Cryptocurrency index trading

Spread bet or trade CFDs on baskets of cryptocurrencies with our All Crypto Index, Major Crypto Index and Emerging Crypto Index. Our crypto indices offer a unique, cost-effective way to trade on the wider cryptocurrency market, without having to trade multiple, individual coins.

What crypto indices can you trade on?

We have grouped different cryptocurrencies together in order to create three new crypto baskets, representing different aspects of the crypto sphere.

All Crypto Index

This index contains all the cryptocurrencies that we offer and aims to give a wider indication of how the cryptocurrency sector is performing overall.

Major Crypto Index

This crypto index tracks the performance of the largest, most liquid portion of the cryptocurrency market, and groups together the most recognised and established cryptocurrencies – bitcoin (XBT), ethereum (ETH), ripple (XRP), bitcoin cash (BCH) and litecoin (LTC).

Emerging Crypto Index

The emerging crypto index groups together seven less established ‘altcoins’ (alternative cryptocurrencies launched after the success of bitcoin). It is designed to allow you to take a view on the smaller cap cryptocurrencies. This index contains dash (DASH), stellar lumens (XLM), tron (TRX) and cardano (ADA).

Cryptocurrency indices details

View the spreads, margin rates and trading hours for our cryptocurrency indices in the table below.

The benefits of trading on crypto indices

There are several benefits to crypto basket trading, rather than multiple individual cryptocurrencies.

Firstly, it can be a more cost-effective way of trading on the cryptocurrencies, as it allows you to take a view on the sector as a whole without having to open a position on each individual coin. Trading on a crypto index can also help to spread some of your risk, as you aren’t being exposed to a single coin. 

How crypto indices work

Each crypto index is made up of a selection of cryptocurrencies, grouped together and weighted by market capitalisation (market cap). The market cap of a cryptocurrency is calculated by multiplying the number of units of a specific coin by its current market value against the US dollar. 

When a cryptocurrency goes up in value, its market cap will increase and therefore the value of the crypto index will rise, and conversely when cryptocurrency prices fall against the US dollar, the value of the crypto index will fall.

How our crypto indices are weighted

We have aimed to provide a diverse, balanced view of the cryptocurrency market’s performance. This means for the Major Crypto Index, we have established a cap so that no single cryptocurrency can constitute a weighting of greater than 40% of the index. While no individual constituent currently makes up more than 40% of the Emerging Crypto Index, we may establish a cap of 40% for this index should it become necessary at a future date. Finally, the All Crypto Index gives 60% of the total weighting to the major cryptocurrencies, and 40% of the total to the emerging cryptocurrencies. Each individual cryptocurrency is then weighted equally within that banding. The weightings of any uncapped component that then fall below a 5% floor will be increased to that value taking proportional market capitalization from any uncapped index component.

We monitor our crypto indices periodically to see whether any adjustments need to be made to constituent weightings. We will also monitor closely for any hard or soft forks which may mean adjustments to the constituent cryptocurrencies are necessary. In the event that such adjustments are made, we will also change the index divisor to ensure that there is no resulting impact on the index prices.

All Crypto Index weightings

Major Crypto Index weightings

Emerging Crypto Index weightings