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The spread represents the difference between the bid and ask price in a trade. In forex, currencies are always traded in pairs, as one is exchanged for another. To simplify, they are quoted together—such as AUD/USD. In this pair, AUD is the ‘base currency,’ while USD is the ‘quote’ or ‘counter currency.’ If the exchange rate is 1.5, it means 1.5 AUD is required to purchase 1 USD, expressed as 1.5/1.

When you trade with a VT Markets RAW ECN account, you gain access to some of the lowest spreads in the industry. Experience institutional-grade liquidity sourced directly from the world’s leading banks—without any mark-ups. Tight spreads as low as zero are no longer exclusive to hedge funds; now, they’re within your reach.

1. Open the Market Watch on the VT Markets MT4 Platform.

2. Right click inside the Market Watch and click ‘Spreads’

3. You will now have a 4th column displaying the Spread for each Forex currency pair, Commodity or Indices market.

For Standard STP account

For RAW ECN account

We apply a commission when trading forex, gold, silver, and oil on a VT Markets RAW ECN account.
Please refer to the table below for a full breakdown of RAW ECN commission charges, based on your trading account's currency denomination.
Due to MT5 system limitations, the commission column is rounded to two decimal places instead of three. As a result, for EUR-denominated accounts, the commission for 0.01 lot per side is rounded to €0.03 (originally €0.025), making it €0.06 per position.

Forex leverage refers to the use of borrowed capital, known as “margin,” enabling traders to control larger positions with a smaller initial investment. While leverage can amplify potential profits, it also increases the risk of losses, making strategic risk management essential.

Here is an example of how leverage works in forex trading:

Forex Trader A has $5,000 USD:

If Forex Trader A has an account leverage of 10:1 and they wish to use $1,000 on one forex trade as margin, they will have exposure of $10,000 in base currency ($1,000) = 10 x $1000 = $10,000 (trade value).

Forex Trader B has $5,000 USD:

If Forex Trader B has an account leverage of 100:1 and they wish to use $1,000 on one forex trade as margin, they will have exposure of $100,000 in base currency ($1,000) = 100 x $1,000 = $100,000 (trade value).

VT Markets offers a maximum forex leverage of up to 500:1. If you wish to adjust your leverage, you can indicate this in your application or reach out to us. Please be aware that modifying your leverage carries significant risk, including the potential for substantial or total account loss. As a non-advisory forex broker, VT Markets does not provide investment or personal trading advice. For tailored financial guidance, we recommend consulting a registered financial advisor.

Margin forex trading carries a high level of risk, and leverage should be used with caution.

Login to your client portal and request a forex leverage change to your trading account:

Client portal login

In spot foreign exchange (forex) trading, all trades follow market convention and typically settle within two business days from the date of execution.

Cash indices and commodities will settle at the end each business day (server time 00:00).

VT Markets does not facilitate the physical delivery of trades. Instead, all open positions at the end of the trading day are automatically rolled over to a new value date, incurring either a swap charge or credit.

Important Notice: For forex trades held open from Wednesday to Thursday (server time), the new value date shifts to Monday instead of the weekend. As a result, the rollover charge on Wednesday evening will be three times the usual amount displayed in the table.

Since cash indices and commodities settle on the same day, holding trades over the weekend from Friday to Monday will incur a triple swap charge, accounting for the three days of accrual.

Also, please note that crude oil does not incur an overnight swap, as its pricing is directly based on the futures contract.

Forex swap rates are influenced by market conditions and the interest rates of the respective countries associated with the selected currency pair.

The daily published rates are determined by our financial institutional partners through comprehensive risk-management analysis.

Each forex currency pair carries its own unique swap charge. Interest is deducted from the currency sold and credited to the currency bought.

To access the latest forex swap rates, please check the Market Watch panel on our MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform.

Simply follow the steps outlined below: 1.Locate your product in the ‘Market Watch’ window. Right click, and select ‘Symbols’. 2.Select the product you wish to view from the list. Select ‘Specifications’. 3.Here you can view the forex swap rates for both long and short positions.

When you are trading oil on the MT4 platform, if you hold a position over the monthly expiration date of the futures contract that price is based on, you will encounter a rollover. If you do not wish for your position to be rolled over, then you should close your position beforehand.

This is because oil (CL-OIL) is a futures contract which has a set expiration date. If you want to continue to hold your position over the expiration date, the old position must be closed as the contract expires, and a new one opened on the new futures contract.

For a 10 barrel CL-OIL trade, at a price of $98.50 and a difference between monthly contracts of +50 pips ($0.50), the calculations are as follows:

Long position: (10 x -0.50) + (-0.04 x 10) + ((10 x 98.50 x -0.002 x 1)/360) = -$5.41

Short position: (10 x +0.50) + (-0.04 x 10) + ((10 x 98.50 x -0.002 x 1)/360) = +$4.59

All oil rollover adjustments are calculated in the currency that the instrument is denominated in. If your account is denominated in another currency, your account will be converted at the current market rate.

When trading oil on the MT4 platform, holding a position beyond the monthly expiration date of the underlying futures contract will result in a rollover. To avoid this, you should close your position before the contract's expiration date.

Slippage occurs primarily due to forex market volatility and execution speeds. High volatility often leads to lower liquidity and rapid price fluctuations. When there isn’t enough liquidity to fulfill an order at the requested price, the trade is executed at the next best available price by the liquidity provider.

Another factor contributing to slippage is execution speed—how quickly your Electronic Communication Network (ECN) processes your trade at the desired price. With market prices shifting in fractions of a second, faster execution times can be crucial, particularly for larger trades.

Say the AUD/USD price was 0.9010. After analyzing the market, you anticipate an upward trend and decide to go long with one standard lot at the current price of 0.9050, expecting execution at the same price.

The market follows the trend but goes past your execution price and up to 0.9060 very quickly – within a second. Because your expected price of 0.9050 is not available in the market, you’re offered the next best available price. For the sake of the example, that price is 0.9045. In this case, you would experience positive slippage:

0.9050 – 0.9045 = 0.0005, or +5 pips.

On the other hand, let’s say your trade was executed at 0.9055. You would then experience negative slippage:

0.9050 – 0.9055 = -0.0005, or -5 pips.

It's important to understand that slippage can affect all types of orders, including Stop Loss, Take Profit, Buy/Sell Stops, and Buy/Sell Limit Orders. Since VT Markets operates with market execution, we cannot guarantee execution at the exact requested price.

As we operate under market execution, we cannot fulfill a forex order if the requested price is no longer available. In such cases, your order will be executed at the best available market rate provided by our FX liquidity providers.

The spread is the difference between the bid and ask price in forex trading. Since traders always exchange one currency for another, forex prices are quoted as currency pairs. For simplicity, they are written in pairs like AUD/USD (Australian Dollar/US Dollar), where AUD is the base currency and USD is the counter currency. If it takes 1.5 AUD to buy 1 USD, the quote would be written as 1.5/1.

Dividends adjustment example 1. If you buy and hold 1 lot of the DJ30 cash index overnight at a price of 21,500.00, and the overnight financing cost is -3 USD per day while the dividend component is +20 USD, the total swap for that day would be:-3 + 20 = +17 USD 2. Conversely, if you sell and hold 1 lot of the SPI200 cash index overnight at a price of 5,100.00, and the overnight financing cost is -1 AUD per day while the dividend component is -20 AUD, the total swap for that day would be:-1 + (-20) = -21 AUD

A corporate action is any significant event initiated by a company that impacts its stakeholders, including common and preferred shareholders and bondholders. These actions, typically approved by the company's board of directors, can range from mergers and acquisitions to stock splits and dividend distributions. In some cases, shareholders may have the right to vote on specific corporate actions.

The most common corporate actions include: • Cash Dividend: A payment made by a company to its shareholders from its profits or retained earnings. These dividends are distributed in cash and are generally considered taxable income for recipients. • Stock Split: A corporate action where a company issues additional shares to existing shareholders in proportion to their current holdings, effectively increasing the number of shares while reducing the price per share. This does not impact the company’s overall market value but makes shares more accessible to investors. • Rights Issue: A corporate action where a company offers existing shareholders the opportunity to purchase additional shares in proportion to their current holdings, usually at a discounted price. This allows shareholders to increase their stake while providing the company with additional capital for growth or debt reduction. • Buyback: A corporate action where a company repurchases its own shares from shareholders, often at a premium. This reduces the number of shares in circulation, potentially increasing the stock’s value and improving financial ratios like earnings per share (EPS). • Bonus issue: When additional shares are issued by a company on a pro rata basis for free.

Dividend payment is by far the most common type of corporate action. Profitable companies may issue several dividend payments a year. Typically, an ex-dividend date will be announced when dividends are issued. For example, the last ex-dividend date for Apple Inc. (AAPL) is 8th May 2020, with a dividend amount of $0.82 USD per share. If you have held a CFD position of Apple Inc. (AAPL) on our platform at the close of trading on 7th May 2020, an adjustment to your position(s) will be made to account for this dividend payment.

There will be no dividend-related impact on AAPL CFD positions if they are closed before the market closes on May 7, 2020. Likewise, any new AAPL CFD positions opened after the market opens on May 8, 2020, will not be affected.

For example:

If you bought and held 100 Apple Inc. share CFDs at the close of trading on May 7, 2020, you would be entitled to a dividend payment of $0.82 per share × 100 = $82 USD.

Under US taxation laws, 30% of any dividend income in relation to equities and equity derivatives will be withheld, which is 82 USD x 30% = 24.6 USD

The two adjustments made on 08/05/2020:

Credit: Gross dividend payment 82 USD

Debit: Withholding tax amount 24.6 USD

Alternatively:

If you sold and held -100 Apple Inc. share CFDs at the close of trading on May 7, 2020, you would be deducted $0.82 per share × 100 = $82 USD.

The adjustment made on 08/05/2020:

Debit: Gross dividend payment 82 USD

On the market open of the ex-dividend date, the underlying share price typically adjusts downward by an amount roughly equal to the dividend. This reflects the fact that new buyers will not receive the dividend, and the stock price naturally accounts for this payout to existing shareholders.