Minimise the risk

It may sound obvious, but investing in high-quality shares and managed funds can reduce the risk of a major loss or margin call. That's why you should consider seeing a financial adviser before choosing investments. Read more about why you should seek advice in our 'Investment Basics' section.

Borrow less than your total loan limit. Limiting the amount you borrow ensures you can easily meet your regular interest payments and cope with any sudden financial emergencies. Learn more about loan limits and how much you can borrow.

Regularly paying your loan interest helps to stop your loan balance from increasing. Not only does this reduce the risk of a margin call, it gives you the flexibility to invest more money if an attractive opportunity crops up. Re-investing distributions, or crediting them against your loan, also helps to reduce your loan balance. Read more about interest payments.

Keep track of your margin loan. Consider and plan an appropriate personal strategy that you can rely on in the event of a margin call.

To track your BT margin loan, you can check your BT loan balance 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through our website. Check our online services.

Be aware of timing. Mistiming can add to the risk of your margin loan. The timing of your dividend and distribution payments may not coincide with your interest payments.

A fall in the market between the time you place an order and settlement could mean the trade does not settle because you have insufficient funds available.

At any time, the lending ratio assigned to a security may change - it may even be reduced to zero. This can result in a margin call or the cancellation of transactions. Find out more about a margin call.