Short selling

Short selling is selling a borrowed share to buy it back cheaper. The loss is open-ended if the price rises, the borrow costs a fee, and when lenders run out the stock is hard to borrow and squeezable. A cash-settled contract needs no borrow; one short, start to finish, and funding shows how crowded it is.

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In the help centreSee the order types available on Mochatrade
  • Hard to borrowA hard-to-borrow stock is one where lenders have few shares left, so the borrow fee jumps and shorts can be recalled.…
  • Long and short positionA long position profits when the price rises; a short position profits when it falls. On a contract on the price…
  • Bid-ask spreadThe bid-ask spread is the gap between the best price to sell (bid) and the best price to buy (ask). Buy at the ask…
  • Short squeezeA short squeeze is a fast rise forced by short sellers buying back to cap losses, which pushes the price higher and…
  • Short interestShort interest is the number of a stock's shares sold short and not yet bought back, published twice a month by FINRA.…
  • Perpetual futuresPerpetual futures are contracts that track an asset's price with no expiry date. Expiry is what pulls a normal future…

Educational content only. Not investment advice. Leveraged products magnify losses as well as gains.

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