The complete disclosure file.

The iBelieve Futures Academy is an educational product. The curriculum is delivered as a self-paced library of written modules, reference materials, operating documents, and a capstone framework. The Academy provides instruction in the mechanics, structure, and operating discipline of regulated futures markets.

The Academy does not provide trading signals. The Academy does not provide trade recommendations. The Academy does not manage capital on behalf of any operator. The Academy does not represent that any specific outcome will follow from reading the curriculum or applying the framework.

The materials are intended for the account operator who is willing to read, study, and develop their own written discipline. The framework taught in the curriculum is one institutional approach. It is not the only approach, it is not endorsed by any regulatory body, and it does not constitute a recommendation that the operator adopt it without independent judgment.

Nothing contained in the Academy curriculum, reference materials, operating documents, dashboard, or any associated communication constitutes investment advice, financial advice, tax advice, accounting advice, or legal advice. The Academy is not a registered investment adviser. The Academy is not a commodity trading advisor. The Academy is not a broker-dealer.

The trader is responsible for their own trading decisions and for consulting licensed professionals where the operator's circumstances require it. The operator should consult a registered investment adviser, a qualified tax professional, or an attorney as appropriate to the operator's specific situation before placing capital at risk.

Examples and worked positions contained in the curriculum are illustrations of mechanics. They are not recommendations. The practitioner should not interpret any example as a suggestion to enter or exit a position in the trader's own account.

A futures contract is a standardized legal agreement to buy or sell a defined quantity of a defined underlying at a defined price on a defined future date. The contract is exchange-traded. The contract is centrally cleared. The trader is the principal to the trade, not an agent.

The clearing house guarantees performance of every cleared contract. To support that guarantee, the clearing house requires margin from both sides of every position. Margin is not a deposit, in the sense of a deposit at a bank. Margin is a good-faith performance bond that the clearing house may call upon in the event of adverse price movement.

Settlement of a futures contract occurs either by physical delivery of the underlying or by cash settlement against a defined settlement price. Most operators close their positions before delivery. Operators who carry positions to expiry are responsible for understanding the settlement mechanics of the specific contract they hold.

The margin required to hold a futures position is materially smaller than the notional value of the contract. A single E-mini S&P 500 contract may carry a notional value in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and require margin in the low thousands. This notional amplification is a structural feature of futures markets.

The operator should understand that profit and loss are calculated on the full notional, not on the margin posted. A one percent adverse move on the underlying produces a loss equal to one percent of the contract notional, not one percent of the margin. This is the mechanism by which futures losses can exceed the funds initially deposited.

The Academy curriculum installs a written framework for sizing positions to the notional, not to the margin. Operators who size to the margin alone systematically take on more risk than they intend.

Every open futures position is marked to market at the close of each business day. Gains are credited to the operator's account. Losses are debited from the operator's account. This process is not optional. It occurs whether the trader has closed the position or not.

If the trader's account equity falls below the maintenance margin level for any held position, the clearing broker will issue a variation margin call. The operator must respond by depositing additional funds or by closing positions to restore equity above the maintenance threshold. Failure to respond may result in the broker liquidating positions at prevailing market prices without further notice to the disciplined trader.

The operator must therefore maintain sufficient cash reserves to meet variation margin calls. The Academy curriculum addresses the calculation of reserve capital in writing.

In conditions of insufficient margin, the trader's clearing broker has the right to liquidate any or all open positions in the operator's account. The broker exercises this right under the terms of the customer agreement signed at account opening. Liquidation may occur at prices materially worse than recent market prices, particularly in fast-moving conditions.

The operator should understand that the broker's liquidation is not constrained by the operator's strategy, conviction, or written risk policy. Once the threshold is breached, the broker acts to protect the broker's own capital. The trader's exposure is not the operator's choice at that point.

Position sizing discipline is the institutional answer to this risk. The practitioner who maintains a written margin utilization ceiling well below the broker's maintenance threshold preserves the freedom to manage the position on the operator's own terms.

Futures contracts have defined expiration dates. The operator who wishes to maintain exposure past expiration must roll the position into a later-dated contract. The roll involves closing the front-month position and opening an equivalent position in the back month. The roll has a cost or a yield, depending on the term structure of the curve.

Operators who fail to roll prior to expiry may face physical delivery obligations, cash settlement against a price they did not anticipate, or forced liquidation by the broker. The roll calendar is therefore a non-negotiable part of the operator's working discipline.

The Academy curriculum addresses the mechanics, the math, and the calendar of the roll across the foundation and structures arcs.

Spread positions, calendar spreads, intercommodity spreads, and intramarket spreads carry their own risk profile. Operators are sometimes attracted to spreads on the assumption that they are inherently lower-risk than outright positions. This assumption does not survive contact with markets.

Spreads can break. The historical correlation between the two legs of a spread is not a guarantee of future correlation. Margin offsets that reduce required capital may also create the impression of safety where the underlying risk has not changed. The operator who enters spreads should understand the conditions under which the spread is expected to behave and the conditions under which it may not.

Futures markets experience periods of elevated volatility, reduced liquidity, and price gaps that occur outside regular trading hours. Stop orders are not guaranteed to execute at the stop price. In fast or thin conditions, the executed price may be materially worse than the price at which the stop was set.

Overnight gaps are a structural feature of markets that trade across the global session. The account operator who holds positions across the overnight or weekend close accepts the risk that the next session opens at a price gap. The size of the gap is not bounded by the operator's stop.

Liquidity providers may withdraw bids and offers during stress. The bid-ask spread may widen materially. Operators should not assume that a position can be closed at the last traded price at any moment.

Regulated futures contracts traded on a qualified board or exchange are generally subject to Section 1256 of the Internal Revenue Code. Section 1256 contracts receive a sixty-forty treatment: sixty percent of any net gain or loss is treated as long-term capital, and forty percent is treated as short-term capital, regardless of holding period.

Section 1256 contracts are marked to market at year-end for tax purposes. Wash sale rules do not apply to Section 1256 contracts in the same way they apply to securities. The trader may carry net Section 1256 losses back three years against prior Section 1256 gains under an election available on the appropriate IRS form.

This summary is general and is not tax advice. The operator must consult a qualified tax professional regarding the operator's specific tax situation. Tax treatment of any specific contract, account type, or transaction depends on facts the Academy is not in a position to evaluate.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is the federal agency that regulates United States futures markets. The National Futures Association is the self-regulatory organization for the United States derivatives industry. Operators are encouraged to consult the educational and risk-disclosure materials these bodies publish.

• CFTC consumer education. Available at cftc.gov. Includes risk advisories, fraud alerts, and educational materials on regulated futures and options.
• NFA investor advisories. Available at nfa.futures.org. Includes background information on registered firms and individuals, plus general investor education.
• The CFTC risk disclosure statement for futures. A standard disclosure document that every futures account holder receives from their clearing broker at account opening. Operators should re-read it periodically.

The Academy is not registered with the CFTC or the NFA. The Academy is not required to register because the Academy does not provide trading signals, manage capital, or solicit trades on behalf of any operator. The Academy provides educational content only.

The operator selects their own clearing broker. The Academy does not recommend any particular broker. The disciplined trader is responsible for evaluating the broker's regulatory standing, financial condition, margin policy, fee schedule, platform reliability, and customer agreement.

Operators should verify the broker's registration status with the National Futures Association and review any disciplinary history available through the NFA BASIC system. The operator should read the customer agreement in full before signing. The customer agreement governs the broker's right to issue margin calls, to liquidate positions, and to apply funds against losses.

Customer funds held by a futures commission merchant are subject to segregation requirements under CFTC rules. The trader should understand the protections that apply and the limits of those protections.

The Academy makes no representation as to the performance any operator may achieve by reading the curriculum, applying the framework, or using the operating documents. Past performance, in markets, instruments, strategies, or by any individual operator, does not predict future results.

No public win-rate percentage, expected return figure, or any similar performance claim is offered. Worked examples in the curriculum are educational illustrations of mechanics. They reflect the structure of the trade, not a representation that the operator will produce the same outcome.

The founder's prior employment history and credentials are stated as biographical fact. They are not offered as evidence that the trader who studies the curriculum will achieve any specific outcome.

Any statement in the Academy materials that is not historical fact is a forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements include statements about market structure, market behavior under conditions, the expected behavior of strategies, and the general direction of regulated futures markets.

Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual outcomes may differ materially from any expectation expressed or implied by such statements. The operator is responsible for forming their own view of the markets they trade and the strategies they apply.

iBelieve Investments LLC is organized under the laws of the State of Texas. The Academy is provided to operators who are tax residents of the United States. The Academy is not offered to operators in jurisdictions where the offering would be prohibited.

Any dispute arising out of or relating to the Academy, including disputes regarding access, tuition, materials, or any communication with the founder, is governed by the laws of the State of Texas, without regard to its conflict-of-laws principles. Venue for any such dispute lies in El Paso County, Texas.

The disciplined trader agrees that any claim arising out of the Academy will be brought solely in the operator's individual capacity and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class or representative proceeding.

The Academy curriculum, reference materials, operating documents, dashboard, and all associated content are the intellectual property of iBelieve Investments LLC. Enrollment grants the account operator a non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access the materials for the trader's own educational use.

The operator may not redistribute, republish, resell, repackage, or otherwise exploit the Academy materials. The trader may not share access credentials. The operator may not copy substantial portions of the curriculum for use outside the operator's own private study.

Access may be revoked for breach of the license. Tuition is non-refundable upon access being issued. Operators may print working copies of the operating documents for their own use.

By accessing the Academy, the disciplined trader acknowledges:

• The operator has read the disclosures in this document in full.
• The trader understands that trading futures involves substantial risk of loss.
• The operator understands that the Academy is an educational product and not investment advice.
• The trader understands that no performance outcome is represented or guaranteed.
• The operator is responsible for their own trading decisions, broker selection, tax treatment, and compliance with applicable law.
• The disciplined trader agrees to the license terms in Section 16 and the jurisdiction terms in Section 15.
• The operator will consult qualified professionals as the operator's circumstances require.

The account operator is invited to re-read this disclosure file periodically. Markets change, regulations change, and the trader's circumstances change. The institutional standard is to read disclosures as working reference, not as a one-time formality.