What Is a Swap in Trading and How Does It Work?

Think of swap in trading as a small interest fee that you either pay or earn when you keep a position open overnight. This applies at Pivex and is relevant for all instruments, including forex, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies.

Whether you pay or receive a swap depends on the interest rate difference between the two assets in your trade (e.g., two currencies in a forex pair). If the currency you’re buying has a higher interest rate than the one you’re selling, you may earn a positive swap. If it’s lower, you’ll pay a negative swap. Swap fees are small but compounding costs that reduce your equity and may impact your performance metrics at Pivex, especially drawdowns and profitability. That’s why using stop-losses, smart trade duration, and asset selection is crucial to limit swap exposure.

Why Does the Swap Value Vary?

Swap rates vary for each instrument and are influenced by:

• Interest rate differentials between currencies
• Liquidity provider (LP) pricing
• Market conditions and volatility

Swap rates are not fixed — they are determined and updated by the LP and are visible on the Match-Trader platform under the instrument’s specifications. The values shown are usually quoted in points per lot, but the actual fee is calculated using a formula that takes your lot size and duration into account. 

You can view essential information about each trading instrument by clicking the information icon (ⓘ) next to the asset symbol. For example, the BTCUSD Instrument Details Panel (see screenshot) shows the swap rates highlighted, which represent the overnight fees for holding positions.

Example of How a Swap Works:

• Symbol: USDJPY
• Position: Buy
• Lot Size: 1.00
• Displayed Swap Rate: -19.5912
• Held Overnight: 1 day

→ This results in an actual swap fee of around - $12.34, not -$19.59, because the final value depends on the lot size and asset price. This is handled internally using predefined multipliers depending on the instrument class on the MatchTrader(forex, indices, commodities, crypto).

So, the swap rate you see on the platform is just a base value — your actual charge or credit is automatically calculated and applied once the trade is held overnight.

What Is a Triple (3x) Swap?

A triple swap is applied to cover weekend days when markets are closed but positions are still open. This is industry standard across all brokers and platforms.

• Forex & Commodities: 3x swap charged on Wednesday
• Indices & Crypto: 3x swap charged on Friday
• Match-Trader platform: To simplify, all assets on Pivex receive 3x swap on Wednesdays
  

This means if you hold a position overnight on a Wednesday, the swap charge or credit will be tripled to account for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Summary:

• Swap is a cost or reward for holding trades overnight
• It is based on interest rate differences and market factors
• You can view live swap rates in the instrument specifications on Match-Trader
• A triple swap applies on Wednesdays for all instruments
• Actual swap charges depend on lot size, symbol, and duration held
  

Plan your positions carefully and always factor in swap fees when holding trades longer than a day. If you need help understanding the swap for a specific asset, our support team is happy to assist.