2. What is fellow customer risk and how is that relevant in an FCM bankruptcy? Fellow customer risk is the risk that one or more customers of an FCM will default on their obligations to the FCM and that such loss will be so great that the FCM, in turn, will default on its obligations (i) to a DCO, or (ii) a clearing FCM that carries the FCM’s customer account.
As discussed below, Commission Rule 1.23 prohibits an FCM from using the funds of one customer to meet the obligations of another customer. Rather, an FCM must use its own funds to meet a defaulting customer’s obligations to a DCO or clearing FCM. In general, therefore, a customer’s loss would have to be substantial before other customers would be exposed to fellow customer risk.
Nonetheless, an FCM’s excess adjusted net capital is a factor that a customer should consider carefully in selecting an FCM to carry the customer’s account. If the loss is so great that, notwithstanding the application of the FCM’s own funds, there is a shortfall in the amount of customer funds required to be held in segregation, the FCM will default and likely be placed into bankruptcy.
In these circumstances, the Bankruptcy Code provides that non-defaulting customers will share in any shortfall, pro rata. A shortfall in customer segregated funds may also make the transfer of the accounts of non-defaulting customers to another FCM more difficult. Customers are exposed to fellow customer risk in all markets for which an FCM holds customer funds, i.e., futures and options on futures traded on US exchanges, futures and options on futures contracts traded on foreign boards of trade, and cleared swaps.
The Commission’s recently-adopted rules governing cleared swaps customer collateral, discussed below, are intended to provide cleared swaps customers enhanced protection from fellow customer risk
I looked at other FCMS, bigger ones pretty much set it at 16500 for day margins. Some medium size like tradestation is at 25% (around 4000).
I mean do i really need to worry about this shit? i feel like AMPs risk control is sufficient. They recently said they will liquidate positions 100 ticks before the halt limits are hit in different sessions. So the losses would be minimized locally way before any gap losses can occur.