Spread betting at FXCM

[Jason Rogers]

what is the minimum bet per point spread betting on this platform?

hi jiggly,

The minimum bet per point is currently 0.60£. for the cable.

On the platform, your profit is in the counter currency. So if you are trading GBP/USD, your profit is in USD, and then converted back to GBP at the current exchange rate.

If each point is worth $1, then it is worth 0.60£ at the current exchange rate ( $1 / 1.60 = 0.60£). If you traded two lots, then each point would be worth 1.20£ and so forth.

If you are trading a pair that has the GBP as the counter currency, such as EUR/GBP, then it is equal to exactly 1£ per point since your profit is already in GBP.

 

[Phil Mibbutz]

Thanks for some informative answers, Jason. I understand that you can do this with FX, but what about index spread bets? Presumably you are the market maker in this case?

 

[birdt]

Thanks for some informative answers, Jason. I understand that you can do this with FX, but what about index spread bets? Presumably you are the market maker in this case?

They only offer FX by the looks of it Phil.

I downloaded the demo yesterday. Spreads look OK, comparable with MBT all told, but will have to take a closer look around news and fast markets and also in thin markets. Platform is fairly basic, but should be satisfactory for most. 10k lots, which is good for flexibility. I really liked the look of futuresbetting.com, but the 100k lot increment is way too restrictive for my MM schedule.

So, on first impressions, it looks good, and I particularly like the noises JR is making about FXCM not having the incentive to place profitable traders on manual execution. Of course, the only way to get a real idea of execution is to load up an account.

I've got a couple of questions which you might be able to help me with Jason:

Mobile trading? Is there any official software available for mobile trading on Windows mobile/iphone? I had a quick look but couldn't find much on the subject.

Are trailing stop orders held on FXCM servers and are not reliant on the users platform being connected for these to be triggered (as they are with MT4)?



And in general a question I have about spreadbetting - surely there is some kind of official definition of spreadbetting for taxation purposes which must be satisfied by those who offer the service, and does this definition not distinguish it from a regular trading account? As you have said, the only difference between the spreadbetting and spot forex account is in the name and the way orders are processed is identical. Can anyone elaborate upon this, or is 'spreadbetting' a magic word like 'open sesame', or kryptonite to the tax man?

 

[rwb]

hi jiggly,

The minimum bet per point is currently 0.60£. for the cable.

On the platform, your profit is in the counter currency. So if you are trading GBP/USD, your profit is in USD, and then converted back to GBP at the current exchange rate.

If each point is worth $1, then it is worth 0.60£ at the current exchange rate ( $1 / 1.60 = 0.60£). If you traded two lots, then each point would be worth 1.20£ and so forth.

If you are trading a pair that has the GBP as the counter currency, such as EUR/GBP, then it is equal to exactly 1£ per point since your profit is already in GBP.

Jason, what are your standard margin requirements for say E/U & cable and what would be the minimums when SL is applied to a trade, thanks.

 

[Phil Mibbutz]

They only offer FX by the looks of it Phil.

Yeah, think I was confusing them with ETX, as per the ad that seems to appear at the top of this board.

 

[Jason Rogers]

Thanks for some informative answers, Jason. I understand that you can do this with FX, but what about index spread bets? Presumably you are the market maker in this case?

Hi Phil,

The spread bet accounts only have FX at the moment. We have indices, but they're on the CFD platform. Possibly eventually we may have it on the spread bet platform as well. I'm checking on my side to see if this may be the case. But for the index CFD's, they are no requote CFD's. We offset the trade in real time for index trades as well.

Jason

 

[Jason Rogers]

Thanks for the feedback birdt,

We are creating a mobile trading platform right now. Have tested it myself, but it's still going through development. So far, I know it will be compatible with at least Blackberry and iPhone. If you use something else, let me know what sort of device you use and I'll make sure to forward the information to our developers. No set date for release yet.

The trailing stops are held on FXCM's servers. So no need to worry about the platform being open on your computer. Also important, the banks cannot see where your stop loss orders are located since all orders are held on FXCM's server. The order only becomes active when the price is quoted and the order is then sent to the banks for execution.

-Jason

I've got a couple of questions which you might be able to help me with Jason:

Mobile trading? Is there any official software available for mobile trading on Windows mobile/iphone? I had a quick look but couldn't find much on the subject.

Are trailing stop orders held on FXCM servers and are not reliant on the users platform being connected for these to be triggered (as they are with MT4)?

 

[Jason Rogers]

hi rwb,

The margin requirement is 500£ per standard lot (100k). The smallest trading size is a mini lot (10k) in which case the margin requirement is 50£. The margin requirement is the same regardless of if there is a SL applied to the trade or not. This is true for the EUR/USD, GBP/USD and the majority of the currency pairs.

For some of the exotic currencies, the margin requirement could be higher such as for USD/ZAR, USD/MXN, EUR/TRY, USD/TRY, and the nordic currency pairs.

-Jason

Jason, what are your standard margin requirements for say E/U & cable and what would be the minimums when SL is applied to a trade, thanks.

 

[BetTreader]

Hello Jason.

Is it possible to use Moneybookers to fund or withdraw money from the account.
I know it's not written non the web page but anyway
i wanted to know if maybe you offer this option on request.

Thanks.
Ciao.

 

[Jason Rogers]

Hello Jason.

Is it possible to use Moneybookers to fund or withdraw money from the account.
I know it's not written non the web page but anyway
i wanted to know if maybe you offer this option on request.

Thanks.
Ciao.

hi BetTrader,

I checked with the operations team on this one. It's not possible unfortunately, but I will include it in the list of requests we get for new features, products, etc.

Jason

 

[Shaun12uk]

Hi Jason,
What is the speed of execution like on the platform. My only concern is that you have to wait before FXCM have the quotes to take the positions in the real markets before you can make your bet.

1. Are there delays or is it an instant single click execution system.
2. What are the delay times on orders .
3. Are stop losses/trailing guaranteed or executed at best price in times fat moving markets.
4. What is your slippage % on orders.

Regards
Shaun

 

[Jason Rogers]

Hi Jason,
What is the speed of execution like on the platform. My only concern is that you have to wait before FXCM have the quotes to take the positions in the real markets before you can make your bet.

1. Are there delays or is it an instant single click execution system.
2. What are the delay times on orders .
3. Are stop losses/trailing guaranteed or executed at best price in times fat moving markets.
4. What is your slippage % on orders.

Regards
Shaun

Hi Shaun,

Thanks for the questions.

FXCM’s spread betting platform streams through executable price quotes directly from the banks. There are currently 10 banks quoting prices. From the time you place the order, I would say your order is executed within seconds if not faster by the time it is received. Our servers are located in New York from where nearly every major bank and institution provides pricing so the latency is minimal. About 8 million trades are executed per month through the platform, so it can handle a substantial amount of volume and execute trades with minimal latency.

There are 3 options for submitting orders: default, double click, and single click. The platform will initially open to default mode which is a two step process for executing orders. In default, you first click on the market price, a window appears where you can review the currency pair, amount, etc, and then you click the OK button to submit the order. This option can be changed to one-click execution if you want the order submitted for execution immediately when you click on the price. We allow multiple options. It is defaulted to the two click process to minimize any accidental errors if a trader clicks directly on the market price. For the quickest order placement possible, you can use one-click or double click trading. I would recommend practicing with it on a demo first. The options are found by clicking on the Trading Mode button at the very top of the platform.

The stop loss orders and trailing stops are always executed at the best price available so there can be slippage. It operates this way because FXCM is not making a market on the spread betting accounts and therefore cannot guarantee the price at which the order will be executed. This also means there will be no re-quotes. The order simply gets filled at the best price available. During times of fast moving markets, your order could experience slippage and the amount of slippage is dependent on liquidity in the market being provided by the banks. I don’t have statistics on the percentage of orders slipped; however, during news events the percentage would go up due to the nature of the market. The goal is to keep slippage to a minimum and having 10 banks quoting prices helps the pricing to be competitive even during fast moving markets.

I hope that helps and let me know if anything was unclear.

-Jason

 

[marlintrdg]

Hi Phil,

The spread bet accounts only have FX at the moment. We have indices, but they're on the CFD platform. Possibly eventually we may have it on the spread bet platform as well. I'm checking on my side to see if this may be the case. But for the index CFD's, they are no requote CFD's. We offset the trade in real time for index trades as well.

Jason

Jason

Any update on adding indices to your spreadbetting offering with competitive spreads and margins as low as CS and others?

I've been trying to find CFD info on your website but it just says coming soon.

mar.

 

[Jason Rogers]

Jason

Any update on adding indices to your spreadbetting offering with competitive spreads and margins as low as CS and others?

I've been trying to find CFD info on your website but it just says coming soon.

mar.

Hi mar.,

It's been a long time in coming, but the release of CFD's is imminent :clap:. There is a high likelihood the website www.fxcm.co.uk will be updated later this evening or on Thursday at the latest with CFD information.

The product list will be released along with the new website. For the initial launch, we will have the major indices, oil, gold and silver.

So check the website tonight (after 9pm GMT), or tomorrow.

Jason

 

[marlintrdg]

Hi mar.,

It's been a long time in coming, but the release of CFD's is imminent :clap:. There is a high likelihood the website www.fxcm.co.uk will be updated later this evening or on Thursday at the latest with CFD information.

The product list will be released along with the new website. For the initial launch, we will have the major indices, oil, gold and silver.

So check the website tonight (after 9pm GMT), or tomorrow.

Jason

Thanks Jason,

Will the spreadbetting side also have the major indices, oil, gold and silver?

mar.

 

[Jason Rogers]

Thanks Jason,

Will the spreadbetting side also have the major indices, oil, gold and silver?

mar.

Not initially. Probably about 6 weeks away to having it added to the spread betting accounts. CFD accounts with forex, indices, oil, gold, and silver will be released first.

 

[Jason Rogers]

:!: CFD's are now available www.fxcm.co.uk

I will also be away until Tuesday Sept 1, so if you have any questions, I will answer them then or please contact FXCM UK!

 

[Jack Hughes]

Any news on the indices front?

 

[gle101]

Any news on the indices front?

I did have a look at the demo. The spreads on the indices is not competitive.

 

[Jason Rogers]

Any news on the indices front?

Here's a list of the indices available, along with the corresponding futures contract:

The indices are located on the CFD account. It will be a couple of months before they are added to the spread betting accounts.