How To Start Forex Trading ... The Smart Way
(Forex Trading For Beginners)
First, a confession: It took me many years to figure out how to start Forex trading the RIGHT way, partly because most of the early "mentors" I learned from were not actually profitable traders.
You see, back then - as is still the case today - most Forex "teachers" are really just marketers who know all the theory of trading, but can't make money under real market conditions.
So if you're thinking about how to start Forex trading, the first thing you should do is check your learning sources.
In particular, look for someone with a 3rd-party verified track record. This is the ONLY way to know if you're learning from a real trader, or a charlatan.
This is the most important point that new traders ignore, and they end up learning about beautiful theories that don't work in practice.
So before we get started, here's the performance record on one of my accounts with 500+ trades:
Now with that out of the way, let's get to the topic at hand.
How to start Forex trading (the smart way)
1) Take the free Babypips Forex trading course
First, go through the Babypips school and get acquainted with the basics of the Forex trading.
Important concepts to learn:
- Forex trading basics
- Currency pairs
- Trading leverage and Trading Margin
- Bid-Ask spread
- Trading session hours
- Market, stop and limit orders
- How brokers work
- How to avoid scam brokers
- Keeping a trading journal
- Currency pairs
- Basic technical analysis
- Support/Resistance
- Price trends
- Price momentum
- Price volatility
- Support/Resistance
- Basic fundamental analysis
- Economic indicators
- Basic monetary policy
- Interest rates
- Economic indicators
- Risk management
- Position sizing
- Currency pair correlations
- Position sizing
This information alone won't be enough for you to trade profitably, but it's a decent place to start.
The next step is to pick a broker to trade with.
2) Choose a regulated Forex trading broker
The retail Forex trading industry has cleaned up over the years, and the number of scam brokers has dropped significantly.
This being said, there are still Forex brokers out there that are quite dubious.
So as much as possible, follow these guidelines when choosing a broker:
- Regulation: make sure your broker is regulated by the relevant authority in your country
- Australia: Australian Securities and Investment Commission
- Canada: British Columbia Securities Commission ; Ontario Securities Commission
- Denmark: Danish FSA
- Hong Kong: Securities and Futures Commission
- Japan: Financial Services Agency
- Sweden: Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority
- United Kingdom: Financial Conduct Authority
- United States: National Futures Association ; Commodities and Futures Trading Commission
- Broker capitalization and length of time in business
- I suggest trading with a broker that has more than $50 million USD in net capital, and that has been in operation for at least 5 years
- I suggest trading with a broker that has more than $50 million USD in net capital, and that has been in operation for at least 5 years
- Avoid brokers that are solely incorporated in the Caribbean countries, such as:
- Belize
- British Virgin Islands
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Cayman Islands
- These countries have weak customer protection laws that favor the broker over you. In the event of a dispute between you and the broker, you'll have practically no recourse.
- Belize
Personally, I trade with IC Markets and am happy with their services.
Other brokers worth considering are Oanda, FXCM and Interactive Brokers.
Get a demo account from the broker and play around with the trading platform(s) it offers. Learn how to open/modify/close trade orders, how to navigate the price charts, and how to apply technical indicators.
Since you don't lose money on a demo account, you won't be penalized for making mistakes (such as clicking the 'sell' button instead of the 'buy' button). It's a good way to get used to the operational process of trading.
3) Start Testing Trading Systems
Now that you are acquainted with (A) the basics of Forex trading, (B) have access to a demo account, and (C) are familiar with how the trading platform works, the next step is look for a trading system to test.
Check out these forums for ideas:
Pick out 1 or 2 trading systems that resonate with you, and start trading with (i.e. testing) them on your demo account, with these guidelines:
- Keep testing each system for at least 100 trades before deciding if it's worth spending more time on
- Follow my 1 weird trick
That's it.
Keep doing this for the next 2 - 3 years and you'll start getting a better idea of what it takes to be a good trader.
Alternatively, you can shortcut the learning process by taking the Positive Expectancy course.
Next: Check my best blog posts