EBC Leverage (2026): 500:1 Standard, Ultra Leverage, Temporary Cuts and Stop Out

Short answer: EBC’s help centre lists 500:1 as the maximum leverage on both the Standard and Professional accounts (source). Caps are lower on some products: 100:1 on energy and indices, 50:1 on exotic pairs and 5:1 on US stock and ETF CFDs. In specific countries and regions, EBC also offers Ultra Leverage of 1:2000 and 1:Unlimited to small accounts (source). The stop out level is 30% on both accounts, except under Ultra Leverage where the stop out is equity below zero.

EBC leverage figures. Source: EBC website and help centre, October 2026.

Standard leverage by product

The help centre’s “What is leverage” article lists default maximums and margin rates (source):

Product	Contract size	Leverage	Margin rate
Major currency pairs	100,000	500:1	0.20%
USDHKD, USDNOK, USDPLN, USDSEK, USDSGD, USDTRY, USDZAR	100,000	50:1	2.00%
Gold (XAUUSD)	100	500:1	0.20%
Silver (XAGUSD)	5,000	500:1	0.20%
Brent and WTI oil, natural gas	1,000 to 10,000	100:1	1.00% to 2.00%
Index CFDs (for example DAX, S&P 500, Nasdaq-100)	10 or 100	100:1	1.00%
US stock CFDs	1	5:1	20.00%
ETF CFDs	1	5:1	20.00%

EBC’s leverage page says EUR/USD and gold “typically offer up to 500x” and that exotic pairs such as USD/ZAR may only have 50x (source). The account comparison also shows 500:1 as the maximum for both accounts. EBC states that it does not set a fixed initial leverage: when you open an account, you choose a ratio within the range offered.

Energy changed on 6 August 2026. EBC revised the rules for XBRUSD, XNGUSD and XTIUSD. The maximum now depends on your account leverage and the trading period (source):

Account leverage	Normal hours	Data release window	Pre-close	Holiday early close
1:1000 or 1:500	1:100	1:40	1:20	1:20
1:400	1:80	1:40	1:20	1:20
1:200	1:40	1:40	1:20	1:20
1:100 or lower	20% of account leverage	20%	20%	20%

So a 1:500 account that buys oil during a data release has 1:40, not 1:500 or 1:100.

A crypto inconsistency. EBC’s homepage says it “explicitly does not participate in any cryptocurrency activities or offer Crypto Contracts for Difference (CFDs)” (source). But a help article on leverage periods says BTCUSD “remains subject to Tiered Margin Levels”. We could not confirm which is current, so we give no crypto leverage figure.

Temporary cuts to leverage

EBC lowers the maximum for newly opened positions at set times (source):

Period	Time	Maximum leverage
Monday to Thursday, final hour before close	23:00 to 23:59 MT time (UTC+3)	1:100
Friday, final 3 hours before close	21:00 to 23:59 MT time	1:100
Major data releases (NFP, CPI, rate decisions)	30 minutes before to 5 minutes after	1:200
Public holiday early close	Final 1 hour (Mon to Thu) or 3 hours (Friday)	1:100

The cuts apply to forex majors, crosses and minors and to gold and silver. A pending order that triggers in a restricted period follows the leverage that applies at that moment. EBC warns that if you hold both long and short positions in a symbol and open trades in those periods, the higher margin requirement can raise overall margin use and the risk of stop out.

Ultra Leverage

Ultra Leverage is “a special program offered by EBC to eligible clients in designated countries and regions”. The help centre lists it as currently available in a group of countries that includes Indonesia, Thailand, Laos, Mongolia and countries in Africa. It covers forex majors and crosses and metals, on live Standard and Professional accounts but not PAMM (source). The tiers are set by account equity:

Account equity (USD)	Leverage
0 to 500	1:Unlimited
500.01 to 2,000	1:2000

The rules in the help centre:

• Apply after depositing. New accounts show the options greyed out. After you deposit, you apply in the User Center, and the options shown match your equity range. You cannot choose 1:2000 while your equity is in the 1:Unlimited range (source).
• Stop out is equity below zero while Ultra Leverage is active, instead of a 30% margin level.
• Above USD 2,000, it switches off. The account goes back to its maximum standard leverage (1:500) and the stop out returns to a margin level of 30%. The help article says Ultra Leverage is “not automatically restored” if equity later falls, and a new application is required.
• Withdrawal limit. With open positions, you can withdraw at most 50% of the lower of balance and equity. With no open positions, the full balance.
• Restricted periods. Ultra Leverage is suspended near the close and around major data releases, with leverage capped at 1:100 or 1:200 as in the table above (source).

Where EBC’s pages disagree. The order cap is described as “200 open orders (including positions and pending orders)” on the leverage page and the Ultra Leverage article, but the FAQ says “200 lots (including open and pending orders)”. Lots and orders are not the same, so ask EBC which applies. The leverage page’s FAQ also answers a question about automatic activation with text that is about restricted periods, so it does not clearly say whether Ultra Leverage returns by itself. The Ultra Leverage article is dated 8 September 2026 and the leverage page carries no date, so we follow the article.

How small is the margin? EBC’s example for 1 lot of EURUSD at 1.15: with 1:2000 the used margin is $57.50, and with 1:Unlimited it is $11.5. Our arithmetic: 100,000 x 1.15 = 115,000 of exposure, so $11.5 of margin matches a ratio of 10,000:1. EBC says the margin is never shown as $0.

Margin and stop out worked examples

EBC’s margin formula is current price x contract size x lot size / leverage (source). Its own illustration: a USD 100,000 trade at 500:1 needs USD 200.

Example 1 (our arithmetic, assumed price). Buy 1 lot of EURUSD at an assumed 1.15 with 500:1: 1.15 x 100,000 x 1 / 500 = 230 USD. At 100:1 during a restricted period the margin would be 1,150 USD. A position that fits your equity at 500:1 can be pushed towards stop out if it is opened or topped up in a restricted period.

Example 2 (EBC’s own gold example). Equity 10,000 USD at 1:500, short 2 lots of XAUUSD at 3,235.25. Margin = 100 x 2 x 3,235.25 / 500 = 1,294.10 USD. The 30% stop out amount is 388.23 USD, so the stop out price is 3,283.31 (source).

Example 3 (our arithmetic, Ultra Leverage). Account equity 100 USD, 1 lot of EURUSD under 1:Unlimited. One pip on 1 lot of EURUSD is worth about 10 USD, and stop out occurs when equity falls below zero, so a 10-pip move against you uses up all the equity. Use our pip calculator and lot size calculator to size a trade from the loss you accept.

The help centre says: “Higher leverage means less margin is needed, allowing you to open larger positions with the same available funds. However, during periods of high market volatility with insufficient margin, a Stop Out may occur” (source). Read margin call and stop out and what is leverage in forex first.

How to change your leverage

In the client portal, open the Live Account section, click “…” under Action for the account, choose Update Leverage, select the ratio, confirm and wait for approval. The help centre says that with open positions leverage can be increased but not decreased. To decrease it, close all orders first (source). Withdrawals with open positions have their own margin rule: your margin level must stay at or above 200% (400% at weekends), as covered in our EBC withdrawal guide.

Negative balance protection

EBC says it will “reset the negative balance to zero” if you apply, but only when the balance is between minus USD 1,000 and zero, once per hour per account, and it “does not provide unlimited protection” (source). That is a conditional safeguard, not a guarantee.

Regulation and availability

Leverage this high is possible because global clients deal with EBC Financial Group (SVG) LLC and not with its UK or Australian companies. Read our is EBC legit page and the EBC review first. EBC does not serve citizens or residents of the United States, Canada, Malaysia, Russia, Ukraine and 21 other listed jurisdictions, per a help centre list updated on 12 September 2026 (source). We do not recommend offshore brokers to US residents.

Bottom line

EBC offers up to 500:1 on forex and gold, 100:1 on energy and indices, and 5:1 on stock CFDs, with Ultra Leverage of 1:2000 and 1:Unlimited for small accounts in designated countries. Maximums drop near the close, around news, and for energy since 6 August 2026.

The numbers that matter most are the 30% stop out, or equity below zero on Ultra Leverage, and the limited negative balance reset. Choose a leverage setting far below the maximum, size trades from your loss limit, and only deposit money you can afford to lose.