The daily process where your broker settles overnight interest on open positions — happens at 5pm New York time.
Rollover is the moment each day when forex spot positions are technically settled and re-opened. It happens at 5pm New York time, which is the official end of the global trading day. At rollover, your broker calculates the swap on every open position and credits or debits your account.
On most days rollover is a single day of swap. On Wednesday rollover, you get a TRIPLE swap because spot forex settles two business days forward — Wednesday's rollover covers Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in one shot. That's why Wednesday's swap line in your account looks 3x bigger than other days.
Rollover also briefly causes a liquidity gap. For a few minutes around 5pm NY, spreads can widen on most pairs as banks rebalance books. Scalpers usually avoid trading right at rollover for that reason.
Fund managers running USD/JPY carry trades in 2023 specifically built positions on Tuesday afternoons to capture the Wednesday triple swap on long-USD positions earning 5%+ rate diffs.
Frequently asked about rollover
What is a rollover in trading?+
The daily process where your broker settles overnight interest on open positions — happens at 5pm New York time.
When will I see rollover used in real trading?+
Every day at 5pm NY if you have a position open. Visible in your account transaction history as "swap" or "rollover" entries.
What is the most common mistake traders make with rollover?+
Closing a winning trade at 4:55pm NY "to avoid swap" and missing the next 100 pips. The swap is usually a few cents — don't let the tail wag the dog.
What do experienced traders know about rollover that beginners don't?+
If you're intentionally collecting positive swap, time your entry just BEFORE the Wednesday rollover. You'll bank a triple swap on day one of the trade.
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