Dear all, I am thinking and studying about trading to make a living since one year now but there is something that stops me from starting … my question for you is really candid and I hope nobody will feel insulted. It’s crucial for me … I wonder … is there a way to trade , or an asset , that is ethical to trade, or more ethical then others? I totally agree that trading can be absolutely fair because every player Is aware of the risk and he agrees with it (expecially because, we are the small fishes who need to study a lot , to work a lot and hopefully , if we are disciplined enough we can make some money ). I have a hard time to accept that if I win , this mean that someone else is loosing ( if I loose then everything is ok 
)…is there another way to look at it? I hope someone can help me… months are passing by and I cannot find a solution… I looked into the possibility of creating a business on line but this doesn’t really appeal me… not to mention that in Italy, where I live , everything is so complicated and making money is much more difficult than in USA or in other English speaking countries (i.e. 1 k view per month YouTuber earn about 400 $ net just to mention one thing) please excuse my English, I really hope to find an answer to my question here (I spent hours reading Quora answers, which was interesting but didn’t solve my dilemma. on top of that Quora never accept my questions, I guess is because of english mistakes or because they want me to write in Quora Italy, which is not useful at all) I wish everybody smart and lucky trading!
Hi, this is how Forex market works, if you want to earn on Forex, you must accept it, if not, try to find another way to earn cash. Regards Greg
Anther way to look at it ? - What you wrote here is not even true !
We are retail traders - your bet is simply taken with the “Broker’s” computer - The “broker” is in fact a bookmaker and has many many bets going at any one tiime with people adding money in all directions.
There is NO person who loses money IF you win a number just gets taken out of teh bookmaker’s computerised account and added to your account - same as if you lose the number just gets taken out of your account and put in the Bookmaker (broker) 's account. When your account has grown enough, you simply take some money out and spend it.
Usually you will have lost enough that the bookmaker (Broker) says you must put more in, if you want to keep playing the game.
I know that is not what “they” inclluding the Babypips School tells you - but in real life, that’s the way it works - Hope that helps 
Yes. Look at trading as a zero sum game. It’s a concept that has existed since the 17’s. Looking at it this way will keep your emotions on check and make you desist from reinventing the already made concept.
Which it is not - it’s a negative sum game for the punters - Same as any casino game !
Thank you very much for your answer Falstaff !
Thank you very much Regan64!
Utter bullsh1t.
Let’s say you decide not to do forex trading but to get a job - you go for a job interview and there is 1 post available and you get it, that means that maybe 1 or maybe 10 or maybe 100 other people who applied are still unemployed. So what are you going to do? Let someone else have the job? Seriously?
They had the same opportunity as you - that’s all they need, that’s all they’re entitled to. After that, what happens to them is up to them, not up to you.
HI Thank you very much Tommor! You are completely right , this is the normality
Thank you for your answers, they have been useful! part of me really would like to go beyond this competition way of living (which is normal ) …it’s about me always being in between and never really choose … anyway I wonder if tradings stocks is less ethical then forex. I am figuring out that if I choose a bunch of companies which I trust for sustainability and then I just go long … I might feel at peace … even if one need to be really experienced in order to be able to do that…
Its hard to find anything really ethical or unethical about trading forex.
Ok , thank you for your answer!
When you are trading you are using your skill to make money.
Forex market
The money is in the market and it is money you have deposited like all other traders.
So you are figthing with others to take more money than you have invested by using your skill predicting where the price will move.
Running competition
If you are runner then you are competing with other runners to make money. You are using the skill, running and speed, to compete against other traders.
Money is from the sponsors and even from the runners. On some competition you need to pay entrance and that money is used to pay the winner.
No problem with ethic
As you have seen the examples are similar and in each of them you are using your skill to make money.
In some competitions you will fight for the medal or something else but they all have been payed with money you and all participants have payed.
So there is no problem with taking the money because you are not taking someones money but you are earning with your skills and effort that you put into trading.
You are not taking someones money from their pocket.
All traders have give their money for free to get the access to the market and to exctract as much is possible.
What exactly do you mean by " Ethical " ? - Pllease define your wish precisely ! :sunglasses
Then maybe we can all talk the same language.:
Sadly no matter how you want to look at the world the concept of equality where everyone wins is nothing more than a fantasy. The reality is that people win and people lose in life. Some of it can be due to bad luck or poor circumstances and you cannot hold yourself personally responsible or beholden to their situation.
Each and every person is totally responsible for how they make their way in life. You can only be responsible for how you trade. If you want to make money you have to learn and apply what you have learn’t in order to be successful. And if you do that and make money then you deserve the good fortune that comes your way. You are not responsible for those traders who don’t bother to learn and instead use the markets as a place to gamble and lose their money. That is their problem.
Remember one thing no matter what you do there has always been and will always be
Winners and losers
Happy foxes and sad sacks
Fat cats and starving dogs
That is the way the world works.
Cheers
Blackduck
May I ask you what’s your actual activity for your salary? I really wonder in what profession someone earns money who has such concerns against speculation in general
So my advice is to become a monk…
Hi Falstaf! … in fact ‘ethics’ is a very relative concept . Personally I would like to go beyond competition and i’d prefer earn my money with an activity that it’s totally non harming , you can see it as a vegan style . I am not a fan of ‘ism’ but I could be considered a kind of buddhist; I quote an article I found just now on Hoffington Post . The writer name is Lewis Richmond : Clearly, the Buddha saw prosperity and financial security as a good and appropriate activity for laypeople; “rightful means” meant any occupation that did not cause unnecessary harm to other living things. In the simple economy of 500 B.C. this meant avoiding occupations such as butcher, tanner, or soldier – if possible. It also meant to be honest and ethical in business dealings – not to cheat, steal or lie, and in general make one’s living in an upstanding way. I daresay that all religions have ethical principles of this sort regarding making one’s living – certainly the Judeo-Christian tradition does.
In the much more complicated societies of today, what might “right livelihood” really mean? This is a very important issue, and not only for Buddhists. With many of the world’s people subsisting on a few dollars a day, and with 15 million unemployed here in the U.S., what does this nice-sounding concept of an ethical livelihood mean in real life?
End of quote
Looking at this comment I would say that trading is definately not a career path you should pursue. I would also like to ask you why you even started this thread as it would appear that your personality and ideals are not conducive to trading.
The issue you seem to have is the misunderstanding of the word ethical. Especially in the field of trading. When you place a trade you do so making a concious decision that your belief is the market will go up or down. That decision indirectly involves no one else except yourself. No one knows you are the one taking that trade except you. There is nothing unethical or morally wrong about that decision. You are not cheating or deceiving anyone nor are you being unfair to anyone.
Cheers
Blackduck
Thank you Blackduck , you’re probably right about the fact that this should not be my career. Anyway studying some economics & finance plus studying charts for hours is more appealing to me then other jobs I could do . As I wrote ,I am
a kind of person who tends to stay in between, which isn’t good because it makes difficult to take decisions but it is also positive because one gets a broader point of view and sometimes find unexpected solutions. You can be sure that I didn’t mean to provoke, I am thankful for any answer I got, yours included. I was just answering Falstaf who was asking my idea of ethics.