IGindex taking me to Bankruptcy

[Marwan2010]

Does anyone know why spreadbetting is actually taxfree in the UK ?

(Futures trading was tax free actually in Germany also for some odd reason till Schröder became Chancellor in 1998, not that that benefitted me as it was when I was just starting out lol !).

Capital Gains Tax
Currently in the UK there is no capital gains tax to be paid on spread bets or any types of bets as they are completely exempt (of course tax law may change). The Inland Revenue doesn't allow people to offset losses against profits either so for the time being profits or income from spread betting are not taxable.
As in horse racing there is duty to be paid - either on the bet or the profit - normally the spread betting company will pay this on your behalf but it's worth checking with your broker or indexation company.

 

[Hilarymannah]

BSD,...I googled for ya,..you lazy fk !! : )
http://www.smallbusinesspro.co.uk/tax/spread-betting-tax.html

 

[Hilarymannah]

Marwan,....LOL

 

[Marwan2010]

Is it REALLY the business of IG to be tracking all its client to ascertain which ones it thinks have access to inside information? I mean, come on..! How do you tell if a client is simply lucky, OR he has inside information.

Maybe a client is an awesome trader, is making loads of money, so they decide to track him, and he hits drawdown. Client is still well up, but IG lose money. They stop following him, and he starts to make money again. Is this REALLY their business model?

This is all very far-fetched, but I can see it appeals to people's paranoia.

the 95% lose cos the MORONS have NO mental fitness, NO focking trading plan, watch cnbc and bloomberg for tips, they "follow" other morons for their failure, and then they blame IG index!

there are no focking gurus out there! > the guru lies in you, within you

 

[BSD]

BSD,...I googled for ya,..you lazy fk !! : )
http://www.smallbusinesspro.co.uk/tax/spread-betting-tax.html

haha thanks mate

 

[SH-101]

I've had an account at IG (trading mainly FX) for a year and my stops nearly always get done at the rate (i.e. no slippage)

I've had an IG Index account for several years and my experience has been the same. Only slippage I can remember ever occurring was during a major news time, which is to be expected. Other than that I'm always filled at the price I want.

 

[meanreversion]

Spreadbetting is tax free because on aggregate, punters lose money, thus this can not be offset against gains elsewhere. Quite clever really (oh, and the bet companies pay tax)

 

[Hotch]

For price to move, somebody has to buy and somebody has to sell. Why is it so hard to believe that there is also a buyer and a seller in IG's customer base?

The vast majority of IG's (and any other spreadbetting company's) customer base, cancel out each other trades, IG takes the spread and covers the (relatively very small) bias in position either way.

99% of the time, IG doesn't need to cover you, because another one of their clients already has.

 

[meanreversion]

For price to move, somebody has to buy and somebody has to sell. Why is it so hard to believe that there is also a buyer and a seller in IG's customer base?

The vast majority of IG's (and any other spreadbetting company's) customer base, cancel out each other trades, IG takes the spread and covers the (relatively very small) bias in position either way.

99% of the time, IG doesn't need to cover you, because another one of their clients already has.

Finally, some sense. IG make money from the spread, not from spotting profitable clients and then tracking them (have you any idea how difficult this is in practice anyway? It's akin to investing in a unit trust.. you look for those which are profitable and then put your money in. Doesn't mean you WILL make money now, does it?)

 

[barjon]

Finally, some sense. IG make money from the spread, not from spotting profitable clients and then tracking them (have you any idea how difficult this is in practice anyway? It's akin to investing in a unit trust.. you look for those which are profitable and then put your money in. Doesn't mean you WILL make money now, does it?)

mmm, SBs always claimed they made their money from the spread, but now many of them are working a 1 point spread on ftse and dow so I guess their profits are severely reduced on these instruments or they were telling porkies .

jon

 

[ns1000]

Thanks for the well thought out reply ns1000, very helpful. I was simply replying to several posts any putting everyone straight. Moron.

You're quite right, it was probably above your head. What I meant was that you clearly have an axe to grind, and under the pretence of reporting what your 'close friend' told you, are spouting half truths and exaggerations.

If I had to guess, you used to work there and got fired.

 

[ns1000]

mmm, SBs always claimed they made their money from the spread, but now many of them are working a 1 point spread on ftse and dow so I guess their profits are severely reduced on these instruments or they were telling porkies .

jon

Not necessarily. As long as they see enough flow, they can make the spread from matching buyers and sellers, so the underlying spread would be immaterial.

Still, you're right that it makes it more likely that they're trading against the client.

 

[Splitlink]

Spreadbetting is tax free because on aggregate, punters lose money, thus this can not be offset against gains elsewhere. Quite clever really (oh, and the bet companies pay tax)

That is the reason, I believe. Everyone would write off their losses in this way!

Will the Coalition do anything about that? Shouldn't do, but you never know.

 

[meanreversion]

mmm, SBs always claimed they made their money from the spread, but now many of them are working a 1 point spread on ftse and dow so I guess their profits are severely reduced on these instruments or they were telling porkies .

jon

Don't forget also there are hidden charges, e.g. an open position in spot FX attracts an overnight roll charge of 0.0055 pct above and beyond any interest rate differential (2 pct a year).

I operate a medium term trend system and as such, can have positions open for weeks or even months. I trade some stuff on IG (spot) but have been doing more on Interactive (futures) because there is no spurious roll charge there.

I called IG to ask them if they would consider lowering their 2 pct fee for me but they said no, in no uncertain terms.

Anyhow, this is one way they make money, in addition to having thousands of punters cross their spreads all day long.

 

[meanreversion]

(Please note this fee is completely unconnected with FX interest rate differentials, it has nothing to do with forward points)

 

[meanreversion]

That is the reason, I believe. Everyone would write off their losses in this way!

Will the Coalition do anything about that? Shouldn't do, but you never know.

The Coalition needs to stand up for BP and tell the POTUS where to get off. But they're not doing that either. Probably too busy working out how to present the CGT hike.

 

[MrGecko]

Don't forget also there are hidden charges, e.g. an open position in spot FX attracts an overnight roll charge of 0.0055 pct above and beyond any interest rate differential (2 pct a year).

I operate a medium term trend system and as such, can have positions open for weeks or even months. I trade some stuff on IG (spot) but have been doing more on Interactive (futures) because there is no spurious roll charge there.

I called IG to ask them if they would consider lowering their 2 pct fee for me but they said no, in no uncertain terms.

Anyhow, this is one way they make money, in addition to having thousands of punters cross their spreads all day long.

Do the roll charges sum to more than you will pay in tax..??

 

[pboyles]

Do the roll charges sum to more than you will pay in tax..??

...bearing in mind that you pay them even on a losing position whereas you'll only pay tax on profits

 

[meanreversion]

Do the roll charges sum to more than you will pay in tax..??

It's not clear, I trade 10 markets, of which 4 are FX. The other 6 (commodities) are tough to trade on IG because the spreads are so wide. I've only recently added commodities to my system, so it's not clear, although at first glance the answer would be no.

 

[vizatelli]

You're quite right, it was probably above your head. What I meant was that you clearly have an axe to grind, and under the pretence of reporting what your 'close friend' told you, are spouting half truths and exaggerations.

If I had to guess, you used to work there and got fired.

Give em a call and ask them... Sorry fella, I actually live and work in NYC, you certainly wouldnt catch me working at a glorified bookies.

As I said, I was simply addressing previous posts. But thanks for you educated comments Nick.