A CFD (Contract for Difference) is an over the counter agreement between two parties to exchange the difference between the opening and the closing price of that contract at the close of the contract based on the underlying share multiplied by the number of shares specified in the contract. Sounds complicated, but its not really. Major hedge funds have been making use of CFD for more than ten years in the UK stock market as an alternative means of investment to traditional share dealing. CFD trading is similar in many ways to financial spread betting in that both are margined products so you can gear yourself up or take a position that is a multiple of your available funds.

For example, if the margin on a firm youre interested in was 10%, establishing a position of £100,000 would really only require a deposit of £10,000. Any running profits you make can be used as margin to establish new positions but any running losses would have to be made good by reducing your position or providing additional funds.

While stamp duty of 0.5% on all UK share purchases has in the opinion of some traders reduced the cost effectiveness of ‘day-trading’ traditional stocks and shares, both CFDs and spread betting are exempt and this seems to have added to their appeal. CFDs are liable to capital gains tax whereas spread bets are tax free, but losses incurred from spread bets are gone for good while CFD losses can be offset against any future profits for the purpose of tax. When you actually trade in CFDs you purchase those contracts in nearly the same way you buy shares. Let’s say you wished to invest on a thousand shares in a business – with CFD trading you would need to sell 1,000 units at eg 494p per share, whereas with spread betting you would just place a bet of £10 per point to get an equivalent return.

Most CFD providers allow you to post orders anywhere within the bid-offer spread whereas spread betting firms post their own two-way take it or leave it price exactly as a bookmaker would. With CFD you are the cost maker, which is why hedge funds tend to use CFDs rather than spread betting. CFDs do not wrap the costs of financing a position within the spread (as does spread betting) but charge those costs and commissions on an individual basis. CFDs do not wrap the costs of financing a position within the spread (as does spread betting) but charge those costs and commissions separately. Because of this, the CFD spread quote will constantly be very close to the underlying price of the share or commodity that you are following. CFD’s also mimic almost every aspect of actually owning the underlying share or market, so if you hold a position long enough, you receive the benefit of any dividends being paid on the underlying shares.

CFDs and spread betting have particular features that will appeal to different trading styles and there is no one best instrument to use. Although they should not be regarded as substitutes for long term investment or saving, as more people seek to take control of their financial destiny, theres been a growing realisation that going short is a legitimate means of trading in market thats become increasingly difficult to profit from in a traditional sense.