Thread: Contest Rules

1. CONTEST ENTRY AND ELIGIBILITY
The contest is open to new and existing FXCM Micro clients. Only one entry is allowed per account holder or trader. There is no registration form or entry fee required. All live FXCM Micro accounts with a minimum equity of $500 at the beginning of the month are automatically entered in the contest.

2. CONTEST TRADING PERIOD
For the purposes of the contest, the trading month officially begins at 5:00 PM New York time on the last day of the previous month and ends at 5:00 PM New York time on the last day of the month itself.

3. CONTEST OPT-OUT
Eligible traders are not required to participate in the trading contest. Traders can choose to opt-out from the contest at any time before, during or after the contest. Without opting out, you are subject to the contest rules. Opting out will result in disqualification from the contest. To opt-out, please contact us via e-mail at: info@fxcmmicro.com

4. DETERMINATION OF THE WINNERS
Each month the top three traders will be determined as follows: The FXCM Micro account will be marked to market at 5:00 PM New York time on the last day of the previous month and 5:00 PM New York time on the last day of the month in order to determine the Entrant's beginning equity and ending equity respectively. For the purpose of the contest results, the percentage gain will be calculated using the following formula:

100% * (Ending equity - Beginning equity - Deposits) / (Beginning equity + Deposits)

The prize winners will be the three traders with the highest percentage gain. (For help with calculating your percentage gain, please click here (How do I calculate my return for the King of the Micro Contest?))

5. COMMUNICATION DELAYS
FXCM shall not be made liable for any delays in the acceptance or transmission of orders due to a breakdown or failure of transmission or communication facilities, or for any other cause beyond their reasonable control or anticipation.

6. CONTEST TRADING REGULATIONS
The purpose of the contest rules is to ensure that every trader will have the same opportunity for success as other traders. FXCM reserves the right to amend, waive or interpret any rule in its sole discretion when doing so would be in the best interests of the contest.

7. NUMBER OF TRADES
Contestants must place a minimum of 10 trades (number of tickets) during the month. Failure to comply with this rule will result in disqualification.

8. USE OF CONTEST FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES
To be eligible for participation in the King of the Micro Contest, traders must be willing to let their name, winner's survey and trading record for the month be published and/or distributed by FXCM, its agents, and successors during and after the life of the contest. Personal information such as, but not limited to, your address and account number(s) will not be published. If the trader chooses not to release his/her trading record he/she must opt-out of the contest, hence, he/she will be disqualified from the contest.

9. GROUNDS FOR DISQUALIFICATION
Withdrawing funds from your account or receiving a Margin Call will disqualify you from the contest for that month. Further, FXCM has sole discretion to disqualify any Entrant found in violation of the rules of the contest or if FXCM determines that such action is reasonable or necessary.

10. POSTPONEMENT OR CANCELLATION
FXCM reserves the right to extend the trading period, to postpone the starting date until after the first of each month, or to cancel the contest if FXCM, in it its sole discretion, determines that such action is reasonable or necessary. FXCM, in its sole discretion, may reject any Entrant's application for any reason.

11. TAXES
If required by law, FXCM will furnish an IRS 1099 Form to winners of the contest for the cash value of the prize for the tax year in which the prize was won. Winners are solely responsible for all federal, state, and local taxes on the prize, and FXCM shall have the right, but not the obligation, to make any deductions and withholdings that FXCM deems necessary or desirable under applicable federal, state, and local tax laws, rules, regulations, codes, or ordinances.

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100% * (Ending equity - Beginning equity - Deposits) / (Beginning equity + Deposits)

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Dear Sir;

I had follow all the contect rules with USD 500 on the first day of the month..Until now i generate more than 400% from the initial margin..But l saw the weekly winner my name is not there...could you please check my status, am i still in the contest ..?? account : xxxxx

Originally Posted by arzatelbiz

Dear Sir;

I had follow all the contect rules with USD 500 on the first day of the month..Until now i generate more than 400% from the initial margin..But l saw the weekly winner my name is not there...could you please check my status, am i still in the contest ..?? account : xxxxx

Hi arzatelbiz,

For your security, I have deleted your account number from your post. Please, do not post your account number or other personal information on the forum. I have forwarded your question onto my colleagues who run the King of the Micro reports and someone will respond to your email address within 1 business day.


Suhail

Hi Suhail,

I would like to know the start day of the KOM of May.
Is it on the 2 May 17:15 or 30 April 17:00 New York time ?

If start on 2 May,is it means i can withdrawal or deposit between the above period to enter the KOM of May ?

Thanks

Originally Posted by hk_boy

Hi Suhail,

I would like to know the start day of the KOM of May.
Is it on the 2 May 17:15 or 30 April 17:00 New York time ?

If start on 2 May,is it means i can withdrawal or deposit between the above period to enter the KOM of May ?

Thanks

Hi hk_boy,

For the purposes for forex trading, 5pm New York time is considered the start of the next day, since it is already morning of the next day in Asia. That means, in order to qualify for the May contest, a trading account must have an equity of at least $500 at 5pm New York time on April 30th.

Any withdrawals during May would disqualify a trading account from the contest that month.


Suhail

Originally Posted by Suhail A.

Hi hk_boy,

For the purposes for forex trading, 5pm New York time is considered the start of the next day, since it is already morning of the next day in Asia. That means, in order to qualify for the May contest, a trading account must have an equity of at least $500 at 5pm New York time on April 30th.

Any withdrawals during May would disqualify a trading account from the contest that month.


Suhail

Hi Suhail,

From 30th April 5pm to 2nd May 5pm the trading market already closed.
Is it means the first trading day is still 30th April 5pm New York time ?

Please note that the beginning equity is not the same for the above times if your account have
floating P/L.

Originally Posted by hk_boy

Hi Suhail,

From 30th April 5pm to 2nd May 5pm the trading market already closed.
Is it means the first trading day is still 30th April 5pm New York time ?

Please note that the beginning equity is not the same for the above times if your account have
floating P/L.

Hi hk_boy,

The new month starts at 5pm New York time on April 30th, so that is when the beginning equity is checked for the purpose of the King of the Micro contest.


Suhail

hi,,just i want to ask that ,,how can i make a withdraw without effecting on my contest ? at the last day of month for examlpe or when?
thanks alot

Originally Posted by aymankhlifat

hi,,just i want to ask that ,,how can i make a withdraw without effecting on my contest ? at the last day of month for examlpe or when?
thanks alot

Hi aymankhlifat,

To win the King of the Micro contest in any given month, you must not have any withdrawals appear in your combined account statement for that month.

If you are trying to compete for the April contest, then don't make your withdrawal until May 1st. If you are trying to qualify for the May contest, then make your withdrawal now, so that it is processed in April and does not appear in your May reports.


Suhail

Originally Posted by Suhail A.

(Ending ledger balance - Beginning ledger balance - Deposits) / (Beginning ledger balance + Deposits)

I have read the discussion about the Feb results where some people are not confenced that the calculation method was right since the people that add deposit during the contest will have unfairly more advantage than the people that only use the starting balance. I cannot agree more, however, the newly corrected formula is not the solution since at the start of the month if trader profitably triple or double his balance and then add a new deposit will loose the percentages he made earlier. Not only this, the percentage that he loose will depend on the amount that he deposits. Look at the following two similar
examples with only a different intermediate deposit.

1) A trader had a starting balance of $500 which he profitably doubled it before he added $1000 during the contest and again he doubled his account to have an ending balance of $4000 before the end of the month.

By the old calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / 500 = 500%
By the newly modified calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / (500 + 1000) = 166.7%

2) A trader had a starting balance of $500 which he profitably doubled it before he added $4000 during the contest and again he doubled his account to have an ending balance of $10000 before the end of the month.

By the old calculation: [10000 - 500 - 4000] / 500 = 1100%
By the newly modified calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / (500 + 1000) = 122.2%

Both examples show the unfairness of the old and the newly modified formulae. The old one tends to increase the percentage with increasing the deposit while the newly one tends to decrease the percentage with increasing the deposit.

To get rid of both problems, we have to normalize the results before and after the the added balance. Another way is normalizing the result after each trade and have the summation of all percentages and this will be the total percentage. Both ways yeild the same result. So we will use the first one and apply it to the previously used examples.

Example 1)
Begining balance was $500 and it was doubled before adding the new deposit:

A = (1000 - 500) / 500 = 100%

The trader added $1000 and profitably doubled his account:
Before the trader deposit $1000, he has $1000 in his account - the begining balance and the profit. His balance became $2000. Since he doubled his account again that means he ended up with $4000. This gives;

B = (4000 - 2000)/ (2000) = 100%

A + B = 200%

Same done for example 2)

Begining balance was $500 and it was doubled before adding the new deposit:

A = (1000 - 500) / 500 = 100%

The trader added $4000 and profitably doubled his account:
Before the trader deposit $4000, he has $1000 in his account - the begining balance and the profit. His balance became $5000. Since he doubled his account again that means he ended up with $10000. This gives;

B = (10000 - 5000)/ (5000) = 100%

A + B = 200%

Now everybody has a fair chance to win. Since we are dealing with the risk and a normalized account, no one will benefit or penalized by adding more money. The method also applies even if trader have depreciate his account before or after adding the new deposit.

Originally Posted by fxcruiser

I have read the discussion about the Feb results where some people are not confenced that the calculation method was right since the people that add deposit during the contest will have unfairly more advantage than the people that only use the starting balance. I cannot agree more, however, the newly corrected formula is not the solution since at the start of the month if trader profitably triple or double his balance and then add a new deposit will loose the percentages he made earlier. Not only this, the percentage that he loose will depend on the amount that he deposits. Look at the following two similar
examples with only a different intermediate deposit.

1) A trader had a starting balance of $500 which he profitably doubled it before he added $1000 during the contest and again he doubled his account to have an ending balance of $4000 before the end of the month.

By the old calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / 500 = 500%
By the newly modified calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / (500 + 1000) = 166.7%

2) A trader had a starting balance of $500 which he profitably doubled it before he added $4000 during the contest and again he doubled his account to have an ending balance of $10000 before the end of the month.

By the old calculation: [10000 - 500 - 4000] / 500 = 1100%
By the newly modified calculation: [4000 - 500 - 1000] / (500 + 1000) = 122.2%

Both examples show the unfairness of the old and the newly modified formulae. The old one tends to increase the percentage with increasing the deposit while the newly one tends to decrease the percentage with increasing the deposit.

To get rid of both problems, we have to normalize the results before and after the the added balance. Another way is normalizing the result after each trade and have the summation of all percentages and this will be the total percentage. Both ways yeild the same result. So we will use the first one and apply it to the previously used examples.

Example 1)
Begining balance was $500 and it was doubled before adding the new deposit:

A = (1000 - 500) / 500 = 100%

The trader added $1000 and profitably doubled his account:
Before the trader deposit $1000, he has $1000 in his account - the begining balance and the profit. His balance became $2000. Since he doubled his account again that means he ended up with $4000. This gives;

B = (4000 - 2000)/ (2000) = 100%

A + B = 200%

Same done for example 2)

Begining balance was $500 and it was doubled before adding the new deposit:

A = (1000 - 500) / 500 = 100%

The trader added $4000 and profitably doubled his account:
Before the trader deposit $4000, he has $1000 in his account - the begining balance and the profit. His balance became $5000. Since he doubled his account again that means he ended up with $10000. This gives;

B = (10000 - 5000)/ (5000) = 100%

A + B = 200%

Now everybody has a fair chance to win. Since we are dealing with the risk and a normalized account, no one will benefit or penalized by adding more money. The method also applies even if trader have depreciate his account before or after adding the new deposit.

Hi fxcruiser, welcome to the Micro Forums. Thanks for the suggestion. I'll pass it on to the team that does the King of the Micro contest calculations.

Everyone else, please post your thoughts. This contest is for you. We want to make it as fair as possible for everyone.


Suhail

Hello,

If I deposit money today by CreditCard, will I still be in the May KOTM?

Thanks!

Originally Posted by ZlyDotyk

Hello,

If I deposit money today by CreditCard, will I still be in the May KOTM?

Thanks!

The below message of the beginning time of the KOM is from Suhail :

The new month starts at 5pm New York time on April 30th, so that is when the beginning equity is checked for the purpose of the King of the Micro contest.

Originally Posted by hk_boy

The below message of the beginning time of the KOM is from Suhail :

The new month starts at 5pm New York time on April 30th, so that is when the beginning equity is checked for the purpose of the King of the Micro contest.

Thanks hk_boy,

You are correct. In order to qualify for the May contest, your trading account equity must be at least $500 at the moment the new trading month begins which is 5pm New York time April 30th.


Suhail