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Reference library

Trading glossary

Every term a UK trader is likely to meet, defined in one or two sentences without jargon. 300 entries across 10 categories, from the basics of a pip through to the regulatory language that decides how your money is protected.

Each definition is written by the research desk rather than lifted from a broker's help centre, and each term has its own page with related reading and the brokers it matters to.

Use the category jump links or the A to Z below. Terms that carry money implications — margin close-out, negative balance protection, segregation — link straight through to the regulation hub so you can see how the rule works in practice.

On this page

What's on this page

Start with the category you are working in: forex basics for market mechanics, orders and execution for the platform language, risk management for sizing, and regulation for the rules that decide what happens to your money when something goes wrong.

Every term links to a dedicated page with a fuller explanation, related terms and the practical reason it matters when choosing a broker.

CRWritten and maintained by Callum Reid, Senior Markets Editor·Last reviewed 1 July 2026·Fact checked against the FCA register

How to use this glossary

A glossary is only useful if it answers the question you actually had. Ours is written for the moment you meet a term in the middle of something else: a broker's fee table, a platform setting, a margin email. Each definition therefore states what the term means and then what it changes for you.

Where a term has a UK-specific meaning — spread betting tax treatment, FSCS eligibility, the retail leverage caps — the definition uses the UK rule rather than a generic international one. That distinction matters, because most of the trading material online is written for markets with very different consumer protections.

  • Definitions are one to two sentences, so you can scan rather than read
  • Terms are grouped by the job they do, not alphabetically alone
  • Regulatory terms link through to the full explanation of the rule
  • Every entry has its own page for deeper reading and related terms

Risk warning

CFDs and spread bets are leveraged products and the majority of retail accounts lose money. Figures on this page are researched from firm documentation and live accounts, but pricing, funding routes and account terms change without notice. Check the broker's own terms and the Financial Services Register before you deposit, and never risk money you cannot afford to lose.