Octa Broker’s Guide: What Risks to Take and What to Avoid

Risk is an unavoidable part of our lives, and it is present in every decision we make or choose not to make. Nowhere, however, is the risk more pronounced than in the fast-paced world of financial markets. Indeed, the constantly shifting economic landscape, marked by the rapid dissemination of news and the inherent volatility of prices, makes risk so pervasive that it’s often synonymous with the market itself. However, Octa, a globally regulated and trusted broker since 2011, emphasises that not all risks are equal and that a deep understanding of different types of risk is crucial for mitigating potential losses and achieving long-term trading success.

What Is Risk

To better understand risk, one can recall the common phrases we often use in life:

• He who dares, wins
• Look before you leap
• Fortune favours the bold
• Nothing ventured, nothing gained
• The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward
• A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for

These sayings capture the dual nature of risk: it can lead to reward or ruin. Even inaction carries risk, as the world continues to evolve around us, potentially leaving us vulnerable to unforeseen changes. Either way, here’s a hard fact that Octa analysts learned over the years of providing access to financial markets for traders: without venturing into the unknown, significant rewards are out of reach.

But what exactly is risk? A formal definition from the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary describes risk as ‘the possibility of something bad happening at some time in the future; a situation that could be dangerous or have a bad result’.^[1] In finance, this translates to the possibility of suffering a loss. While this might sound daunting, the key is to recognise that not all risks are equal. According to Octa analysts, while each risk type presents unique challenges, a strategic approach to risk management is the first step toward success in trading and investing.

Main Types of Risk in Financial Markets

1. Market Risk

Market risk refers to the potential for losses due to various factors affecting the overall performance of the financial markets. It’s often broken down into three primary subtypes:

• Price Risk. This is the most common form of risk for traders. It’s the risk of losses due to adverse changes in market price of an asset—whether a stock, a commodity, or a currency pair.
• Interest Rate Risk. This is the risk that borrowing costs might increase. This type of risk is particularly relevant for bond investors, as a rise in rates typically causes the value of bonds to fall. However, the risk also affects currencies’ exchange rates, as changes in relative monetary policy of different countries can influence the flow of international capital.
• Currency Risk. Also known as ‘exchange rate risk’, is the risk that a foreign currency might devalue, negatively impacting an investment made in that currency or the price of that country’s products. This is the primary focus for a company that exports or imports large amounts of goods and services or has direct investments overseas.

2. Liquidity Risk

Liquidity risk relates to potential losses that might occur when a financial instrument or an asset cannot be bought or sold quickly enough without a significant change in its price due to low trading volumes. Highly liquid markets, like major currency pairs, have many buyers and sellers, making entering or exiting a position easy. Conversely, the market with fewer participants might force a trader to accept a much worse price than expected to complete a transaction, leading to a loss. This risk is especially relevant when dealing with large positions in relatively illiquid markets (for example, third-tier cryptocurrency) or during periods of market stress (for example, when important news is released during late-trading hours).

3. Operational Risk

Operational risk involves potential losses from inadequate processes, systems, people, or external events, including fraud and cyberattacks. This can comprise anything from human error in data entry, technical failures in a trading platform, or system breakdowns that prevent a trade from being executed. While it might seem less prominent than market risk, it’s still a critical consideration.

4. Counterparty Risk

Counterparty risk is the risk that any party in a transaction will fail to fulfil its obligations. This is one of the most critical risks for a retail trader.

Additional types of risk worth noting include inflation risk (erosion of purchasing power, impacting long-term investments), political/geopolitical risk (for example, sanctions or elections causing market disruptions), systemic risk (the potential collapse of an entire financial system due to interconnected failures, often amplified by leverage and contagion), and basis risk (occurs when hedging instruments don’t perfectly correlate with the underlying asset).

How to Minimise the Risks

Risk is unavoidable, but it can be managed, which means that it can be minimised and a trader can partially protect himself or herself from it. Octa recommends applying two key principles for managing risk:

Principle 1. Maintain a reasonable amount of leverage and margin

Octa’s proprietary trading platform provides real-time updates on a trading account’s total margin usage. The platform continuously adjusts the trader’s balance to reflect the current profits and losses, allowing the trader to always see the available leverage. This feature enables monitoring the risk level at any moment, helping determine if a trader has enough room to make new trades or if he or she is approaching a dangerous level of exposure.

Principle 2. Minimise losses by setting stop-loss orders.

Octa’s proprietary trading platform features a user-friendly order interface. It allows traders to easily set stop-loss and take-profit levels before placing a trade. Additionally, traders obtain the flexibility to define these exit points using either a specific price level or a monetary value.

How to Avoid Risks

Some risks are beyond the trader’s control and are best avoided altogether. For example, a sudden glitch in a trading platform during a high-volatility event could cause a trader to lose a significant amount of money if they cannot close a position. Likewise, if your broker goes bankrupt, you face the very real possibility of losing your entire investment, regardless of how well your trades were performing. This risk is not something a trader can manage with a stop-loss order; it’s a risk trader must avoid entirely.

In this regard, Octa Broker stands out as a reliable choice. As a regulated and trusted broker since 2011, Octa offers transparent trading conditions with no hidden fees or tricks—just honest, straightforward trading. Octa’s commitment to reliability is evident, among other things, in fast withdrawals, as confirmed by numerous positive trader reviews on independent platforms. By choosing Octa, traders can minimise avoidable risks and focus on profitable opportunities, knowing their counterparty is stable and client-focused.

In conclusion, risk is the shadow side of opportunity in financial markets and trading. By partnering with reliable brokers like Octa and understanding risk types and risk management techniques, individuals can navigate these waters with greater confidence and success.

Disclaimer: This article does not contain or constitute investment advice or recommendations and does not consider your investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Any actions taken based on this content are at your sole discretion and risk—Octa does not accept any liability for any resulting losses or consequences.

Octa is an international broker that has been providing online trading services worldwide since 2011. It offers commission-free access to financial markets and various services used by clients from 180 countries who have opened more than 61 million trading accounts. To help its clients reach their investment goals, Octa offers free educational webinars, articles, and analytical tools.

The company is involved in a comprehensive network of charitable and humanitarian initiatives, including improving educational infrastructure and funding short-notice relief projects to support local communities.

Since its foundation, Octa has won more than 100 awards, including the ‘Most Reliable Broker Global 2024’ award from Global Forex Awards and the ‘Best Mobile Trading Platform 2024’ award from Global Brand Magazine.

1. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/risk_1?q=risk ↑