What is Cross Margin?
A margin mode where your entire account balance is shared as collateral across all open positions — improving liquidation resistance but increasing interconnected risk.
In cross margin mode, your full available balance acts as collateral for all open positions simultaneously. This gives each position more buffer against liquidation — but it also means one large losing position can drain margin from all your others.
How it differs from isolated margin:
| Feature | Isolated | Cross |
|---|---|---|
| Collateral per trade | Fixed allocation | Full account balance |
| Max loss on one trade | Allocated margin only | Entire account balance |
| Liquidation resistance | Lower | Higher |
| Risk containment | Per-trade | Account-wide |
When cross margin makes sense:
The risk: One catastrophic losing trade in cross margin can trigger a cascade — its losses drain the margin protecting other positions, which then liquidate too. This is how traders lose entire accounts in a single session.
Recommendation: Use isolated margin by default. Reserve cross margin for specific hedging strategies once you understand the mechanics.