City Index

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Supermalt

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hey, im new here and just want recommendations for an sb firm, ive signed with city index are they any good?:?:
 
Actually don't recall city getting much of a mention here, only the fact that they bought out finspreads gets them a bit of a comment by name in a thread.

Welcome to the forum btw Supermalt :D
 
Supermalt said:
hey, im new here and just want recommendations for an sb firm, ive signed with city index are they any good?:?:
Click to expand...


IGIndex- a big company, lots of flexibility in trading, best choice of markets, fast execution- only problem is slightly larger spreads.

Some other names to check out (google them for websites):

Capital Spreads
ODL
Worldspreads
Futuresbetting (for larger accounts- DMA access)
Interactive Investor
Capital Spreads
ETX Capital
GFT UK

There are many many more... it all depends what kind of account size you will be trading, what markets you want to trade, etc. Nearly any spreadbetting site is OK if you just want to trade the FTSE or DOW at low limits (under £20 a point). Above this you need to pick and choose more carefully. Also you might need to choose carefully if you plan on using your account to make very short term trades/scalp. Some companies don't like customers doing this, or the platform may not be fast enough/accurate enough to be able to eek out a profit.
 
Lightning McQueen said:
Don't dispair Supermalt, options must have had a bad trading week :whistling Oi! Cheeky git. Had a very good week actually.

I'm sure someone will help, in the meantime check out the spread betting forum lots of input there for you to read.

Spread Betting - T2W Day Trading & Forex Forums

Curious as to why you wish to open an account with another sb company, any particular reason?
Click to expand...
This was basically what I asked. Just seemed an **** about face way of doing things.

Open an account and then ask for reccomendations
 
Welcome supermalt.I see youve had your first thread hijacked by some some over earning pissed traders unwinding for the weekend.Ill give my pennies worth about city index. UKtrader is correct the about the trading under £20 rule.Im sure if you look at their spreads they are generally wider than most of the others. Ive had no problems with CMC and their spreads are as good as any.The are other good companies as well,A good look round the site will tell you all you need to know.
 
UKtradergirl said:
Also you might need to choose carefully if you plan on using your account to make very short term trades/scalp. Some companies don't like customers doing this, or the platform may not be fast enough/accurate enough to be able to eek out a profit.
Click to expand...

If you could expand on this and offer any advice or preference I would be grateful as this is the direction I will probably go.
 
OlympicBlue said:
If you could expand on this and offer any advice or preference I would be grateful as this is the direction I will probably go.
Click to expand...


Olympic- i don't often scalp so i don't know how one would go about scalping on a regular basis on a reliable platform.

However:-

If you want to spreadbet- i hear that futuresbetting.com trading platform is direct access to the market, with quick fills. You need £2500 to open an account there.

Also, if you are just doing small amounts, or low values- look for a spreadbetting company that has very tight spreads. I have been scalping on tradefair at £5 a point on the FTSE100--- only has a 1 point spread so more chance of getting a profit :). I stopped scalping with them now after they messed up a couple of my trades though.

If you scalp regularly and take profit through SB companies- many of them will place you on dealer referral, your trades get referred to the dealer before being accepted, meaning they have the chance to accept/reject the trade (more likely to accept it if the actual market has gone against the price already!).

So, spreadbetting - i'd recommend scalping up to around £20 a point- and switching companies if you get put on dealer referral. Also look for 1 or 2 point spreads. Or... join futuresbetting for direct market access.

Perhaps someone else can put forward a way of scalping that does not involve spreadbetting. Can CFD's be used for this? Or what other methods?
 
UKtradergirl said:
Olympic- i don't often scalp so i don't know how one would go about scalping on a regular basis on a reliable platform.

However:-

If you want to spreadbet- i hear that futuresbetting.com trading platform is direct access to the market, with quick fills. You need £2500 to open an account there.

Also, if you are just doing small amounts, or low values- look for a spreadbetting company that has very tight spreads. I have been scalping on tradefair at £5 a point on the FTSE100--- only has a 1 point spread so more chance of getting a profit :). I stopped scalping with them now after they messed up a couple of my trades though.

If you scalp regularly and take profit through SB companies- many of them will place you on dealer referral, your trades get referred to the dealer before being accepted, meaning they have the chance to accept/reject the trade (more likely to accept it if the actual market has gone against the price already!).

So, spreadbetting - i'd recommend scalping up to around £20 a point- and switching companies if you get put on dealer referral. Also look for 1 or 2 point spreads. Or... join futuresbetting for direct market access.

Perhaps someone else can put forward a way of scalping that does not involve spreadbetting. Can CFD's be used for this? Or what other methods?
Click to expand...

Tradergirl,
Thanks so much for your reply.

Just before your reply I had been reading other threads on here about spread betting firms – having ‘pencilled in’ IG, CMC and Capital Spreads to demo.

However, as no doubt your aware, there is quite a lot of criticism about of all these firms and having just looked at another thread I see that you started one asking for the positive views. Reading this has restored some faith otherwise you would have thought that opening a spread betting account was akin to making a pact with the devil!

Anyway, I see that from the above selection that Capital Spreads have the tightest margins but this won’t be the deciding factor.

I did look at the futurespreadbetting.com site – but they only deal with the futures markets and therefore – at the moment – this would rule them out for me.

I suppose what I’ll be looking at is which supplier has the easiest and most user friendly interface for placing the orders. I have seen a facility on CMC’s platform whereby this can be done by virtually a ‘single click’ process thus making getting in/out much quicker. Is this common to the IG platform which I believe you have used?

As for the technical side, I have been advised to use a properly designated and independent platform and since I can get esignal’s free for a month – I can trial this also.

Regarding stop losses, again there is a lot of bad feeling about these and how the various SB firms operate them.

However, is not just practicable to execute a trade without registering a stop loss, monitor it (however long is required) and then when your position reaches the pre-determined stop or exit that you have in mind, close?

Finally, with regard to ‘scalping’ not sure what the rules are there, but generally, my paper trades have been anything from 30mins – 180mins – i.e. identifying the movement, getting in and then monitoring it.
 
Olympic,

I think the way you trade is just daytrading, not scalping. Definitions vary, but generally scalpers are in and out of a trade within a few minutes. You can see how this would be problematic if the quote was out by 2 points or you didn't get an instant close.

The CMC interface is quicker and smoother in appearance compared to IG. However, open an account with both and compare the speed of execution and you will see that IG is lightyears ahead in terms of instant fills, no requotes, etc. CMC might be faster for you clicking, but the orders tend to hang for about 5 seconds or so before getting filled. Doesn't sound like a lot but in practise it can be a bit unnerving.. not to mention that if the order is rejected you have to do it again. To CMC's credit however, they did give me £200 for free because i opened an account but didn't fund it for some time. I'm open to free money anytime. :LOL:

If you decide to go with IG they have a great charting package.

Yes you can open a trade without a stop loss. It is called a 'mental stop'. Make sure you execute it when the price reaches this point though! It is also worth putting in a stop in the system anyway, a 'disaster stop' some distance away incase of an emergency-(powercut, computer blows up, massive price movement against you when you decide to go to the toilet, etc). Be aware that placing no stop also increases your margin requirements for that trade- actually some companies will not let you place trades with no stop but will generally put a kind of 'disaster stop' perhaps 100 points away.

Spreadbetting has its good side- it has a bad side also. Know your enemy at all times and you will be fine. :LOL: And if you are not happy with service somewhere, vote with your feet and move somewhere else. Or in my case, move everywhere (accounts all over the place at the moment- i need to close some!).
 
UKtradergirl said:
Olympic,

I think the way you trade is just daytrading, not scalping. Definitions vary, but generally scalpers are in and out of a trade within a few minutes. You can see how this would be problematic if the quote was out by 2 points or you didn't get an instant close.

The CMC interface is quicker and smoother in appearance compared to IG. However, open an account with both and compare the speed of execution and you will see that IG is lightyears ahead in terms of instant fills, no requotes, etc. CMC might be faster for you clicking, but the orders tend to hang for about 5 seconds or so before getting filled. Doesn't sound like a lot but in practise it can be a bit unnerving.. not to mention that if the order is rejected you have to do it again. To CMC's credit however, they did give me £200 for free because i opened an account but didn't fund it for some time. I'm open to free money anytime. :LOL:

If you decide to go with IG they have a great charting package.

Yes you can open a trade without a stop loss. It is called a 'mental stop'. Make sure you execute it when the price reaches this point though! It is also worth putting in a stop in the system anyway, a 'disaster stop' some distance away incase of an emergency-(powercut, computer blows up, massive price movement against you when you decide to go to the toilet, etc). Be aware that placing no stop also increases your margin requirements for that trade- actually some companies will not let you place trades with no stop but will generally put a kind of 'disaster stop' perhaps 100 points away.

Spreadbetting has its good side- it has a bad side also. Know your enemy at all times and you will be fine. :LOL: And if you are not happy with service somewhere, vote with your feet and move somewhere else. Or in my case, move everywhere (accounts all over the place at the moment- i need to close some!).
Click to expand...
There is some sensible advice in this post. All the same, I do not recommend a mental stop. You can get burnt to the ground in today's volatile market, if you are not able to close your position in time. Not many can handle it when the going gets really tough, newbies and experienced traders alike. It is very good to know the "enemies" but the most important thing is to know yourself and your limitations.
 
UKtradergirl said:
Olympic,

I think the way you trade is just daytrading, not scalping. Definitions vary, but generally scalpers are in and out of a trade within a few minutes. You can see how this would be problematic if the quote was out by 2 points or you didn't get an instant close.

The CMC interface is quicker and smoother in appearance compared to IG. However, open an account with both and compare the speed of execution and you will see that IG is lightyears ahead in terms of instant fills, no requotes, etc. CMC might be faster for you clicking, but the orders tend to hang for about 5 seconds or so before getting filled. Doesn't sound like a lot but in practise it can be a bit unnerving.. not to mention that if the order is rejected you have to do it again. To CMC's credit however, they did give me £200 for free because i opened an account but didn't fund it for some time. I'm open to free money anytime. :LOL:

If you decide to go with IG they have a great charting package.

Yes you can open a trade without a stop loss. It is called a 'mental stop'. Make sure you execute it when the price reaches this point though! It is also worth putting in a stop in the system anyway, a 'disaster stop' some distance away incase of an emergency-(powercut, computer blows up, massive price movement against you when you decide to go to the toilet, etc). Be aware that placing no stop also increases your margin requirements for that trade- actually some companies will not let you place trades with no stop but will generally put a kind of 'disaster stop' perhaps 100 points away.

Spreadbetting has its good side- it has a bad side also. Know your enemy at all times and you will be fine. :LOL: And if you are not happy with service somewhere, vote with your feet and move somewhere else. Or in my case, move everywhere (accounts all over the place at the moment- i need to close some!).
Click to expand...

TraderGirl,

Thanks for all your comments and reply about CMC and IG.

It is interesting what you say about CMC and the quicker IG fills (see below) and I take your point totally about having a ‘disaster stop’ in place.

For what it is worth, I ‘traded’ using Capital Spread ‘demo’ account on Friday (FTSE & DOW) and can report that I found the facilities very slow and frustrating to use. This is a shame, because the concept of depositing your account with an 'imaginary' £10,000 to 'simulate trading, is an excellent idea and it does give a sense of ‘drama’ and (to a lesser extent) a feeling of loss or gain. In this respect, I would thoroughly recommend it.

However, the overall feeling was one of frustration and I would be the first to admit that my lack of experience probably didn’t help - but please tell me there shouldn’t be a five minutes delay from clicking to trade to the order showing up?

Admittedly, this did not happen on every occasion, but there were also occasions where - having assumed my order had been rejected (there was no screen activity to confirm that it had been accepted as with previous orders) – this then showed up later in the order book when I opened it! Not good.

Small (how small?) delays and on screen messages like “getting best price”, I can accept are par for the course.

Therefore, although I cannot vouch whether their ‘full service’ has these problems, I already know if it did, then this platform would not be for me. As for chart facilities on the demo account – there were none - so I used ADVFN’s site.

I will now check out CMC and IG which I like the sound of. Incidentally, do you use an independent platform such as esignal or similar alongside IG platform to monitor the market for closer real time pricing etc.?

Thanks again.
 
OlympicBlue said:
TraderGirl,

Thanks for all your comments and reply about CMC and IG.

It is interesting what you say about CMC and the quicker IG fills (see below) and I take your point totally about having a ‘disaster stop’ in place.

For what it is worth, I ‘traded’ using Capital Spread ‘demo’ account on Friday (FTSE & DOW) and can report that I found the facilities very slow and frustrating to use. This is a shame, because the concept of depositing your account with an 'imaginary' £10,000 to 'simulate trading, is an excellent idea and it does give a sense of ‘drama’ and (to a lesser extent) a feeling of loss or gain. In this respect, I would thoroughly recommend it.

However, the overall feeling was one of frustration and I would be the first to admit that my lack of experience probably didn’t help - but please tell me there shouldn’t be a five minutes delay from clicking to trade to the order showing up?

Admittedly, this did not happen on every occasion, but there were also occasions where - having assumed my order had been rejected (there was no screen activity to confirm that it had been accepted as with previous orders) – this then showed up later in the order book when I opened it! Not good.

Small (how small?) delays and on screen messages like “getting best price”, I can accept are par for the course.

Therefore, although I cannot vouch whether their ‘full service’ has these problems, I already know if it did, then this platform would not be for me. As for chart facilities on the demo account – there were none - so I used ADVFN’s site.

I will now check out CMC and IG which I like the sound of. Incidentally, do you use an independent platform such as esignal or similar alongside IG platform to monitor the market for closer real time pricing etc.?

Thanks again.
Click to expand...

Demo accounts are great but you can't really use it as a true comparison to what it would be like operating a real account. Demo's tend to be slower and clunkier on account of using up less resources- real money accounts get priority. Saying that, i don't use capital spreads so do not know what their live system is like.

In my opinion, a good platform will reflect your new positions within 2-3 seconds of clicking the 'buy' and 'sell'. I am happy to say that IG has done this every time. Waiting 5 minutes is terrible- but like i said before, it could just be because it's a demo.

I don't use other charts outside of IG at the moment. I find their charts to be both very accurate and very flexible with regards indicators, customisation, etc (they are 'real-time' too). Out of interest i have had subscriptions in the past to compare the real-time data to see how closely IG track the 'real' prices- and have found them to be very accurate indeed. The best free charting package around is definitely with IG.

Perhaps if you have narrowed it down to a couple of spreadbetting companies you like you can open an account with them both- just deposit the minimums and place a few trades in each. It is only through actually having the experience of doing it that you will be able to tell which you prefer. It is also handy to have two accounts- one for use in emergencies- if your preferred platform goes down for whatever reason, or you have a problem closing a trade you can use the other company to 'hedge' the trade you can't close. I've only had one instance so far where this would have been useful- but i still keep several accounts there for my peace of mind. The last thing i would want is for a platform to fail on me only to see a losing position get ever bigger and not be able to do anything about it. (keep records of their phone numbers too incase you have a power cut and can't access their platform- recently my broadband went down and i wasn't able to close a position and didn't have the phone number to hand- cue mad dash to my mum's house to use their internet!).
 
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