With a so-called product intervention, the Bafin wants to protect German investors more against the risk of loss of risky investment products.

As was the case in 2017 for contracts for difference, which can be used to speculate on price differences with comparatively little capital, she now wants to completely prohibit the marketing, distribution and sale of futures contracts with additional payment obligations.

Martin Hock

Editor in Business.

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Additional payment obligations in derivatives trading arise from the fact that the full price of the value on whose price is speculated does not have to be paid, but the broker basically grants a loan for which the purchased product serves as security.

However, if the price of the underlying develops contrary to speculation, the investor's outstanding balance increases.

The broker can then request an increase in the deposit or sell the product to cover losses.

The lower the down payment, the more products investors can buy, but the higher their debt to the broker.

In highly volatile market situations, these products could result in unlimited losses, according to Bafin.

This is the case when speculating on falling prices, since these can theoretically rise indefinitely, but they can only fall to zero.

Small investors could lose far more than their invested capital in the speculation and in the past would have had to pay six-digit euro amounts as additional payments.

After she banned the so-called Contracts for Difference (CFD) with additional payment obligations, she is now observing that futures contracts with additional payment obligations are increasingly being marketed to private customers, especially in the form of mini and micro products that are specially tailored to small investors with small investment sums.

With its measure, BaFin now wants to ensure that the loss of private customers, as with CFDs, will in future be limited to the amount invested.

"As then, we also welcome the Bafin's measure in the interest of private investors, whose protection has always been a top priority for the association," says Rafael Neustadt, CEO of the CFD association.

"The ban at the time undoubtedly made CFDs an even better product - which can also be seen in the significant increase in demand for contracts for difference since then." who are able to decide for themselves whether they want to act with or without an obligation to make additional payments.

Therefore, the association continues to call for the introduction of a new category of semi-professional investors.

Comments on the planned measure can be made up until March 17th.