Spread Betting | Financial Spread Betting

Q: How can spread betting beginners get started?

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

Q: How does spread betting differ from shares trading?

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

Q: Is spread betting risky?

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. You can practise trading with our demo account, which comes with virtual funds. Find out if your ideas and strategies work in a test environment, before trading for real. Learn more about managing your risk

Q: What's the difference between spread betting and CFD trading?

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.

Q: How does CMC Markets protect my money?

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.

Q: Is CMC Markets regulated?

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.

Q: Is it free to open an account?

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.

Q: How does CMC Markets make money?

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

Q: What can I trade on with CMC Markets?

You can trade on financial instruments when you spread bet and trade CFDs with us. Take a look at our popular markets and instruments.

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2m+ global traders and investors³

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Why spread bet with us?

Trade with leverage

Deposit from just 3.34% of the full value of your position to open a trade. Leverage amplifies any profits or losses equally, and can increase the risk of losing money rapidly.

No currency conversion fees

Start spread betting on US stocks without currency conversion fees (other fees may apply).

Diverse range of markets

Trade on 21,000 instruments covering forex, indices, commodities, shares, ETFs, rates and bonds, plus our exclusive share baskets, forex indices and commodity indices.

What are other traders saying about CMC Markets?

Discover why 2 million+ global traders and investors choose us.⁴

User FriendUser Friendly Platform / Easy to Use / Nice charts ly Platform / Easy to Use /…User Friendly Platform / Easy to Use / Nice charts M D Khorasani,2 hours ago

great chartsgreat chartsYves Larochelle,yesterday

like numbersnumberslike numbersAlbert,2 days ago

So easy to useSo easy to use, no irritating complication like I’ve experienced on other platform, I certain that I’m sticking with them…Millie,3 days ago

I use CMC for spread bettingI use CMC for spread betting. It’s pretty easy to use. Like any leveraged trading platform, it’s easy to take a lot of risk! Easy to use,3 days ago

very easy platform quick to move around…very easy platform quick to move around user friendly easy to learn comfortable to use Yunus Luqmani,5 days ago

New hereNew here, and finding my way around and looking to the futureRobert Patterson,5 days ago

Prefect dataPrefect dataKhalil,7 days ago

Good simple to use appGood simple to use appDIPA LAKHMAN,22 October

I like it because it’s easy to trade or…I like it because it’s easy to trade or make deposit or withdraw and quick login and logout and no extra charges Afsin,22 October

Understand our spread betting costs

The two main costs associated with spread betting are the margin and spread:

Margin – the initial deposit, representing a fraction of the total trade value, which acts as collateral to open positions.
Spread – the difference between the buying and selling price of an instrument.

Explore the costs for over 21,000 instruments available on our platform in the table below.

instrument	min spread	margin rate	price	day	week	Trend