1 Límites de apalancamiento

 1.1 Márgenes estipulados por la AEVM
La AEVM ha establecido límites de apalancamiento a diferentes niveles en función del subyacente:

• 3.33 % para los principales pares de divisas. Los principales pares de divisas son cualquier combinación de USD, CAD, EUR, GBP, CHF y JPY
• 5 % para pares de divisas no principales e índices principales.
  • Los pares de divisas no principales son aquellos que incluyen una combinación con una divisa no especificada anteriormente, por ejemplo, USD.CNH
  • Los índices principales son IBUS500, IBUS30, IBUST100, IBGB100, IBDE30, IBEU50, IBFR40, IBJP225 y IBAU200
• 10 % para índices no principales; IBES35; IBCH20; IBNL25; IBHK50
• 20 % para acciones individuales

 1.2 Márgenes aplicados - Requisitos

Además de los márgenes de la AEVM, IBKR establece sus propios requisitos de margen (márgenes IB) en función de la volatilidad histórica del subyacente y otros factores. Se aplicarán los márgenes IB en caso de que sean superiores a los prescritos por la AEVM.

Puede encontrar más información sobre los márgenes IB y AEVM aplicables aquí.

1.2.1 Márgenes aplicados - Concentración mínima

Se aplicará un cargo por concentración en caso de que la cartera contenga un número pequeño de posiciones en CFD o acciones, o si las dos posiciones más grandes tuvieran una ponderación dominante. Se lleva a cabo una prueba de estrés, aplicando unos movimientos adversos del 30 % y del 5 % en las dos posiciones más grandes y en las posiciones restantes, respectivamente. Se utilizará la pérdida total como requisito de margen de mantenimiento en caso de que sea mayor que el requisito estándar para las posiciones en acciones y CFD combinadas. Tenga en cuenta que la comisión por concentración es el único caso en el cual el margen de las posiciones en CFD y acciones se calcula de conjunto.

1.3 Financiación de los requisitos de margen inicial

Solo puede utilizar efectivo para cubrir el margen inicial para abrir una posición en CFD.

Inicialmente, todo el efectivo utilizado para financiar la cuenta se encuentra disponible para la negociación de CFD. Todos los requisitos de margen inicial para otros instrumentos y efectivo utilizado para comprar acciones al contado reducen el efectivo disponible. Si su compra de acciones al contado ha creado un préstamo de margen, no habrá fondos disponibles para negociar CFD incluso si su cuenta tiene un capital significativo. De acuerdo con las normas de la AEVM, no podemos incrementar un préstamo de margen para financiar el margen para CFD.

Las ganancias de CFD realizadas se incluyen en efectivo, y están disponibles inmediatamente. No es necesario que el efectivo se liquide antes. No obstante, las ganancias no realizadas no pueden utilizarse para cumplir los requisitos de margen inicial.

2 Regla de cierre de posiciones abiertas basada en el margen

2.1 Cálculos y liquidaciones del margen de mantenimiento.

La AEVM exige que IBKR liquide las últimas posiciones en CFD cuando el capital de calificación disminuya por debajo del 50 % del margen inicial depositado para abrir las posiciones. IBKR podrá cerrar posiciones antes si nuestra visión del riesgo es más conservadora. El capital de calificación para este fin incluye CFD al contado y PyG de CFD no realizadas (positivo y negativo). Deberá observar que el CFD al contado excluye efectivo que admita los requisitos de margen para otros instrumentos. 

La base para este cálculo es el margen inicial registrado en el momento de abrir una posición en CFD. Es decir, a diferencia de los cálculos de margen aplicables a otras posiciones no CFD, la cantidad del margen inicial no varía cuando el valor de la posición abierta cambia.

2.1.1 Ejemplo

Tiene 2000 EUR al contado en su cuenta y no tiene posiciones abiertas. Quiere comprar 100 CFD de XYZ a un precio límite de 100 EUR. Primero se le asignan 50 CFD y después los 50 restantes. Su capital disponible se reduce cuando sus operaciones se ejecutan:

 *La liquidez es igual al efectivo más las PyG no realizadas

El precio aumenta a 110. Su liquidez es ahora de 3000, pero no puede abrir posiciones adicionales porque su capital disponible es todavía 0 y, de conformidad con la normativa de la AEVM, IM y MM permanecen sin cambios:

 El precio baja a 95. Su liquidez baja a 1500, pero no hay violación de margen ya que está todavía por encima del requisito de 1000:

 El precio cae una vez más a 85, lo que causa una violación de margen y la activación de la liquidación:

 3 Protección de liquidez negativa

La decisión AEVM limita su responsabilidad relacionada con CFD a los fondos dedicados a la negociación en CFD. Otros instrumentos financieros (p. ej., acciones o futuros) no pueden liquidarse para satisfacer un déficit de margen de CFD.*

Por este motivo, los activos que no sean CFD no son parte de su capital en riesgo por la negociación de CFD. 

En caso de perder más efectivo que el dedicado a la negociación de CFD, IB deberá liquidar la pérdida. 

Como la protección de liquidez negativa representa riesgos adicionales para IBKR, cargaremos a los inversores minoristas un diferencial de financiación adicional del 1 % para posiciones en CFD mantenidas trasnoche. Podrá encontrar más información sobre los tipos de financiación de CFD aquí.

*Aunque no podemos liquidar posiciones no CFD para cubrir un déficit de CFD, podemos liquidar posiciones en CFD para cubrir un déficit no CFD.

Introduction

A London Gold CFD enables you to have exposure to price movements of physical Gold without actually owning it. A London Gold CFD is an agreement between you and IBKR to exchange the difference in price of the underlying over a period of time. The difference to be exchanged is determined by the change in the reference price of the underlying. Thus, if the price of physical Gold traded on the London bullion market rises and you are long the CFD, you receive cash from IBKR and vice versa. A London Gold CFD can be bought long or sold short to suit your view of market direction in the future.

Contract Specifications

Price Determination

The IBKR London Gold and Silver CFDs reference physical Gold and Silver traded on the London bullion market. The London bullion market is a wholesale over-the-counter market for the trading of precious metals. Trading is conducted among members of the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA). Most of the members are major international banks.

IBKR receives quote streams from approximately 10 such major banks, in much the same way it does for cash forex. IBKR Smart routes between the banks, and the best available price at any given time becomes the reference price for the CFDs. IBKR does not add a spread to the banks’ quotes.

Low Commissions and Financing Rates: Unlike other CFD providers IBKR charges a transparent commission, rather than widening the spread. Commission rates are only 0.015% for London Gold and 0.03% for London Silver. Overnight financing rates are just benchmark +/- 1.5% (an additional 1% surcharge is added for retail accounts).

Transparent Quotes: Because IBKR does not widen the spread, the Metals CFD quotes accurately represent the spreads and price movements of the related cash metal, as described above.

Margin Efficiency: IBKR establishes house-margin requirements based on historic volatility of the underlying and other factors. Retail clients are subject to regulatory minimum initial margins of 5% for London Gold or 10% for London Silver.

Trading Permissions: Same as for Share and Index CFDs.

Market Data Permissions: Metals CFD market data is free, but a permission is required for system reasons.

Worked Trade Example (Professional Clients):

You purchase 100 XAUUSD CFDs at $1,942.5 for USD 194,250 which you then hold for 5 days.

Closing the Position

CFD Resources

Below are some useful links with more detailed information on IB’s CFD offering:

CFD Product Listings

CFD Commissions

CFD Financing Rates

CFD Margin Requirements

CFD Contract Specifications

Frequently asked Questions

Are short Metals CFDs subject to forced buy-in?

No.

Can I take delivery of the underlying metal?

No, IBKR does not support physical delivery for Metals CFDs.

Are there any market data requirements?

The market data for Metal CFDs is free, and is included the market data for Index CFDs. However, you need to subscribe to the permission for system reasons. To do this, log into Account Management, and click through the following tabs: Settings/User Settings/Trading Platform/Market Data Subscriptions. Alternatively you can set up an Index or Metals CFD in your TWS quote monitor and click the “Market Data Subscription Manager” button that appears on the quote line.

How are my CFD trades and positions reflected in my statements?

If you are a client of IBKR Australia, your CFD positions are held in the same account along with your other assets.

In what type of IB accounts can I trade CFDs e.g., Individual, Institutional, etc.?

All margin and cash accounts are eligible for CFD trading.

Can I trade CFDs over the phone?

No. In exceptional cases we may agree to process closing orders over the phone, but never opening orders.

Can anyone trade IB CFDs?

All clients of IBKR Australia can trade IB Australia CFDs.

Related Articles

• Overview of IBKR issued Share CFDs
• IB Index CFDs - Facts and Q&A
• IB Forex CFDs - Facts and Q&A 
• An Introduction to Forex (FX)
• Overview of ASIC CFD Rules Implementation at IBKR (Australia) – Retail Investors Only

ESMA Rules for CFDs (Retail Clients only)
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has enacted new CFD rules effective 1st August
2018.

The rules include: 1) leverage limits on the opening of a CFD position; 2) a margin close out rule on a per
account basis; and 3) negative balance protection on a per account basis.

The ESMA Decision is only applicable to retail clients. Professional clients are unaffected.
Please refer to the following articles for more detail:

ESMA CFD Rules Implementation at IBKR (UK) and IBKR LLC

ESMA CFD Rules Implementation at IBIE and IBCE

Introduction
A London Gold CFD enables you to have exposure to price movements of physical Gold without actually owning it. A London Gold CFD is an agreement between you and IBKR to exchange the difference in price of the underlying over a period of time. The difference to be exchanged is determined by the change in the reference price of the underlying. Thus, if the price of physical Gold traded on the London bullion market rises and you are long the CFD, you receive cash from IBKR and vice versa. A London Gold CFD can be bought long or sold short to suit your view of market direction in the future.

Contract Specifications

Price Determination
The IBKR London Gold and Silver CFDs reference physical Gold and Silver traded on the London bullion market. The London bullion market is a wholesale over-the-counter market for the trading of precious metals. Trading is conducted among members of the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA). Most of the members are major international banks.

IBKR receives quote streams from approximately 10 such major banks, in much the same way it does for cash forex. IBKR Smart routes between the banks, and the best available price at any given time becomes the reference price for the CFDs. IBKR does not add a spread to the banks’ quotes.

Low Commissions and Financing Rates: Unlike other CFD providers IBKR charges a transparent
commission, rather than widening the spread. Commission rates are only 0.015% for London Gold and 0.03% for London Silver. Overnight financing rates are just benchmark +/- 1.5% (an additional 1% surcharge is added for retail accounts).

Transparent Quotes: Because IBKR does not widen the spread, the Metals CFD quotes accurately
represent the spreads and price movements of the related cash metal, as described above.

Margin Efficiency: IBKR establishes house-margin requirements based on historic volatility of the
underlying and other factors. Retail clients are subject to regulatory minimum initial margins of 5% for
London Gold or 10% for London Silver. 

Trading Permissions: Same as for Share and Index CFDs.

Market Data Permissions: Metals CFD market data is free, but a permission is required for system
reasons.

Worked Trade Example (Professional Clients):

You purchase 100 XAUUSD CFDs at $1,942.5 for USD 194,250 which you then hold for 5 days.

Closing the Position

CFD Resources
Below are some useful links with more detailed information on IB’s CFD offering:

CFD Product Listings

CFD Commissions

CFD Financing Rates

CFD Margin Requirements

CFD Contract Specifications

Frequently asked Questions

Are short Metals CFDs subject to forced buy-in?
No.

Can I take delivery of the underlying metal?

No, IBKR does not support physical delivery for Metals CFDs.

Are there any market data requirements?
The market data for Metal CFDs is free, and is included the market data for Index CFDs. However, you need to subscribe to the permission for system reasons. To do this, log into Account Management, and click through the following tabs: Settings/User Settings/Trading Platform/Market Data Subscriptions. Alternatively you can set up an Index or Metals CFD in your TWS quote monitor and click the “Market Data Subscription Manager” button that appears on the quote line.

How are my CFD trades and positions reflected in my statements?
If you are a client of IBKR (U.K.) or IBKR LLC, your CFD positions are held in a separate account segment identified by your primary account number with the suffix “F”. You can choose to view Activity Statements for the F-segment either separately or consolidated with your main account. You can make the choice in the statement window in Account Management.

If you are a client of other IBKR entities, there is no separate segment. You can view your positions normally alongside your non-CFD positions.

In what type of IB accounts can I trade CFDs e.g., Individual, Friends and Family,
Institutional, etc.?
All margin and cash accounts are eligible for CFD trading. 

Can I trade CFDs over the phone?
No. In exceptional cases we may agree to process closing orders over the phone, but never opening
orders.

Can anyone trade IB CFDs?
All clients can trade IB CFDs, except residents of the USA, Canada, Hong Kong, New Zealand and
Israel. There are no exemptions based on investor type to the residency-based exclusions.

Introduction
A warrant confers the right to buy (call-warrant) or sell (put-warrant) a specific quantity of a specific underlying instrument at a specific price over a specific period of time.

Pay-out Profile

With some warrants, the option right can only be exercised on the expiration date. These are referred to as “European-style” warrants. With “American-style” warrants, the option right can be exercised at any time prior to expiration. The vast majority of listed warrants are cash-exercised, meaning that you cannot exercise the warrant to obtain the underlying physical share. The exception to this rule is Switzerland, where physically settled warrants are widely available.

Factors that influence pricing
Not only do changes in the price of the underlying instrument influence the value of a warrant, a number of other factors are also involved. Of particular importance to investors in this regard are changes in volatility, i.e. the degree to which the price of the underlying instrument fluctuates. In addition, changes in interest rates and the anticipated dividend payments on the underlying instrument also play a role.

However, changes in implied volatility - as well as interest rates and dividends - only affect the time value of a warrant. The primary driver - intrinsic value - is solely determined by the difference between the price of the underlying instrument and the specified exercise price.

Historical and implied volatility
In addressing this topic, a differentiation has to be made between historical and implied volatility. Implied volatility reflects the volatility market participants expect to see in the financial instrument in the days and months ahead. If implied volatility for the underlying instrument increases, so does the price of the warrant.

This is because the probability of profiting from a warrant during a particular time-frame increases if the price of the underlying instrument is highly volatile. The warrant is therefore more valuable.

Conversely, if implied volatility decreases, that leads to a decline in the value of warrants and hence occasionally to nasty surprises for warrant investors who aren’t familiar with the concept and influence of volatility.

Interest rates and dividends
Issuers hedge themselves against price changes in the warrant through purchases and sales of the underlying instrument. Due to the leverage afforded by warrants, the issuer needs considerably more capital to hedge its exposure than you require to buy the warrants. The issuer’s interest expense associated with that capital is included in the price of the warrant. The amount of embedded interest reduces over time and at expiration is zero.

In the case of puts, the situation is exactly the opposite. Here, the issuer sells the underlying instrument
short to establish the necessary hedge, and in so doing receives capital that can earn interest. Thus interest reduces the price of the warrant by an amount that decreases over time.

As the issuer owns shares as a part of its hedging operations, it is entitled to receive the related dividend
payments. That additional income reduces the price of call warrants and increases the price for puts. But if the dividend expectations change, that will have an influence on the price of the warrants. Unanticipated special dividends on the underlying instrument can lead to a price decline in the related warrants.

Key valuation factors
Let’s assume the following warrant:
Warrant Type: Call
Term to expiration: 2 years
Underlying : ABC Share
Share price: EUR 30.00
Strike: EUR 30.00
Exercise ratio: 0.1
Warrant’s price: EUR 0.30

Intrinsic value
Intrinsic value represents the amount you could receive if you exercised the warrant immediately and then bought (in the case of a call) or sold (put) the underlying instrument in the open market.

It’s very easy to calculate the intrinsic value of a warrant. In our example the intrinsic value is EUR 00.00
and is calculated as follows:

(price of underlying instrument – strike price) x exercise ratio
= (EUR 30.00 – EUR 30.00) x 0.1

= EUR 00.00

If the price of the ABC share increases by EUR 1, the intrinsic value becomes
= (EUR 31.00 – EUR 30.00) x 0.1

= EUR 00.10

The intrinsic value of a put warrant is calculated with this formula:

(strike price – price of underlying instrument) x exercise ratio

It’s important to note that the intrinsic value of a warrant can never be negative. By way of explanation:
if the price of the underlying instrument is at or below the exercise price, the intrinsic value of a call equals zero. In this instance, the price of the warrant consists only of “time value”. On the flipside, the intrinsic value of a put is equal to zero if the price of the underlying instrument is at or above the exercise price.

Time value
Once you’ve calculated the intrinsic value of a warrant, it’s also easy to figure out what the time value of that warrant is. You simply deduct the intrinsic value from the current market price of the warrant. In our example, the time value is equal to EUR 1.30 as you can see from the following calculation:

(warrant price – intrinsic value)
= (EUR 0.30 EUR – EUR 0.00)

= EUR 0.30

Time value gradually erodes during the term of a warrant and ultimately ends up at zero upon expiration. At that point, warrants with no intrinsic value expire worthless. Otherwise you can expect to receive payment of the intrinsic value. Take note, though: a warrant’s loss of time value accelerates during the final months of its term.

Premium
The premium indicates how much more expensive a purchase/sale of the underlying instrument would be via the purchase of a warrant and the immediate exercise of the option right as opposed to simply buying/selling the underlying instrument in the open market.

Hence the premium is a measure of how expensive a warrant actually is. It follows that, when given a choice between warrants with similar features, you should always buy the one with the lowest premium. By calculating the premium as an annualized percentage, warrants with different terms to expiry can be compared with each other.

The percentage premium for the call warrant in our example can be calculated as follows:

(strike price + warrant price / exercise ratio – share price) / share price * 100

= (EUR 30.00 + EUR 0.30 / 0.1 – EUR 30.00) / EUR 30.00 x 100

= 10 percent

Leverage
The amount of leverage is the price of the share * ratio divided by the price of the warrant. In our example 30.00*0.1/0.3 = 10. So when the price of ABC increases by 1% the value of the warrant increases by 10%.

The amount of leverage is not constant however; it varies as intrinsic and time value changes, and is particularly sensitive to changes in intrinsic value. As a rule of thumb, the higher the intrinsic value of the warrant, the lower the leverage. For example (assuming constant time value):