Can You Hold Long and Short Positions at the Same Time on Apex
Section 01

What the hedging rule actually says

Apex's Prohibited Activities page addresses hedging directly, under a heading it calls "No Hedging of Any Kind." The rule is stated in plain terms: holding both long and short positions simultaneously on the same or correlated instrument is strictly prohibited, on the reasoning that trades should reflect directional analysis rather than an attempt to cover both outcomes of a breakout or news event.

There is no language in Apex's current documentation carving out an exception for accounts purchased under the 4.0 model that launched March 1, 2026. Traders researching this rule online will find older content, including a version of this article, describing a "One Direction rule" that was supposedly removed as part of that restructure. That description does not match Apex's current published rules. Whatever changed in the 4.0 launch, hedging itself was not among the restrictions removed.

The safest working assumption for any Apex account, current or Legacy, is that directional trading only applies: one position, one direction, per instrument or correlated group of instruments, at any given time.

Section 02

What counts as hedging under Apex's rule

Apex's rule names several specific patterns, and understanding each one matters because they are not identical restrictions.

Same-instrument hedging

Holding a long and a short position on the same contract at the same time, for example long and short ES simultaneously in one account, falls squarely under "No Hedging of Any Kind" and is prohibited.

Correlated-instrument hedging

Apex's rule explicitly extends to correlated instruments, not just identical ones. A long ES position paired with a short NQ position, intended to offset directional risk between two closely related contracts, is treated the same way as same-instrument hedging.

News hedging

Placing orders on both sides of the market ahead of a news event, with the intent of profiting from whichever direction the market breaks, is separately and explicitly prohibited. Apex's Prohibited Activities page calls this out directly as an example of what the no-hedging rule exists to prevent: trades based on strategic analysis rather than an attempt to capture both sides of a binary outcome.

Cross-account hedging

Running a long position on one Apex account and a short position on another Apex account, on the same or correlated instrument, is prohibited as well. This is treated as an attempt to achieve the same net-neutral outcome the single-account rule is designed to prevent, just spread across multiple accounts instead of one.

None of these four patterns carry an exception for current accounts. All four are prohibited the same way they were before the March 2026 restructure.

Section 03

Legacy vs current: a direct comparison

Rule Legacy accounts Current (4.0) accounts
Simultaneous long and short on same instrument (within one account) PROHIBITED. PROHIBITED. Apex's current Prohibited Activities page lists this under "No Hedging of Any Kind," with no stated exception.
Correlated instrument hedging (e.g. long ES, short NQ) PROHIBITED. PROHIBITED. Named explicitly alongside same-instrument hedging on Apex's current page.
News hedging (straddle on news events) PROHIBITED. PROHIBITED.
Cross-account hedging across multiple Apex accounts PROHIBITED. PROHIBITED.

Apex's Prohibited Activities page does not distinguish between account types for the hedging rule. Legacy accounts operate under their own separate rule set for other mechanics (billing, drawdown model, consistency thresholds), but on hedging specifically, current and Legacy accounts are held to the same standard.

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Section 04

What this means for different trading styles

Traders who used same-instrument hedging for intraday risk management

This is not available on Apex, current or Legacy. A position needs to be closed, reduced, or protected with a stop, not offset with an opposing entry on the same instrument.

Pairs and spread traders

Strategies built on holding correlated instruments in opposite directions, such as long ES paired with short NQ, are prohibited under Apex's current rule. This is a real constraint worth weighing before choosing Apex if pairs or spread trading is central to a strategy.

News traders

Trading through a news event with a normal directional position, including holding an existing position through a release, is permitted. What is not permitted is entering positions on both sides of the market specifically to capture the outcome regardless of direction. The distinction is intent and structure: one well-reasoned directional trade around news is fine, a pre-positioned straddle is not.

Traders running multiple Apex accounts

The hedging restriction follows the trader, not the account. Offsetting a position on one account with an opposing position on another account is treated the same as hedging within a single account, and is prohibited.

Legacy account holders

Nothing changes. The hedging restriction on Legacy accounts is the same restriction that applies to current accounts, so there is no rule difference to navigate between the two.

Also asked · Related questions

What traders also ask.

No. Apex's Prohibited Activities page states directly that holding both long and short positions simultaneously on the same or correlated instrument, described as "No Hedging of Any Kind," is not permitted. This applies to current and Legacy accounts alike. News hedging and cross-account hedging are separately and explicitly prohibited as well.
Apex's current documentation consolidates this restriction under a "No Hedging of Any Kind" prohibition rather than a separately named "One Direction" rule, but the substance is unchanged: simultaneous long and short positions on the same or correlated instrument are not permitted. There is no confirmation from Apex that this restriction was lifted for any current account type.
No, on both current and Legacy accounts. Placing orders on both sides of the market to exploit the binary outcome of a news event is explicitly prohibited. Normal directional trading through a news event, including holding an existing position through a release, is permitted.
No. Cross-account hedging is prohibited under Apex's current rules. You cannot hold a long position on one Apex account and a short position on another on the same instrument at the same time. This is unchanged from the legacy ruleset.
Yes. Legacy accounts, purchased before March 1, 2026, operate under Apex's original hedging restrictions. Current accounts are subject to the same practical restriction under Apex's Prohibited Activities page, which does not distinguish between account types for this rule.
No. Apex's Prohibited Activities page names correlated instruments explicitly alongside same-instrument hedging as prohibited. Holding offsetting positions across correlated instruments is not permitted on any current Apex account.
Apex ties failure to follow its Prohibited Activities guidelines, including the hedging prohibition, to placement in Trader Probation, and repeated or severe violations can result in account closure and forfeiture of funds.
Hedging policies vary across futures prop firms and change over time. As of this writing, Apex prohibits same-instrument, correlated-instrument, news-based, and cross-account hedging across all its account types. If hedging matters to your strategy, verify current policy directly with any firm before purchasing an evaluation.
Related reading

For a full walkthrough of all current 4.0 rules including the trailing drawdown, consistency rule, and payout eligibility, the how does Apex Trader Funding work guide covers the complete account structure. The Apex DCA rule guide covers the position-adding prohibition that often catches traders alongside the hedging rules. For traders evaluating Apex against Topstep on rule flexibility, the Apex vs Topstep comparison covers both firms' current positions.

Rule permissions can change. Verify the current hedging policy in the Apex help center before executing any multi-leg strategy on a live account. For correlated instrument strategies specifically, contact Apex support directly for written confirmation before trading.