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Why not start with our introduction to spread betting guide? Find out what spread betting is, how it works, and view our short video.

Spread betting on shares differs from the traditional investment approach of buying and owning shares. For one thing, you don't own the shares when spread betting; instead, you're taking a view on which direction the share price will move. Any profits you make when spread betting profits are tax-free, and there's no stamp duty to pay, unlike traditional investing.

Another key difference is that you can utilise leverage, which means you only need to put up a set percentage of the full value of the trade, with an initial deposit, known as margin. This increases your exposure, but also means that any profit or loss you make is magnified, relative to the share's price fluctuations. Find out more about spread betting

All financial trading and investing involves an element of risk, no matter how robust your trading strategy. Financial markets can be unpredictable and volatile. This means that your trade could go against you, so it's important to manage your risk carefully. As part of a trading plan, you should only risk a small percentage of your overall capital with each trade.

Highly volatile markets can lead to market gapping, or slippage, where prices suddenly gap. However, you can guard against this by adding a guaranteed stop-loss order (GSLO) to your trade. There is a cost for using a GSLO, but it's refunded in full if it's not triggered while your position remains open.

It's also important to note that you can't lose more than your account value as a retail trader, because your account is covered by negative balance protection.

Spread betting and CFD trading are leveraged products that allow you to take a view on a huge number of financial markets. They can provide similar economic benefits to investing directly in the underlying markets, for example when you might purchase shares in a listed company, or physical gold.

There are many similarities between the two products, although CFDs are treated differently for taxation. View our spread betting versus CFD trading article to learn more about the similarities and differences between these two popular forms of derivatives trading.

CMC Markets Germany GmbH is a broker regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). It holds funds of private clients separately from its own funds in separate bank accounts. In the unlikely event that CMC Markets Germany GmbH is unable to meet its financial obligations, the EdW would cover any claim for damages by claimants up to €20,000, provided that certain criteria are met.

CMC Markets Germany GmbH is a company authorised and regulated by the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin). CMC Markets complies with the requirements of §84 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG) regarding client funds.

There's no cost when opening a live trading account with us. You can also view prices and use tools such as charts, Reuters news or Morningstar quantitative equity reports, free of charge. However, you'll need to deposit funds in your account to place a trade.

Our income primarily comes from our spreads, while other fees, such as overnight holding costs, make a minor contribution to our overall revenue.