Just a quick question - plsss

Hi All, I have a silly question to ask. Im starting out my new trading account & I was wondering if 1000 uk pounds is a good enough deposit to start with?

Or will this be sort of not enough? i.e. I will be closed out soon.

I have a couple of strategies from FF & am planning to start trading not with too many open positions but wondering if 1000 pounds is even too small to start with.

regards,
Pret

It depends

Are you using this as an education or do you expect to make a living?

As long as you can trade small amounts per pip so that you only risk 1-2% per trade you should be ok as you can risk less money per trade if your trades go against you.After all you are risking £1000 which if you trade live is better than paying for any course,and if you can risk 1p per pip and reduce the size of your bets if your account diminishes,then this is gives you the opportunity to experience a great learning curve.

Good luck

In my opinion this is enough for a mini account using .1 lots per trade. This is a good "live" starting level for a newer trader. A step above a demo account, and risking real money while you continue to learn. Don't risk more than that until you're consistently profitable.

Good luck!

I agree with Pips Cruiser. After I demo enough, my first account will be a $1000 mini account.

thx guys. I'd like to make some money out of this.. so though it is a learning exercise, I'd like to start making money & then up my deposit.

its reassuring to know that 1000 pounds is not no-good to start with.

Here's a plan.

Start with your 1k. Once you get it up to 1,500 with a minimum of 30 trades then add another lump sum. Let's say half of what you've already planned to add. The 30 trades minimum is crucial because you could get lucky on a few trades and make the 500 and think you know what you're doing.

Once you add to your account, repeat the process. Make 50% with a minimum of 30 trades. Once you do that, then put everything you have into the account because you've proven to yourself that you can trade.

Hi Pret,

The formula I use, as a rough guide, is:

Capital $$ = stoploss distance x $10 x lot size / Risk %

Hence, if your stoploss is going to be 50 pips from entry, and you're going to trade mini-lot (0.1 lot) positions, and are willing to lose 2% of your capital per trade, then you need:

50 x $10 x 0.1 / 0.02 = USD 2,500 (so £1,000 is not too far off the mark).

You can juggle these variables to suit. For example, how wide the stoploss needs to be depends on the volatility of the pairs that you're trading, and the timeframe (attempting to capture larger moves necessitates a wider stoploss). And of course you can rearrange the formula, e.g. to calculate the allowable position (lot) size for a given amount of capital.

Many folk here disagree with me, but if you're starting out, I believe in demo trading for at least 3 months or 50 trades initially, to prove to yourself that your method can be profitable. You want to be able to gain a feel for the rudiments of trading, and also test your method objectively, without the added stress, that comes with trading real money, influencing your decisions. With a demo account it's easier to focus on learning to trade accurately and consistently, as opposed to making an income (a subtle but important difference). A very large number of newcomers (some estimate it as high as 95%) blow their first account(s), so I would hope that the £1,000 is "risk capital" that you can afford to lose. I don't mean to sound negative, but I would rather blow demo accounts than lose real money, at least to begin with. But of course each individual must make a decision that they feel most comfortable with.

Trading offers a fascinating and challenging learning curve. I wish you enjoyment and success.

David