YAL Academy
Margin and account mechanics
The account survival module, placed before any chart. Every field on the account panel gets its own micro lesson, then leverage is taught strictly as a mechanic, then two worked scenarios run an account balance down to close out.
Trading involves risk. You could lose more than your deposit.
The arc
FoundationModule 3 of 10
16 lessons, about 118 min
- AssumesThe trade ticket
- UnlocksWhat a trade actually costs
The lessons
What this module covers
Builds the account panel one field at a time in the order the platform calculates them, so margin level and margin call arrive as arithmetic the reader has already done rather than as jargon. Only once close out is understood does leverage appear, framed as the consequence of position size rather than as a feature. The module ends with two full scenarios and a pass across the asset classes.
Lesson 01
What margin is
The deposit a position requires, why it is held rather than spent, and what it is not.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 9 min
Lesson 02
What account balance is
The closed ledger figure, and why it does not move while a position is open.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 6 min
Lesson 03
What unrealised profit and loss is
The number that moves every tick, why it is called floating, and when it stops floating.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 8 min
Lesson 04
What used margin is
The total held against everything currently open, and how it grows as positions are added.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 6 min
Lesson 05
What equity is
Balance plus everything currently floating, and the reason equity rather than balance is the figure the margin arithmetic reads.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 5 min
Lesson 06
What free margin is
What is left to absorb a move or open something else, and why it disappears faster than expected.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 5 min
Lesson 07
What margin level is
Equity against used margin, expressed as a percentage, and the single number a close out watches.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 6 min
Lesson 08
What a margin call is
A warning state, not an event that fixes anything, and the common misunderstanding of what it obliges.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 7 min
Lesson 09
What a stop out is
The automatic close out, the order it closes positions in, and the fact that it is not optional.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 7 min
Lesson 10
What leverage is
A description of a position larger than the margin held against it, taught with the loss case first.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 9 min
Lesson 11
Offered leverage and effective leverage
The number a firm may permit against the number a position actually creates, and why only the second one bites.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 8 min
Lesson 12
How a margin requirement is calculated
Contract size, price, and the requirement percentage worked through for FX, gold, an index and a shares CFD.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 8 min
Lesson 13
Why a loss is harder to recover than it was to make
The asymmetry of percentage moves, worked as plain arithmetic on an account balance.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 8 min
Lesson 14
Worked scenario: a single position reaches close out
One account, one position, and the balance followed line by line until the stop out level is reached.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 10 min
Lesson 15
Worked scenario: two positions and a margin call
A second position added to a floating loss, and the compounding effect on margin level.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 9 min
Lesson 16
How margin differs across the asset classes
Why an index position, a gold position and a shares CFD position of similar value require different amounts.
- Level
- Foundation
- Read time
- 7 min
Get started
Open your account in four steps.
A clear path from sign-up to your first trade, in four steps.
No depositNo documents
01/ 04step 1 of 4
Register
A few details to get started.
No deposit to open
02/ 04step 2 of 4
Verify
Confirm your identity, securely.
ID and proof of address
03/ 04step 3 of 4
Fund
Add money by bank transfer or card.
From $0
04/ 04step 4 of 4
Trade
Go live on the platform you already know.
MetaTrader 5
