Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are investment funds that hold a collection of underlying assets such as shares, commodities and bonds. ETFs are quoted on exchanges and can be bought and sold like shares. ETFs can track a broad index, industry sector or specific market.

TradingView is a trading research platform where you can view charts, analyse trends and interact with an online community. You can connect your TradingView account to your CMC Markets account, enabling you to open, manage and close trades within TradingView. Learn more about TradingView here.

ETF Trading | Open an Account & Trade on ETFs

Q: What's the difference between investing and spread betting/trading CFDs on ETFs?

When investing in ETFs, you buy and own units in the fund, and deposit the full value of your position upfront. When spread betting or trading CFDs, you speculate on the price movements of an ETF without owning the underlying asset. This means you can take both long and short positions. Spread bets and CFDs are leveraged products, meaning you only need to deposit a percentage of the full trade value to open a position.

Q: What markets can ETFs provide exposure to?

ETFs can provide exposure to a wide range of markets and asset classes, including stock indices, commodities, bonds and industry sectors such as financials and energy. ETFs are commonly used by traders and investors seeking diversified market exposure through a single product.

Q: Can I trade ETFs out of hours?

We offer extended trading hours on selected products, including US ETFs. Please check our trading platform for the latest products and trading hours available. To view the ETFs that you can trade around-the-clock from Monday to Friday, log in and select Products > Library > Extended Hours.

Q: What are the risks of trading ETFs?

Although ETFs can provide diversified exposure to a basket of assets, their value can still rise and fall depending on the performance of the underlying assets and broader market conditions. As a result, you could lose money if the market moves against your position. When trading leveraged products such as spread bets and CFDs, profits and losses are based on the full value of the position, not just the initial deposit (margin). This means leverage can amplify both gains and losses, and you may lose more quickly than when investing without leverage. It's important to understand the risks involved and consider using risk-management tools, such as stop-loss orders, to help manage your exposure.

Q: Is CMC Markets regulated?

CMC Markets has 15 global offices, including in the UK, Australia, Germany, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore and Bermuda. CMC Markets' entities are licensed and regulated by the local authorities, for example, CMC Markets Bermuda is licensed to conduct investment business and digital asset business by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (‘BMA’).

Q: How does CMC Markets protect my money?

As a CMC Markets' client, your money is held separately from CMC Markets' own funds. It is held in segregated client bank accounts distributed across a range of major banks, which are regularly assessed against our risk criteria. Under the BMA rules, retail clients must be provided with negative balance protection. This means that your maximum loss is the amount you have deposited with us.

Q: How do I place a trade?

If you're trading on MT4 or MT5, select the instrument you wish to trade ('double-click' on your PC), and a new order window will appear. Enter your desired volume (in lots), add any risk-management orders such as a stop-loss or take-profit order. Then place a market order in the direction you wish to trade; buy to go long, or sell to go short. There are several ways to place trades or orders using MT4 or MT5 – you can learn more about MT4 or MT5 functionality by navigating to Help > Help topics or Help > Video guides. If you’re trading on our Next Generation platform, search for your desired instrument from the 'Product Library'. Select your chosen instrument ('right-click' on your PC), and select ‘Order Ticket’. In the order ticket box, choose your order type (from Market, Limit, and Stop-Entry Order), and then enter your desired volume in units or amount (this can be configured from the ‘Settings’ menu in the main navigation). Add stop-loss and take-profit levels to minimise your risk, and choose to ‘BUY’ or ‘SELL’, depending on whether you want to go long or short. When you’re ready, select ‘Place Buy Market Order’, or ‘Place Sell Market Order’.

Q: What is the maximum leverage offered by CMC Markets?

For retail clients, the maximum leverage you can currently trade with is 200:1 (or 0.5% margin) with our CFD trading and FX Active accounts.

0.0

Pips FX minimum spread⁵

1:200

Maximum retail leverage

0.01

Micro lot trading*

12,000

Financial instruments

24/5

Dedicated customer support

*Trade one-hundredth the size of a standard lot

What are ETFs?

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are a type of investment vehicle that track the performance of a broad collection of underlying assets, such as shares, commodities, and bonds.

ETF portfolios are held by corporations that issue shares (a portion of ownership) in the fund. These shares give investors exposure to the underlying assets as a collective.

Why trade ETFs with us?

Your favourites in one place

Over 5,000 ETFs to trade¹, including the most popular themes from the US and Europe.

London-based server

Our London based server and industry reputation helps us provide a tier-one liquidity solution, so we can consistently deliver lightning-quick execution speeds⁶.

Unrestricted trading

Our MetaTrader platforms have no restrictions on minimum stop-loss or take-profit distances and limits, especially useful for high-volume traders.

Hedge your positions

Go long and short at the same time on a specific instrument, with no interruption for traders using Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader.

Free premium indicators and EAs

Hone your technical analysis with our suite of free additional premium indicators and EAs.

Straightforward funding

Deposit and withdraw funds easily, and whenever you want to.

Powerful technology you can rely on

To trade with us, you choose a CFD account that suits the platform you want to use.

Standard CFD account provides access to our proprietary and award-winning Next Generation platform, available on PC and mobile. This account can also be linked to TradingView.

To trade on Metatrader 4, you must create a separate MT4 CFD account. This account is only compatible with MT4 and does not provide access to Next Generation or TradingView.

Note: MetaTrader 4 only offers trading in currencies, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.

Read more below about the platforms we offer and find out which one best suits your trading style.

recommended

MetaTrader 4

Trade on the world's most popular trading platform, with tight spreads and ultra-fast execution.

Trade on forex, indices, commodities and cryptocurrencies
Spreads start from 0.0 pips with our FX Active account⁷
Fast, one-click trading
Lightning-fast execution ⁸
Customisable charts with pre-installed indicators
Automated trading with Expert Advisors

Mobile

Millions of traders have already chosen the MetaTrader 4 mobile app to trade on the financial markets, anytime and anywhere.

Desktop

Download MetaTrader 4 for PC or MAC and trade on the world's most popular trading platform.

Access MT4 WebTrader

MetaTrader 5

A powerful trading platform designed to provide access to global markets, with advanced trading features and real-time data.

Trade on forex, indices, commodities, shares and cryptos
Spreads from 0.0 pips with our FX Active account⁹
One-click trading
Ultra-fast execution¹⁰
More order types, timeframes, and pre-installed indicators than on MT4
Depth of market display and inbuilt economic calendar
Experts Advisors with faster strategy tester

Mobile

Download the mobile application for Android and take the trading platform with you.

Desktop

Download MetaTrader 5 for PC or MAC to experience its advanced trading tools and features from an industry’s leading provider.

Access MT5 WebTrader

recommended

TradingView

Enjoy the best of both worlds: view and analyse charts on TradingView; trade with our tight spreads and fast execution.

Enhance your trading experience with TradingView’s renowned charts and indicators.
Get inspiration and ideas from one of the world’s largest online trading communities.
Prepare for key announcements with TradingView's easy-to-use financial calendar.
Set up personalised alerts using 13 built-in conditions based on price and volume.
Open, manage and close your trades with us in TradingView.

Learn more

Mobile app

TradingView's mobile apps are available on the App Store and Google Play Store. Ensure that your device is up to date and your operating system is supported.

Google PlayApp Store

Desktop app

Tradingview's desktop app is available for download on Windows, Mac and Linux.

LinuxWindowsMacOS

CMC Web platform

We've invested over £100m into our award-winning platform¹¹, creating pioneering technology to suit all trading styles.

Integrated TradingView charts
Advanced order execution
Optimised mobile platform
TipRanks analysis
Client sentiment tracker
Pattern recognition scanner
Morningstar equity research and Reuters news
Fund your account with USDT and USDC, via Binance Pay.

Mobile

Packed with powerful features, yet intuitive, and available to all traders. Whatever the next step in your trading journey, our mobile platform can help you get there.

Scan the QR code to download the app.

Desktop

We've built our web trading platform to be powerful and intuitive. It combines leading-edge features and security, fast execution, and best-in-class insight and analysis. Designed to support any strategy.

Try our platform

What are other traders saying about CMC Markets?

As a financial services pioneer, we combine technical excellence with 35 years‘ industry know-how. That‘s why 2 million+ global traders and investors put their confidence in us.

ETF trading costs

ETFs have evolved from an obscure investment fund to one which attracts trillions of dollars' worth of assets.

Our trading team has identified a selection of ETFs across three topical themes. You can also view our overnight holding costs and the margin rate required to open a position.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUY	HOLDING COST SELL	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUY	HOLDING COST SELL	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUY	HOLDING COST SELL	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUY	HOLDING COST SELL	MARGIN RATE

Pricing is indicative only. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

ETF prices shown are based on our CFD price.

PRODUCT	PRICE	DAY	WEEK	TREND	HOLDING COST BUUY OVERNIGHT	HOLDING COST SELL OVERNIGHT	MARGIN RATE

Superior execution and reliability

Our pioneering technology and highly-regarded customer service, alongside a choice of powerful platforms, offers an ideal combination for serious traders.

Automated execution

Your trades will be filled without any dealer intervention.

Fill rate⁷

We fulfil your order without off-quotes, and wherever possible at the price you see.

Platform stability⁸

We consistently achieve almost 100% core platform uptime, so you can focus on your trading.

Become a CMC Markets partner

Partner with one of the industry's leading CFD and forex brokers. With our advanced IB portal reporting functions and high customer conversion rates, our program is designed to help you grow your business. Be rewarded with generous remunerations, including support for multi-tiered and customisable deals and payments structures. Contact us today to talk with one of our experienced regional representatives.

Become a partner

Log in to partner portal

FAQs

What are ETFs?

What's the difference between investing and spread betting/trading CFDs on ETFs?

What markets can ETFs provide exposure to?

Can I trade ETFs out of hours?

What are the risks of trading ETFs?

New to CMC Invest?

Is CMC Markets regulated?

How does CMC Markets protect my money?

How do I place a trade?

What is the maximum leverage offered by CMC Markets?

What is TradingView?

What are the key differences between MT4, MT5, TradingView and CMC's trading platforms?

Can I hedge positions in MetaTrader?

How can I withdraw my funds?

How do I reset my password?

What is the complaints procedure at CMC Markets?

Do you have any questions?

Email us at

global@cmcmarkets.com

, or call us on

(UK) +44 20 3003 8080 (Lines open 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday)

¹The CMC Next Generation platform has 21,000+ instruments. The MetaTrader 5 platform has 2,220 instruments. MetaTrader 4 has 220 instruments.

²Best Mobile Trading Platform, ADVFN International Financial Awards 2024; No.1 Web Platform, ForexBrokers.com Awards 2023; No.1 Most Currency Pairs, ForexBrokers.com Awards 2023; Best Charting (Germany), Investment Trends Leverage Trading Report 2023; Best Customer Service (Germany), Investment Trends Leverage Trading Report 2023; Best In-House Analysts, Professional Trader Awards 2023; No.1 Platform Technology (UK), ForexBrokers.com Awards 2022; Best CFD Provider (UK), Online Money Awards 2022; Industry Pioneer with "Outstanding" Customer Rating (Germany), Focus Money Test Edition 36/2022, "Very good" Trading Platform (Germany), Deutsches Kundeninstitut (DKI) Survey 2022.

³ 0.018 seconds CFD median trade execution time on MetaTrader 4 globally, 1 April 2024-31 March 2025.

⁴Reuters news ticker is a registered trademark of Thomson Reuters®. Refinitiv® Morningstar is a registered trademark of Morningstar Inc.

⁵Based on over 2 million unique user logins across CMC's trading and investing platforms, including partners, as at November 2025.

⁶Spreads from 0.0 pips on six major forex pairs, and a 25% spread discount on 300+ other forex pairs, with a low, fixed commission at $2.50 per $100,000 notional value, with our FX Active account.

⁷99.29% of MT4 market open orders were filled at quote, 23 September 2024-31 March 2025.

⁸99.99%+ MT4 core platform uptime, 1-31 August 2023.

ETF trading

What are ETFs?

Why trade ETFs with us?