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The futures markets

The futures markets: an online course in 20 short lessons with quizzes and a final certificate, on Unicorn Academy.

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Read the first lessons

  1. What a futures contract is

    A future is a contract in which two parties commit to exchange an asset on a future date, at a price fixed today. The asset, called the unde…

  2. Standardisation and the exchange

    Futures are traded on an exchange and are standardised. For each contract the exchange sets the quantity, the quality of the underlying, the…

  3. The clearing house

    After every trade the clearing house steps in between buyer and seller. It becomes the buyer to every seller and the seller to every buyer.…

The futures markets: 45 questions and answers ›

Course programme

Module 1 · The basics

  1. What a futures contract is
  2. Standardisation and the exchange
  3. The clearing house
  4. Long position and short position
  5. Hedging and speculation

Module 2 · The mechanics

  1. Initial margin and maintenance margin
  2. Daily valuation
  3. Multiplier and contract value
  4. Expiries and rollover
  5. Physical delivery and cash settlement

Module 3 · How prices are formed

  1. Spot price, futures price and basis
  2. Contango and backwardation
  3. The cost of carry
  4. Convergence at expiry
  5. Oil in April 2020

Module 4 · Markets and risks

  1. Stock index futures
  2. Commodity futures
  3. Interest rate and currency futures
  4. Leverage and the risk of losing more than the margin
  5. Supervision and rules of prudence

The first lessons of every course are available right away, with no sign-up. The final lessons and the certificate are unlocked with an in-app purchase, for a single course or for all courses together. An Apple or Google account is optional and only used to restore your progress on another device.

Frequently asked questions

Can a beginner learn finance with an app?

Yes. The courses start from the basic concepts, explain every term when it first appears and end each lesson with three questions.

How long does a course take?

Each course has 20 lessons of a few minutes each: it can be completed in a few hours, at your own pace.

Which languages are the courses in?

Available in 16 languages: Italian, English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Korean, Turkish, Indonesian, Arabic, Vietnamese and Polish.

Are the courses financial advice?

Unicorn Academy is education: it does not provide financial advice or invite you to buy financial instruments. Investing involves the risk of losing your capital.

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Stocks, pre-IPO, forex, futures, options and crypto in short lessons.

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