There are an ever increasing range of different trading options which are open to both professional and amateur traders. Most providers will have an online process which will enable you to invest and track your progress to the minute using their various online platforms.
Different types of trading can involve high levels of leverage, and it is therefore possible to lose more than the amount of money with which you have opened your account. Make sure that you understand your full exposure at any one time, and our advice would be to include stop losses where possible to ensure of downside protection. We do not advise on trading strategies, and as such, make sure you seek financial advice prior to participating in trading of any kind.
Compare Share Dealing
Most investors will at some point invest in the stock of a Company, through the purchase of shares, which provide you with a small (or large, depending on the size of the Company), ownership of the business. The most common shares traded by volume in the UK are those of Companies listed on the FTSE, which represents both the top 100, and top 250 Companies (measured by capitalisation) sized businesses in the UK. It is possible to buy shares in smaller businesses in the Aim and Plus markets, as well as shares in businesses abroad. Share prices will fluctuate continuously in any given day, and may go up as well as down.
Stock brokers will physically trade the shares on your behalf on the market which they are traded, such as the FTSE. Dealing in shares can provide diversification as part of an investment portfolio, however, as many investors have experienced throughout the recent economic downturn, share prices can plummet, eroding any profit or potential for profit for many years to come. This however, presents, in some people’s opinion the perfect time to buy! There are many different trading strategies, and a well researched an executed trading strategy can generate significant returns. We work with some of the UK’s leading Stock Brokers, who offer highly competitive terms.
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Compare Forex Trading
Trading Forex or Foreign Exchange Trading has been increasing in popularity, particularly with a turbulent market, which creates many potential opportunities. With the advent and spread of internet access, this has meant that many different people, who may previously have been excluded from having access to trading platforms due to location or otherwise can now trade anywhere, literally from their mobile phone.
In the turbulent markets which the world has experienced over the past few years, with the global economic crisis, this has meant huge swings in the market have occurred very quickly. The foreign exchange market is open to all, however, it is always recommended that you have a strategy which you trade by, and ensure that you are aware of your exposure at any one time.
It is possible to set up a Demo account which will enable you to practice trading with credits instead of real money. This can be a useful experience, although it is important to remember that it is very different when there is real money on the line. Look for our providers who offer a Demonstration account to take advantage of this.
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Compare Futures Trading
Futures Trading enables a potential investor to take a leveraged position in commodities without the requirement to outlay the total capital requirement. An initial margin of between 2% and 10% would enable an investor to open a Futures contract. In effect this provides the investor with the ability to buy or sell a commodity at a pre determined date in the future, at the price at which the commodity is trading at the time at which it is bought or sold.
There are a huge range of commodities which can be traded, such as gold and other precious metals, oil, food products such as coffee and rice, as well as gas, electricity, oil, currencies as well as interest rates, bank base rates and a lot more. There are a wide range of future’s brokers, some of which will specialise in particular areas of the market, we have a broad selection of general brokers, offering some highly competitive rates of commission and margins.
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Compare Spread Betting
Spread Betting is a way of betting on the movement of a particular share over a pre determined period of time. This can either be one day, or a longer period, up to typically a maximum of 6-12 months. As you are not purchasing the share, there is no Stamp Duty Payable on entering into the trade, and Capital Gains Tax also does not apply on exiting the trade.
As shares are highly volatile, it is possible to lose your money as well as making significant gains. We would recommend using stop losses to ensure that you are not overly exposed at any time. In addition, it is always important to understand your exposure, as it is possible to lose more than your capital if the market is to dramatically change.
We have selected some of the UK’s leading Spread Betting providers and platforms to enable you to practice, and bet live.
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Compare CFD Trading
Contracts for Difference or CFD’s are contracts between two parties where one will agree to sell something to someone at an agreed price at a future date. There would not normally be a set time for the contract to end, and the positions would typically be renewed at the close of the business day. If the market has dropped from the open price, then the buyer would be liable for this difference, if the market has increased then the seller would have a deficit to the buyer. CFD’s are a way of leveraging your cash and speculating on the share price movements on any given day, without actually owning the shares.
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Advisory Trading Services
As the name suggests advisory trading services provide advice and information, and suggestions in relation to which trades may be appropriate for your investment portfolio. These services aim to improve the returns which an investor may receive, as their advisor will have access to significant levels of information, and resources which may provide a strong argument to complete a particular trade, or not as the case may be!
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Trading Platforms
Trading platforms are set up by financial institutions, and stock brokers, as well as other private entities to encourage individuals to trade on their platforms. These are typically online platforms, although more and more providers are offering platforms which can be traded using mobile phones.
There are a whole different number of different types of platforms which are available, we have carefully selected some of the market leading trading platforms across a number of different areas, including spread betting, CFD’s, share trading, and a whole lot more!
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Trader Training
Stock brokers and spread betting providers recognise that people like to see how different trading platforms and strategies work. These can be either through events both at locations as well as webinars. These can be useful to get a feeling for what professional traders will be looking for from a news perspective, company reports, as well as identifying when to enter and exit the market. We offer a range of different organisations events, which will provide you with a real insight into the trading market and how this works. We have both free and fee based trading, which will provide both basic and advanced trading strategies.