Trading from a phone
What you learn in 3 minutesThis lesson shows what you can and cannot see on a phone screen, and what that costs you in naira. A phone app can place the same trade as a desktop terminal, but it shows less of the chart at once, so the price you act on may be older or narrower than you think. Before you tap buy or sell, you need to know how many pips you are risking and what each pip is worth in naira.
What one pip costs on a 6-inch screen
| Step | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Instrument | EUR/USD | the pair used in this lesson |
| Price shown | 1.0850 | the quote on the phone screen |
| One pip move | 0.0001 | the fourth decimal place on EUR/USD |
| One standard lot | 100,000 units | the contract size |
| Pip value in quote currency | 10 units | 100,000 x 0.0001 |
| Pip value in naira | ₦15,400 | 10 units x ₦1,540 per unit, a rate that varies between brokers and days |
| Margin used | ₦108,500 | 1.0850 x 100,000 x ₦1,540, divided by 10, a leverage figure that varies between brokers |
The broker may round the exchange rate, charge a spread on top of the pip value, and quote a different leverage. Check the contract specification in the app before you trade.
The mistake people make here
The common mistake is to trade the same lot size on a phone as on a desktop, because the small chart hides how far the price has already moved. On a 6-inch screen you may see only the last few hours, so a 20 pip stop can look safe when the daily range is 80 pips. Instead, set your lot size from the money you are willing to lose, not from the size of the chart window. Work out the pip value in naira first, then choose the smallest lot that keeps your risk inside your plan.Check yourself
If one pip on a standard lot is ₦15,400, what is the pip value on 0.10 lots?
₦1,540, because 0.10 is one tenth of a standard lot, so 15,400 x 0.10 = 1,540.
If you risk 20 pips on 0.10 lots, how much naira is at risk?
₦30,800, because 20 x 1,540 = 30,800.
If the phone shows EUR/USD at 1.0850 and the desktop shows 1.0853, how many pips apart are they?
3 pips, because 1.0853 - 1.0850 = 0.0003, and each 0.0001 is one pip.
In Nigeria
- Regulator
- SEC Nigeria
- Money
- ₦ (NGN)
- Payment methods
- bank transfer, USSD and cards
- Instrument in examples
- EUR/USD
- Pip value on one standard lot
- 10 units of the quote currency, converted to naira at the current rate