Getting started and managing a Spread Betting Account

Your account will be opened when the application form has been completed and the Spread Betting Company has approved this. After appropriate funds have been deposited or credit has been allocated, you are able to begin betting with Spread Betting Company.

Placing a bet by telephone

Telephone the specific trading desk

Request a quote in the specific market of your choice

Our dealer will quote you the spread

In a fast moving market the dealer may requote if you have not elected to trade immediately

You decide to buy or sell the spread or do nothing

If you decide that you want to place a bet, tell the dealer if you wish to buy or sell, and the number of pounds per point (stake), eg. "Can I sell £10 per point please?"

Then give the dealer your name and account number

Once any account checks have been done the bet is accepted

NB: All calls are recorded for your security but you should keep a written record of all trades.

If you wish to bet using a guaranteed stop you must do so at the time of placing the bet.

Placing a bet interactively

Clients are able to place bets interactively. Please refer to the section on interactive trading.

Managing your account

Always check your contract notes and statements so that any discrepancy can be reported in accordance with the company’s Terms and Conditions. Keep your own accurate records of any bets, ie. date, time, price, name of trader you have dealt with. Be aware of your potential profits or losses before entering into a bet.

If any of your personal details change, please notify the Customer Service Department of the company concerned, who will immediately update your file. They must be able to contact you at all times. If you are going on holiday or will be away from your normal contact details whilst running open positions, please notify them. It is important that they are able to contact you in the event of any margin calls. Failure to pay margin calls may result in positions being closed out.

Keep your personal account number and any passwords confidential. 

Internet and interactive trading

The majority of Spread Betting Company’s continue to evolve their on-line trading applications in accordance with their clients' needs. Their interactive trading systems offer the ability to trade spread bets on-line on a wide range of indices, international equities and commodities.

Excellent functionality includes live prices being delivered to your deal ticket right up to the moment of placing your trade.

To access the spread betting service you log-on to the companies web site and select the client area from the menu within the relevant section of the site.

Most company’s prices will be updating every 10 seconds, including indication of the direction of the last move.

You will be able to select either Buy or a Sell to complete the trade. Once the trade is placed the interactive trading system will fulfil your order upon completion of credit checking.

In some circumstances the trade might not be accepted, the most common reason being that there is insufficient funds in your account to cover the trade.

To review your recent trades you can access your Account History via the required icon.

This will show you a summary of the last trade requests that you have made. Contract notes will be sent to you via the accepted method as is in operation via telephone trades.

Should you be unclear about any of the functionality of the system there are exceptionally useful Help files, accessed via the Help icon on their sites.

The Help file explains in depth how there systems work, details common faults, provides useful hardware specifications & provides contact or help details.

Margin and Payments

Margin is required when clients, who hold open positions, exceed their credit allocation or initial deposit because of:

Open position losses marked to market

Realised losses

Excess Notional Trading Requirement

Or any combination of the above three

The amount of margin required, is the total of the above factors, minus the amount deposited or the credit allocation.

Important points to note with regard to margin calls

Please be aware that each individual position that you hold will incur a charge for Notional Trading Requirement (NTR). The total of which will be charged against your Waived NTR limit if you have a credit account. You will be liable, and will be called for, any NTR in excess of your Waived NTR Limit. Deposit account clients are required to maintain the total NTR over and above any marked to market losses.

Please note that it is the responsibility of you the client, and not Spread Betting Company, to monitor the positions and make margin payments to company immediately upon margin becoming due. Although not contractually obliged to do so, some companies will endeavour to make margin calls upon clients on a daily basis. Margin calls may be made at any time in accordance with the companies Terms and Conditions. It is therefore imperative that you familiarise yourself with our Terms and Conditions and pay particular attention to the relevant section in its entirety.