(a) Risk disclosure statement required. No banking institution may open or maintain an account for a retail forex customer for the purpose of engaging in retail forex transactions unless the banking institution has furnished the retail forex customer with a separate written disclosure statement containing only the language set forth in paragraph (d) of this section and the disclosures required by paragraphs (e), (f), and (g) of this section.
(b) Acknowledgement of risk disclosure statement required. The banking institution must receive from the retail forex customer a written acknowledgement signed and dated by the customer that the customer received and understood the written disclosure statement required by paragraph (a) of this section.
(c) Placement of risk disclosure statement. The disclosure statement may be attached to other documents as the initial page(s) of such documents and as the only material on such page(s).
(d) Content of risk disclosure statement. The language set forth in the written disclosure statement required by paragraph (a) of this section shall be as follows:
Risk Disclosure Statement
Retail forex transactions generally involve the leveraged trading of contracts denominated in foreign currency with a banking institution as your counterparty. Because of the leverage and the other risks disclosed here, you can rapidly lose all of the funds or property you give the banking institution as margin for such trading and you may lose more than you pledge as margin. You should be aware of and carefully consider the following points before determining whether such trading is appropriate for you.
(1) Trading foreign currencies is a not on a regulated market or exchange—your banking institution is your trading counterparty and has conflicting interests. The retail forex transaction you are entering into is not conducted on an interbank market, nor is it conducted on a futures exchange subject to regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The foreign currency trades you transact are trades with your banking institution as the counterparty. When you sell, the banking institution is the buyer. When you buy, the banking institution is the seller. As a result, when you lose money trading, your banking institution is making money on such trades, in addition to any fees, commissions, or spreads the banking institution may charge.
(2) Any electronic trading platform that you may use for retail foreign currency transactions with your banking institution is not a regulated exchange. It is an electronic connection for accessing your banking institution. The terms of availability of such a platform are governed only by your contract with your banking institution. Any trading platform that you may use to enter into off-exchange foreign currency transactions is only connected to your banking institution. You are accessing that trading platform only to transact with your banking institution. You are not trading with any other entities or customers of the banking institution by accessing such platform. The availability and operation of any such platform, including the consequences of the unavailability of the trading platform for any reason, is governed only by the terms of your account agreement with the banking institution.
(3) You may be able to offset or liquidate any trading positions only through your banking institution because the transactions are not made on an exchange, and your banking institution may set its own prices. Your ability to close your transactions or offset positions is limited to what your banking institution will offer to you, as there is no other market for these transactions. Your banking institution may offer any prices it wishes. Your banking institution may establish its prices by offering spreads from third party prices, but it is under no obligation to do so or to continue to do so. Your banking institution may offer different prices to different customers at any point in time on its own terms. The terms of your account agreement alone govern the obligations your banking institution has to you to offer prices and offer offset or liquidating transactions in your account and make any payments to you. The prices offered by your banking institution may or may not reflect prices available elsewhere at any exchange, interbank, or other market for foreign currency.
(4) Paid solicitors may have undisclosed conflicts. The banking institution may compensate introducing brokers for introducing your account in ways that are not disclosed to you. Such paid solicitors are not required to have, and may not have, any special expertise in trading, and may have conflicts of interest based on the method by which they are compensated. You should thoroughly investigate the manner in which all such solicitors are compensated and be very cautious in granting any person or entity authority to trade on your behalf. You should always consider obtaining dated written confirmation of any information you are relying on from your banking institution in making any trading or account decisions.
(5) Retail forex transactions are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
(6) Retail forex transactions are not a deposit in, or guaranteed by, a banking institution.
(7) Retail forex transactions are subject to investment risks, including possible loss of all amounts invested.
Finally, you should thoroughly investigate any statements by any banking institution that minimize the importance of, or contradict, any of the terms of this risk disclosure. Such statements may indicate sales fraud.
This brief statement cannot, of course, disclose all the risks and other aspects of trading off-exchange foreign currency with a banking institution. I hereby acknowledge that I have received and understood this risk disclosure statement.
Date
Signature of Customer
(e)
(1) Disclosure of profitable accounts ratio. Immediately following the language set forth in paragraph (d) of this section, the statement required by paragraph (a) of this section shall include, for each of the most recent four calendar quarters during which the banking institution maintained retail forex customer accounts:
(i) The total number of retail forex customer accounts maintained by the banking institution over which the banking institution does not exercise investment discretion;
(ii) The percentage of such accounts that were profitable for retail forex customer accounts during the quarter; and
(iii) The percentage of such accounts that were not profitable for retail forex customer accounts during the quarter.
(2) Statement of profitable trades.
(i) The banking institution's statement of profitable trades shall include the following legend: Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.
(ii) Each banking institution shall provide, upon request, to any retail forex customer or prospective retail forex customer the total number of retail forex accounts maintained by the banking institution for which the banking institution does not exercise investment discretion, the percentage of such accounts that were profitable, and the percentage of such accounts that were not profitable for each calendar quarter during the most recent five-year period during which the banking institution maintained such accounts.
(f) Disclosure of fees and other charges. Immediately following the language required by paragraph (e) of this section, the statement required by paragraph (a) of this section shall include:
(1) The amount of any fee, charge, spread, or commission that the banking institution may impose on the retail forex customer in connection with a retail forex account or retail forex transaction;
(2) An explanation of how the banking institution will determine the amount of such fees, charges, spreads, or commissions; and
(3) The circumstances under which the banking institution may impose such fees, charges, spreads, or commissions.
(g) Set-off. Immediately following the language required by paragraph (f) of this section, the statement required by paragraph (a) of this section shall include:
(1) A statement as to whether the banking institution will or will not retain the right to set off obligations of the retail forex customer arising from the customer's retail forex transactions, including margin calls and losses, against the customer's other assets held by the banking institution;
(2) If the banking institution states that it reserves its right to set off obligations of the retail forex customer arising from the customer's retail forex transactions against the customer's other assets, the banking institution must receive from the retail forex customer a written acknowledgement signed and dated by the customer that the customer received and understood the written disclosure required by paragraph (g)(1) of this section.
(h) Future disclosure requirements. If, with regard to a retail forex customer, the banking institution changes any fee, charge, or commission required to be disclosed under paragraph (f) of this section, then the banking institution shall mail or deliver to the retail forex customer a notice of the changes at least 15 days prior to the effective date of the change.
(i) Form of disclosure requirements. The disclosures required by this section shall be clear and conspicuous and designed to call attention to the nature and significance of the information provided.
(j) Other disclosure requirements unaffected. This section does not relieve a banking institution from any other disclosure obligation it may have under applicable law.
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