FX brokerage and training center network Forex Club has imposed restrictions on the trading volume for pairs featuring the Russian Ruble, blaming geopolitical factors for the move.
The changes will first hit MetaFX accounts – these are the accounts the broker offers for the MetaTrader 4 platform. Starting from Friday (September 19th), the maximum total trading volume of open positions for either USD/RUB or EUR/RUB, will be 50 lots. The changes will also affect the ExpertFX accounts (for the Rumus platform) – from September 22nd, the limit on the volume with USD/RUB or EUR/RUB will be 5 lots.
Forex Club said the changes reflected “growing geopolitical risks and the related economic changes”. Apparently, the broker refers to changes in the price of the Russian Ruble stemming from the conflict in Eastern Ukraine and the most recent wave of sanctions that the West has imposed on Russia and vice versa. The value of the Ruble plunged to a new record low against the EUR and the USD earlier this week, prompting Russian officials to address the nation in order to avoid public panic.
The swings in the price of the Ruble have sparked interest in the Russian currency amid investors and have prompted many brokers, like IC Markets, Pepperstone, and HotForex, to add RUB pairs to their lists of trading instruments. At the same time, the large-scale moves in the price of the Ruble are also increasing the risk exposure of traders. The step taken by Forex Club obviously seeks to reduce this exposure.
The limits on the trading volume will apply not only to RUB pairs but also to a range of CFDs on indices. The list of the indices includes: ES, NQ, YM, NKD, ME, FTI, FCE, FTSE, DAX, FESX, TF, HSI, with the maximum volume level to depend on the particular underlying asset and the type of account used.
You can read the official announcement by Forex Club on its website