Max Risk

How Max Risk measures your combined realised and unrealised loss at any given time within a Risk Window.

Max Risk measures the total amount your account has lost, realised and unrealised, at any given time within a Risk Window. It operates in real time from your Dashboard.

Max Risk is the measurement behind Pip Protector. Your Max Risk Limit is a percentage of your account's starting balance. The percentage, and what happens when you reach it, are set by the rules of the account you are trading.

ℹ️ Some accounts run Max Risk through the Pip Protector strike system, where each Strike tightens the limit. On others, the Max Risk Limit is absolute and reaching it breaches the account immediately. The rules article for your account confirms which applies.

How it works

Max Risk is built around three core concepts.

Max Risk Reference Balance

When you open your first position, the Dashboard records your account balance at that moment. This becomes your Max Risk Reference Balance, the baseline against which losses are measured throughout the Risk Window.

The Reference Balance acts as a high watermark. If a profitable trade takes your balance to a new high within the same Risk Window, the Reference Balance rises to match it, so profits do not create additional room to lose.

Risk Window

A Risk Window begins the moment you open your first position. It does not end when you close positions. The Window only resets after you have been flat for a continuous 60 minutes. This flat period is known as Cooling Down. Once the cooldown completes, a new Risk Window opens with your next trade.

Max Risk Limit

The Max Risk Limit is the maximum realised and unrealised loss you can carry within a single Risk Window. It is expressed as a percentage of your account's starting balance and is calculated for you in real time on your Dashboard.

What happens when you reach the limit

When your combined realised and unrealised loss within a Risk Window reaches the Max Risk Limit, all open positions are closed automatically.

What follows depends on your account. Where Max Risk runs through the Pip Protector strike system, a Strike is recorded and your Max Risk Limit is halved, with the consequences escalating at each further Strike. Where the Max Risk Limit is absolute, reaching it breaches the account immediately, with no strikes and no escalation.

Example

This example uses a $10,000 account with a 2% Max Risk Limit, which is $200. The percentage differs between accounts, but the calculation is the same on all of them.

Step

What happens

Max Risk calculation

1. Open first position

The trader's balance is $10,000 when the first trade opens.

Reference Balance = $10,000. Limit = 2% = $200. Risk Window opens.

2. Trade moves against the trader

The position is $120 down and still open.

Window loss = $120 (unrealised). $80 of the $200 remains.

3. Trade recovers into profit

The position turns around; equity reaches $10,150 and the trader closes.

New high, so the Reference Balance rises to $10,150. Loss resets to $0 against the new baseline. Profits do not create extra room to lose, because the floor moves up with you.

4. Re-enters within the same window

A new position is opened within 60 minutes, so the same Risk Window continues. It is $60 down realised (after a partial close) plus $90 down unrealised.

Window loss = $60 + $90 = $150, measured from $10,150. $50 of the $200 remains.

5. Max Risk Limit reached

The remaining position falls further, taking the combined loss to $200.

Reference Balance $10,150 minus current equity $9,950 = $200. The limit is reached and all open positions close automatically.

6. What happens next

The outcome is set by the rules of the account.

A Pip Protector Strike, or an immediate breach. See What happens when you reach the limit above.

ℹ️ Max Risk counts realised and unrealised losses together and accumulates them across every trade in the same Risk Window. The Window only resets after you have been flat for a continuous 60 minutes (Cooling Down), at which point your next trade starts a fresh Window with a new Reference Balance.

Dashboard indicators

Default (Ready)

No positions are open. Your full risk allowance is available, and the Risk Window has not started.

Open Risk (Active)

Positions are open. The Dashboard shows your current risk utilisation against your Max Risk Limit in real time.

Flat (Cooling Down)

All positions are voluntarily closed. The cooldown countdown shows how long until your Risk Window resets.

Frequently asked questions