The phone ringing at two in the morning is always accompanied by the despair of a certain crypto participant.

A trader from Dongguan lamented in a voice message: "I used 20,000 USDT in full margin with 10x leverage to go long on XRP, and it only dropped 3%, my account was wiped out!"

I reviewed his trading records, and the situation was clear—full position entered without setting a stop-loss. This kind of operation is common in the crypto world, but it’s also the easiest way to lose everything.

Don’t be fooled by the idea that "full margin is the way to make big money." In the crypto market, leverage without proper risk control is like throwing your hard-earned principal into a fire pit.

**Position size is the real killer**

Many people blame leverage for liquidation, but the root problem lies in position management.

For example, with a 1500U account:

If you invest 800U with 10x leverage, a mere 5% adverse move in price will wipe you out.

But if you invest 700U with 10x leverage, it takes a 50% move against you to be liquidated. The difference depends entirely on how much principal you put in.

The mistake that friend made was putting 95% of his principal into the trade. With 10x leverage, even a slight market correction becomes a fatal blow.

**Three ironclad rules to turn risk into manageable costs**

In over half a year of trading, I’ve adhered to three principles, which not only prevented liquidation but also allowed my account to grow amid volatility.

First: No single position exceeds 20% of total funds.

For a 20,000U account: never invest more than 5,000U in one trade. Even if you’re wrong and get stopped out with a 10% loss, that’s only 200U—an amount that won’t damage the core of your account. Being able to turn around at any time is the confidence of long-term trading.

Second: Never lose more than 3% of total capital on a single trade.

For example, with 5,000U at 10x leverage, setting a 1.5% stop-loss results in a 500U loss, exactly 3% of total funds. Even if you make a few wrong calls, your account remains intact.

Third: Don’t open positions during sideways markets, and don’t chase after profit orders.

Only participate in clear breakout opportunities. Even in tempting sideways consolidation, stay on the sidelines. Never add to a position after opening it, which effectively prevents emotional trading from interfering.

**The essence of full margin is a buffer mechanism**

The reason why full margin has a bad reputation is because most people use it incorrectly.

Its original purpose is to allow some tolerance for market fluctuations. But this requires light initial positions and strict risk management.

There was a trader who kept getting liquidated every month. After following these three principles, he turned 3,000U into 7,000U in three months. He once said something very interesting: "I used to think full margin was gambling my life, but now I realize, full margin is actually about trading more steadily."

The survival rule in the crypto market is never about who makes money faster, but about who survives longer. Consistently profitable traders are invariably those who prioritize risk management.

Control your position size, set your stop-loss correctly, and your mindset will naturally stabilize. In volatile markets, this stability itself is an advantage.