Margin Financing
What collateral is eligible for margin financing?
Listed equities, broad-market and sector ETFs and developed-market government bonds, each at a published advance rate.
Financing is available against a defined universe of listed instruments, each carrying a published advance rate.
| Asset class | Advance rate |
|---|---|
| Developed-market government bonds | 85% |
| Broad-market ETFs | 75% |
| Large-cap index constituents | 70% |
| Sector and thematic ETFs | 60% |
| Other eligible listed equities | 50% |
What is excluded
Leveraged and inverse ETFs, sub-investment-grade credit, and equities that are illiquid, suspended or subject to a corporate event. These are excluded because the firm’s exposure is not today’s price but the price achievable on exit in a stressed market.
Why your capacity may be lower than the table suggests
Almost always concentration. Where a single holding represents an outsized share of the portfolio, the excess above the concentration threshold receives a reduced advance rate or none at all. Two portfolios of identical value can therefore support very different facilities — a diversified book of twenty index constituents supports substantially more borrowing than the same value held in one or two names.
Advance rates can change
They track liquidity and volatility, both of which move. A holding can be re-banded after a corporate event or a sustained fall in traded volume, which reduces your capacity immediately.