24-Hour CFD Stock Trading FAQs
- What is 24-Hour CFD stock Trading?
- Which shares are available for 24-hour trading?
- How does pricing work during after-hours sessions?
- What are the main risks of trading outside main session?
- Will spreads and trading costs be different during the 24-hour session?
- How are orders executed during 24-hour trading?
- Will my margin requirements change for 24-hour trading?
- Can I place all the same order types (e.g., stops, limits)?
- Are there specific trading hours or maintenance periods?
- How will I know I’m trading a 24-hour market?
- How does FOREX.com ensure fair pricing when liquidity is thin?
- What happens if I hold a 24-hour CFD stock position overnight?
- Where can I read more about the risks?
This FAQ provides information about FOREX.com Canada's 24-Hour CFD stock Trading feature. It is designed to help clients understand how the product works, how pricing and execution differ from regular market hours, and what additional risks are involved.
1. What is 24-Hour CFD stock Trading?
24-Hour CFD stock Trading allows you to trade certain U.S. stock CFDs continuously from Monday 4:00 a.m. ET to Friday 5:00 p.m. ET. You can open, close, or manage positions even when U.S. exchanges such as the NYSE or NASDAQ are closed. Trading is available exclusively on the FOREX.com proprietary platform (not MT4 or MT5).
2. Which shares are available for 24-hour trading?
The list includes the 'Magnificent Seven' large-cap U.S. equities: Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL/GOOG), Meta (META), Tesla (TSLA), and NVIDIA (NVDA), as well as more than 100 additional well known names.
3. How does pricing work during after-hours sessions?
Prices for 24-hour CFDs are derived from exchange order books and alternative trading venues. Currently, between 8:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m. ET, when no exchange pricing is available, prices are sourced from approved alternative trading venues that aggregate quotes from off-exchange liquidity providers. During these periods, prices will continue to update, reflecting changes in global market sentiment and liquidity.
If liquidity becomes insufficient or price reliability falls below defined thresholds, the market may temporarily enter an “indicative state”, a protective mode in which execution is paused until pricing can be validated and is considered accurate.
4. What are the main risks of trading outside main session?
Trading outside of the main session involves risk, including:
Lower liquidity – Fewer participants can make it harder to execute trades at desired prices.
Wider spreads – Spreads may widen significantly, increasing costs.
Higher volatility – Prices can move sharply following global or company-specific news.
Off-exchange pricing – (8 p.m.–4 a.m. ET): During this period, no official exchange prices exist currently, and quotes are derived from approved liquidity providers.
Execution delays – Reduced liquidity may result in slower execution than the equivalent main session time.
Continuous exposure – Liquidations may occur overnight when official exchanges are inactive.
Full details are available in the Risk Disclosure Statement.
5. Will spreads and trading costs be different during the 24-hour session?
Yes. Spreads are typically wider during low-liquidity periods, especially when U.S. markets are closed. FOREX.com Canada does not charge additional commission for 24-hour trading, but transaction costs may increase due to spread variations. If spreads are considered too wide, trading will halt.
6. How are orders executed during 24-hour trading?
All 24-hour CFD stock trades are executed over-the-counter (OTC) directly with FOREX.com Canada as principal. Orders are filled based on prices streamed from our liquidity providers. If a market becomes indicative, execution will pause until reliable pricing resumes, and the Buy/Sell buttons will be temporarily unavailable.
7. Will my margin requirements change for 24-hour trading?
No. Margin requirements remain the minimum CIRO MMR mandate. However, since trading is continuous, margin calls or automatic liquidations may occur at any time. Clients should maintain an additional margin to reduce overnight liquidation risk.
8. Can I place all the same order types (e.g., stops, limits)?
Yes. All standard order types are available. However, due to wider spreads or volatility, orders may trigger earlier or fill at less favourable prices than during regular hours.
9. Are there specific trading hours or maintenance periods?
Trading operates continuously from Monday 4:00 a.m. ET to Friday 5:00 p.m. ET, excluding scheduled maintenance. Maintenance periods are communicated in advance on the trading platform.
10. How will I know I’m trading a 24-hour market?
On the FOREX.com platform, eligible equities display '(24 Hours)' next to their name, clearly indicating 24-hour trading availability.
11. How does FOREX.com ensure fair pricing when liquidity is thin?
Our pricing engine continuously monitors market depth and volatility to help maintain fair and reliable pricing. If price movements exceed certain thresholds or liquidity decreases, the system automatically switches to an indicative state to prevent execution on unreliable quotes. FOREX.com periodically reviews the total time markets spend in indicative mode to confirm that these protections are functioning as intended and that trading availability remains appropriate for underlying liquidity conditions.
12. What happens if I hold a 24-hour CFD stock position overnight?
Your open position remains active and fully exposed to market movements. Financing (overnight funding) continues to accrue as usual, but is applied based on a later end-of-day time of 8:00 pm ET to align with the 24-hour trading schedule. We recommend clients monitor positions regularly or use stop orders to manage exposure.
13. Where can I read more about the risks?
You can review the full details in our Customer Agreement and Risk Disclosure Statement under 'After-Hours and 24-Hour Trading Risks.