IB Margin Requirements on futures are crazy!

N

newbunch

According to the CME website, the maintenance margin on the July 2021 Natural Gas future is $1,900. But when I go to sell this contract on IB, TWS tells me the initial margin requirement is $5,499 and the maintenance margin in $4,399.

Am I missing something? Or are IB's margin requirement just crazy?!?
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Another crazy example. The CME margin requirement on the Indian Rupee future is $1,400. IB is telling me I need an initial margin of $5,618 and a maintenance margin of $4,495.

I know that futures traders aren't supposed to be using up anywhere near all their margin, but when IB requires 2-3x the normal requirements, it's not hard to hit those limits.
 
newbunch said:
According to the CME website, the maintenance margin on the July 2021 Natural Gas future is $1,900. But when I go to sell this contract on IB, TWS tells me the initial margin requirement is $5,499 and the maintenance margin in $4,399.

Am I missing something? Or are IB's margin requirement just crazy?!?
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I dont know why T Boone Pickens invested + traded all his life in gas + oil; + went broke in nat gas.
WITH a 10+ 20 yr year nat gas chart, clears the air partly. Maybe he borrowed to much, i dont know. He did mention a wolverine type banker /she pissed on every thing she did not eat\so to speak.......................................................................................................................
Sounds like if anything they underpriced it/but i dont trade that one much even in ETFs. I trade XLE some but oil + gas is so vol\but has good volume. i dont miss it with a few trades per year. I dont know why Bunker + Bro Hunt used so much leverage in sliver bankruptcy; seemed to work well for them in oil..................................................................................................
 
newbunch said:
According to the CME website, the maintenance margin on the July 2021 Natural Gas future is $1,900. But when I go to sell this contract on IB, TWS tells me the initial margin requirement is $5,499 and the maintenance margin in $4,399.

Am I missing something? Or are IB's margin requirement just crazy?!?
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More...

IB is known to be conservative about most things... margin requirements, especially. Higher ones are a "safety factor" for both customer and firm.
 
Scataphagos said:
IB is known to be conservative about most things... margin requirements, especially. Higher ones are a "safety factor" for both customer and firm.
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OLD FASHIONED, i think/ but in a good sense. I saw the IBKR founder in a pic of huge line of yellow cabs..................................................................................... He was riding a horse + the punchine == ''never choose an ordinary investment vehicle''LOL/True.:caution::caution::caution::caution::caution::caution::caution::caution:
That may sounds like fake news/LOL but the pic was real anyway..........................................
 
Scataphagos said:
IB is known to be conservative about most things... margin requirements, especially. Higher ones are a "safety factor" for both customer and firm.
More...
Correct. They have been like this for a very long time. We moved away from them due to tech issues, but margin was not an issue. It is not crazy, and if anyone really need exchange minimums, it only means they greatly over leverage themselves.
 
newbunch said:
It is normal for futures traders to use 30% margin. My aim is ~50%. But when some are 2x-3x normal, it's easy to get to 100%.
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OK by me.
Its normal+ easy in some markets to use 100%\but the forclosure rate is too HI.
NOT a predicition+ nat gas is not one of them[not saying you thought that \just sayin'..................................................................... ]
 
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