What is deposit load?

What it means

Two accounts can post the same return having taken entirely different risks. One committed 3% of equity as margin at its peak; the other committed 60% and survived. The return column cannot distinguish them. Deposit load can, which is why it is usually reported somewhere small.

Why it matters

High load means positions large enough that an ordinary adverse move reaches the margin call level. It is the statistical fingerprint of martingale and grid systems, which accumulate positions against a losing move and therefore look flawless until the one move that does not come back.

What this changes in practice

Read it together with maximum drawdown, because the pair tells you what the equity curve alone hides. Low drawdown with high deposit load is the dangerous combination: it means the account has been carrying large exposure and has simply not yet met the move that punishes it. A smooth curve is not evidence of safety when the load is high — it is evidence that nothing has gone wrong yet.