s CFDs are a really good instrument to use for trading, especially if you go for a commission free one, which there are a few.CFDs also allow you to have anything from 1% to 10% margin only, they follow the underlying stock very closely, in fact, its hard to see a difference. You do not have to pay capital tax but you do have to pay interest on the loan amount. e.g. if you have bought shares worth 100K, the margin is 5K, but you'll have to pay interest per day on the loan. But it doesn't actually work out to be much. A lot less than commission. Michael Hinterleitner, Head Trader and Founder of Candletrading.de, a group of system developers and traders who live-trade several markets using CFDs, can't say enough about the advantages the contracts offer; especially when compared with certificates and warrants. "For one, there are no time limits on CFDs. You don't have to worry about missing the expiry date. The index and stock CFDs have no time limits anyway and with commodities the contracts are automatically rolled into the next month". Hinterleitner also likes the trading hours and the guaranteed stop order function offered by CFD brokers, which greatly reduces overnight risk. "The expanded trading hours are very comfortable compared to the limited hours on the local exchanges. Many underlyings can be traded around the clock so stops can be executed at 3:00 AM if necessary. That helps limit any negative surprises when the markets open".Contracts for difference are an excellent tool for trading, because of the transparency and easy access.
The contracts for difference companies make their money on the interest charged (which is above the base rate obviously) and a very slightly bigger spread. They might employ underhanded tactics... and delay winning trades from being filled, I certainly get suspicious sometimes, but if you've got a decent system a small margin of error won't ruin you.The spread isn't as good as a direct access account, but then you are getting high leverage which means you can do more with it. Also, unlike direct access, you can day trade stocks with it without £25K in the account and although the spreads aren't quite as tight, and you'd never be able to trade UK stocks intraday anyway. Direct access allows you a 50% - 25% margin and will charge you several layers of commission... the brokers commission and the markets commission.I would say it's a perfect instrument to use for advanced investors or those who have already experienced spread betting and with a lot of good points in comparison to Direct Access. You can also set up stops and limits but often it's not as close to the price as you like on most occasions. Its more for short to medium term trading, days to weeks (or months at a push)... but not too long as the interest will start to mount up. Spread betting only up side is they aren't so draconian about you having to be experienced and they are tax free, but as far as most traders are concerned (the ones that lose) that's not a big thing on their minds.Also... watch the high gearing stuff! It can be a fast track to profits if you have a good system and experience, if you don't... you will lose a lot of money. The good thing is, they don't want you to entirely blow your account as its hard work getting the money back from you, so they liquidize your holdings if you haven't got the margin for the open position. That normally happens before you turn negative (mostly)... I speak from experience on that. So instead of losing your house, car, job and kids... you just blow your account and maybe have a tenner left out of the ten grand you stuck in there! Good as a learn experience, but a bit pricey.CFDs at a glance
  • CFD stands for contract for difference
  • CFDs allow investors to benefit from the capital gains from a particular stock without having to actually physically own or pay for it.
  • CFDs allow you to participate in the stock market at considerably less cost than via traditional sharedealing.
  • You enter into an agreement with a CFD provider - usually a stockbroker or a firm offering an online dealing service - to settle the difference between the price of a particular investment when the agreement is made and its price when the agreement is ended
  • The profit or loss you make is determined by the difference between the prices at which you buy and sell the contract
  • You have an interest in the movement of the share's price, but do not buy and hold the actual share itself. In fact, the broker is able to hold the shares. This provides an offset against the contract
  • The investor using CFDs has one key decision to make - do they think the underlying investment is going to go up or down. Get it right and you win; get it wrong and you lose
  • As with spread betting, the amount you lose can be limited with a stop loss
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