Skip to main content
You do not have to hold a position to settlement. Leave it and it settles normally when the market resolves. Closing early is how you take a profit while a price is in your favour, or cut a loss before the result is in.

​
Closing means taking the other side

When you buy an outcome you are backing it to happen, in exchange terms. To close, you sell the same outcome at the current price. The two trades sit against each other, and whatever is left over is your profit or loss, locked in whichever way the event goes. The Trade out button in your positions does this for you. It works out the opposite trade and the amount needed, and opens it ready to place. Cashout is the same idea packaged as a single figure. You accept the number and the position closes. Cashout is offered on most markets.

​
Closing needs available cash

A sell puts up liability. That is the amount you would owe if the outcome you are selling goes on to happen, and it has to be free in your account before the trade can be placed. So closing a position temporarily needs cash, even when you are closing at a profit.

​
Smart credit

On a traditional exchange, that cash stays locked until the market resolves. You would sit on two positions that cancel each other out, with capital tied up behind both, waiting on a result that can no longer change what you get paid. Smart credit recognises when two of your positions offset, and returns the capital behind them to your available funds straight away, so you can trade with it again. You can withdraw that money once the positions settle.

​
A worked example

You buy Team A at 50c for 40 USDT. If they win you get 80 USDT back. If they lose you are down 40 USDT. The price moves in your favour and Team A is now 62.5c. You want the profit now rather than risking the result, so you close by selling Team A at 62.5c: 50 USDT at that price, which balances the two trades exactly. Whatever happens in the match, you finish 10 USDT up. If Team A wins you take 40 USDT on the buy and pay 30 USDT on the sell. If Team A loses you drop 40 USDT on the buy and collect 50 USDT on the sell. To place that sell you need 30 USDT free: its liability. Smart credit returns it once the trade fills, along with your original amount and your 10 USDT, so you can trade with all 80 USDT straight away. You can withdraw it once the match settles. The interactive version on magicmarkets.com lets you change the numbers.

​
Keep a little cash free

Because closing needs cash up front, keep some of your balance out of positions. If you try to close without enough available, the app tells you how much you need and offers to top up. Your position is not locked. You only need to add the missing amount.