October 23, 2020 | AtoZ Markets – Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) on Friday passed a product intervention order where it has enforced terms on the issuance plus the allocation of CFDs to retail customers.
ASIC product intervention order takes effect on March 2021
According to the press release, the order would boost consumer protection by reducing contracts for difference (CFD) leverage available to retail clients. It will also target CFD product features and sales practices that increase CFD losses of the retail clients. It would also align Australian practice with protections in force in similar markets at another place.
Similar to ESMA's restriction in CFD leverage, ASIC's product intervention order will, as from 29 March 2021:
- restrict CFD leverage offered to retail clients to a maximum ratio of:
- 30:1 for CFDs referencing an exchange rate for a major currency pair
- 20:1 for CFDs referencing an exchange rate for a minor currency pair, gold or a major stock market index
- 10:1 for CFDs referencing a commodity (other than gold) or a minor stock market index
- 2:1 for CFDs referencing crypto-assets
- 5:1 for CFDs referencing shares or other assets
- standardise CFD issuers’ margin close-out arrangements that act as a circuit breaker to close-out one or more a retail client’s CFD positions before all or most of the client’s investment is lost
- protect against negative account balances by limiting a retail client’s CFD losses to the funds in their CFD trading account, and
- prohibit giving or offering certain inducements to retail clients (for example, offering trading credits and rebates or ‘free’ gifts like iPads).
ASIC also confirmed it will not require issuer-specific risk warnings or other disclosure-based conditions as originally proposed in Consultation Paper 322 Product intervention: OTC binary options and CFDs (CP 322).
Related: Are ASIC CFD Product Interventions justified?
Retail clients lose money trading CFDs
The order strengthens protections for retail clients trading CFDs after ASIC found that CFDs have resulted in, and are likely to result in, significant detriment to retail clients.
ASIC reviews in 2017, 2019 and 2020 found that most retail clients lose money trading CFDs.
During a volatile five-week period in March and April 2020, the retail clients of a sample of 13 CFD issuers made a net loss of more than $774 million. During this period:
- over 1.1 million CFD positions were terminated under margin close-out arrangements (compared with 9.3 million over the full year of 2018)
- more than 15,000 retail client CFD trading accounts fell into negative balance owing a total of $10.9 million (compared with 41,000 accounts owing $33 million over the full year of 2018). Some debts were forgiven.
Cathie Armour, ASIC Commissioner said, "Heavy losses sustained by retail clients trading in highly leveraged CFDs and ongoing market volatility during the COVID-19 pandemic highlight the need for stronger CFD protections in the product intervention order."
"The leverage ratio limits in the order aim to reduce the size and speed of retail clients’ losses by reducing CFD exposure and sensitivity to market volatility. This follows similar measures introduced in major overseas markets, including the United Kingdom and European Union" Armour added.
The order will remain in force for 18 months, after which it may be extended or made permanent. Civil and criminal penalties apply to contraventions of the product intervention order.
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