Trading News

We look at the current level of participation by individual, or “retail,” traders and investors in the United States stock market.  We look at historical trends of retail investor involvement, current estimates of their market share, the impact of online trading platforms, and considers the activity of retail investors across major stock exchanges.  We’ll also […]

A variety of reinforcement learning algorithms have been explored for trading applications. Here, we look at key RL algorithms and how they apply to markets ranging from stocks and currencies to commodities and bonds.   Key Takeaways – Reinforcement Learning Algorithms for Trading RL algorithms help trading agents learn strategies that maximize returns by interacting […]

IG has introduced the BITA Artificial Intelligence US Giants Index (BAIGUI), a benchmark tracking leading US companies in the AI sector. The index offers traders exposure to firms driving AI innovation, from microprocessor development to machine learning. Key Takeaways AI Sector Exposure – The BITA AI Index includes 25 AI-focused firms like Nvidia, Palantir, and […]

Starting Monday 17 March 2025, CMC Markets facilitates post-market trading on over 80 prominent stocks, providing an additional four-hour window after US exchanges close. This comes after it introduced extended hours trading on the ‘magnificent 7 stocks’, which we reported on in January. Key Takeaways Pre-market and post-market trading is now available on 87 popular […]

Trading the financial markets is a complex undertaking that involves managing a variety of trade-offs. These trade-offs are not merely binary choices but often exist on a spectrum between two or more interests or wants and across a variety of dimensions. Accordingly, traders have to balance competing interests, resources, and strategies. Understanding these trade-offs is […]

Imagine standing in a casino with rows of slot machines, each promising different payouts. Your goal?  Maximize your winnings without knowing which machine is “hot.”  This captures the essence of Multi-Armed Bandit (MAB) problems – a framework for balancing exploration (testing uncertain options) and exploitation (leveraging known winners).  In trading, MAB methods are a capital […]

XTB has secured a securities agent license in Chile. This reinforces XTB’s commitment to growth in Latin America, unlocking new opportunities for active traders in the region. Key Takeaways XTB has received a securities agent license from Chile’s Financial Market Commission (CMF). XTB expects to start onboarding traders from Chile in the first half of […]

Trading well requires both innovation and discipline.  Markets always evolve in various ways (i.e., new types of buyers and sellers, new motivations, new strategies, new technology, new changes in the world), forcing traders to choose between adapting and going full steam ahead on what works.  Exploration allows traders to discover new opportunities, while exploitation helps […]

Private credit refers to any debt arrangement that takes place outside of traditional public lending institutions such as banks. This includes direct lending, distressed debt, mezzanine debt, and other types of specialized lending. In this article, we look at the concept and various aspects related to private credit.   Key Takeaways – Private Credit Private […]

Options, in general, give you the right, but not the obligation, to buy (call option) or sell (put option) an underlying asset (like a stock, ETF, or index) at a predetermined price (the strike price) before a specific expiration date.  This “right” comes at a cost, called the premium. Where LEAPS and short-term options diverge […]