Trader Lab · Survival
FxPro. South Africa
Risk management, habits that keep you in the game
75%+ of retail investor accounts lose money trading CFDs.
Size before entry
Decide the cash you are willing to lose if the stop hits, then back into lot size. If the stop distance is wide, size must shrink. Guessing lots first is how accounts blow up.
Stops are not magic
Stop-loss orders can slip in gaps or thin liquidity. They reduce, not eliminate, risk. Guaranteed stops, if offered, are a product feature with their own rules and possible costs, check your broker terms.
Process habits
- Journal entries: why, size, emotion, result
- Cap daily loss, walk away when hit
- Avoid revenge trades after a loss
- Separate demo learning from live pressure
Link to product pages
When you are ready to practise execution, use a demo. For funding and account choice, use this site’s deposit and account guides. Re-read the 75%+ risk disclosure on every live CTA.
Risk per trade, worked in rand
With R10,000 in the account and a 1 percent limit, a losing trade should cost no more than R100. If your stop on EURUSD is 25 pips, each pip may cost no more than R4. On a dollar account, convert that R4 at your bank's rate first, then pick the lot that matches it. If the smallest lot is still too large for that stop, the trade does not fit the account.
A weekly stop for the whole account
Decide in advance how much the account may lose in one week, for example 4 percent. When you reach it, stop trading until the next week and read your journal instead. It keeps one bad week from turning into a bad month.
FAQ
What risk per trade is “correct”?
There is no universal number. Educators often discuss small single-digit percentages of equity, still a personal choice, not a guarantee.
Can risk management remove the 75% statistic?
No. That disclosure reflects retail CFD outcomes across many clients. Good habits help; they do not rewrite market math.