What Are the Restricted and Prohibited Trading Strategies at Pivex?

Modified on Sat, 7 Jun at 1:31 AM

At Pivex, we focus on consistent performance, responsible risk management, and sustainable trading. To ensure fair trading practices, some strategies are not permitted as they expose traders to unnecessary risks or do not align with the skill-based trading that we encourage.

Below is a detailed explanation of these restricted and prohibited strategies, including definitions, examples, and the reasons behind these restrictions.

Allowed Strategies at Pivex

[Allowed] Scalping

Definition	Short-term trading strategy aiming to profit from small price movements. Trades are opened and closed within seconds or minutes.
Example	A trader buys EUR/USD at 1.2000 and sells at 1.2005 after holding the position for 1 minute, repeating the process throughout the day.
Why This is Allowed	Scaling is allowed, but ultra-fast scalping (within seconds) and tick scalping (where a tick scalper uses automated trading algorithms to scalp ticks on instruments) are prohibited

[Allowed] Swing Trading

Definition	Medium-term strategy to capture price movements over several days or weeks.
Example	Buying GBP/USD at 1.3500 and holding for 3 days, selling at 1.3700 for a 200-pip profit.
Why This is Allowed	Swing trading is permitted because it reflects well-researched, balanced trading, using technical and fundamental analysis to make decisions.

[Allowed] News Trading (Restricted)

Definition

Trading based on market-moving news events, such as economic reports or central bank announcements.

Example

A trader buys GBP/USD after a positive UK jobs report, expecting a price rise.

Why This is Restricted

Trading during major news events is allowed, but there is a 10-minute restriction. You cannot place trades during the first 10 minutes following the news release.

Reason: Short-term volatility during news can cause trades that do not reflect the trader’s analytical ability. Profits from these events may be excluded from the Challenge review.

Prohibited Strategies at Pivex

[Not Allowed] Ultra-Fast Scalping

Definition	Trading where positions are opened and closed within milliseconds or seconds, typically using automated systems.
Example	An algorithm executes 1,000 trades per second to capture micro-pip movements.
Why This is Prohibited	Places strain on market liquidity and violates fair trading practices. It is not aligned with sustainable, manual trading approaches.

[Not Allowed] Hedging

Definition	Opening multiple positions on the same asset in opposite directions to minimize risk.
Example	Buying EUR/USD at 1.2000 and simultaneously selling EUR/USD at the same price.
Why This is Prohibited	Hedging does not reflect real trading skill and is essentially risk avoidance, not risk management.

[Not Allowed] Grid Trading

Definition	Placing multiple buy and sell orders at predefined price intervals, forming a grid structure.
Example	Setting buy orders every 20 pips above the market price and sell orders every 20 pips below.
Why This is Prohibited	Often results in high-risk exposure and overleveraging, especially in volatile markets.

[Not Allowed] Martingale Strategy

Definition	Doubling your position size after each loss to recover previous losses with a single profitable trade.
Example	Losing $100 and then doubling the next trade to $200, continuing to increase until a win.
Why This is Prohibited	Relies on unlimited capital and significantly increases risk exposure, often leading to rapid account depletion.

[Not Allowed] High-Frequency Trading (HFT)

Definition	Using algorithms to execute a large number of trades within fractions of a second.
Example	A trading bot places thousands of orders per minute to capitalize on small price movements.
Why This is Prohibited	HFT strategies are based on speed rather than trading skill, creating market instability and providing an unfair advantage.

[Not Allowed] EAs/Bots (Expert Advisors and Trading Bots)

Definition	Automated trading software that executes trades based on preset criteria without human intervention.
Example	An EA opens trades when a moving average crossover is detected.
Why This is Prohibited	Automated trading does not demonstrate the trader’s individual skills or decision-making ability.

[Not Allowed] Copy Trading

Definition	Automatically replicating trades made by another trader.
Example	Subscribing to a signal provider and mirroring their trades in your account.
Why This is Prohibited	Copy trading does not reflect personal trading skills, making it incompatible with the Pivex Trading Challenge.

[Not Allowed] Stack Trading

Definition	Placing multiple orders in the same direction without closing previous ones, effectively layering trades to increase exposure.
Example	Opening a buy order for EUR/USD, then adding more buy orders at the same or similar price levels without closing the initial position.
Why This is Prohibited	This practice artificially increases risk and does not reflect strategic, calculated trading decisions.

Why These Rules Matter:
Pivex aims to promote skill-based trading with a focus on responsibility and sustainability. Prohibited strategies often involve high risk, automation, or manipulation, which goes against the principles of consistent, manual trading that we encourage.

If you are uncertain about whether a specific strategy is allowed, please contact our support team for guidance. We’re here to help you develop safe and effective trading practices.