejections, and why a pattern without context fails.
Support, Resistance & Supply-Demand Zones: Institutional Order Blocks & Liquidity Pools
How to draw support, resistance and supply-demand zones, why broken levels flip, and a four-step way to validate a zone before you trade it.
Trend-Following Systems: Exponential Moving Averages (EMA) & MACD Momentum Filters
Trend following with moving averages: simple vs exponential averages, golden and death crosses, EMA ribbons and an ADX filter for choppy markets.
Range Trading & Oscillator Divergences: RSI, Stochastic & Mean-Reversion Systems
How to trade ranges: spotting a range-bound market, RSI overbought and oversold levels, regular and hidden divergences, and the stochastic oscillator.
NFP & News Trading Volatility: The Economic Calendar Playbook
How NFP, CPI and other high-impact releases move forex prices, why spreads widen and slippage rises on news, and a wait-and-retest approach.
Trading Psychology & Cognitive Biases: Conquering FOMO, Revenge Trading & Sunk Cost Fallacy
Trading psychology explained: the cognitive biases behind FOMO, revenge trading and the sunk cost fallacy, and the probabilistic mindset used to counter them.
How to Set a Stop Loss in MetaTrader 5 (Order Window, Chart and Mobile)
Three ways to set a stop loss in MT5: in the order window, by dragging the line on the chart, and from the Toolbox, plus two settings that stop it working.
How to Calculate the Spread in Forex (With Worked Examples)
How to calculate the spread in forex: ask minus bid, converted into what you actually paid. Pips, pipettes, JPY pairs and lot sizes, worked through.