Best Thread CMC Markets owner answers your questions

[gle101]

hi gle101
not here to promote my company just answer questions with truthful answers. However, I but do agree we should stick to the issues regarding the industry. so lets move on but still think you work for a competitor.

cheers pc

Yes lets move on. No honestly, I don't work for a competitor.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

ok then I apologise.
tks pc

Yes lets move on. No honestly, I don't work for a competitor.

 

[gle101]

ok then I apologise.
tks pc

Thanks a lot.

 

[gle101]

Peter, it would be interesting to hear yours and CMC next generation platform viewpoint on scalpers.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

Hi Gle101
Good question and long answer needed so here goes.

Firstly what we have to do is define what a scalper is. I define a scalper who is some one that looks to hit a sb company on a price when the price is wrong or out of line. Why would the price be out of line? for a few reasons but normally if the client is trading on line because the technology is not able to cope with the demands of clients and the market volatility. A scalper can also be a computer trading system and that is when it gets really sophisticated. I suppose a scalper is not looking to make money from market movements, but they are looking to make money from technology lags, irregular fluctuations and extreme market volatility, eg. when cash moves out of line to futures etc. so are they traders or are they chancers? . To be honest it doesn't matter, if you are a sb company because the end result is that if your system is not working perfectly 100 percent you are going to lose money or eventually your system will not be able to cope in extreme periods and you will lose clients and credibility.

in a way high frequency trading systems front running exchange orders are scalpers but the exchange can cope with them.

when we were looking at the technology for next gen. we decided that we would have to put together a system that could cope with extreme volatility, scalpers, programmed trading systems, high frequency traders etc, anybody that wanted to hit us on a price for whatever reason. remember next gen is not just a uk spread bet platform, it is also a global cfd platform and has to work 24 hours a day 6 days a week. So I got the guy in from Goldmans that was a senior member of the team that put together their ready system and he developed next gen for us.

our objective is to be able to cope with all traders, computers, scalpers through any market any time. I think we are there. There is still some work to be done on some products that is why we havent released all the products yet but they will come in next month or so.

so I say once we finish some back end stuff on next gen. say over the next one to three months then bring it on. we already take lots of scalpers and to be honest it is a lot easier to scalp with other providers than cmc markets with next gen technology.

so there you have it. we are gearing up for all comers and I am 100 percent confident we will get there and very very soon. in fact some would argue in this company that we are there now but i want to see all products on the platform before I agree with them.

hope that helps

peter

Peter, it would be interesting to hear yours and CMC next generation platform viewpoint on scalpers.

 

[gle101]

Hi Gle101
Good question and long answer needed so here goes.

Firstly what we have to do is define what a scalper is. I define a scalper who is some one that looks to hit a sb company on a price when the price is wrong or out of line. Why would the price be out of line? for a few reasons but normally if the client is trading on line because the technology is not able to cope with the demands of clients and the market volatility. A scalper can also be a computer trading system and that is when it gets really sophisticated. I suppose a scalper is not looking to make money from market movements, but they are looking to make money from technology lags, irregular fluctuations and extreme market volatility, eg. when cash moves out of line to futures etc. so are they traders or are they chancers? . To be honest it doesn't matter, if you are a sb company because the end result is that if your system is not working perfectly 100 percent you are going to lose money or eventually your system will not be able to cope in extreme periods and you will lose clients and credibility.

in a way high frequency trading systems front running exchange orders are scalpers but the exchange can cope with them.

when we were looking at the technology for next gen. we decided that we would have to put together a system that could cope with extreme volatility, scalpers, programmed trading systems, high frequency traders etc, anybody that wanted to hit us on a price for whatever reason. remember next gen is not just a uk spread bet platform, it is also a global cfd platform and has to work 24 hours a day 6 days a week. So I got the guy in from Goldmans that was a senior member of the team that put together their ready system and he developed next gen for us.

our objective is to be able to cope with all traders, computers, scalpers through any market any time. I think we are there. There is still some work to be done on some products that is why we havent released all the products yet but they will come in next month or so.

so I say once we finish some back end stuff on next gen. say over the next one to three months then bring it on. we already take lots of scalpers and to be honest it is a lot easier to scalp with other providers than cmc markets with next gen technology.

so there you have it. we are gearing up for all comers and I am 100 percent confident we will get there and very very soon. in fact some would argue in this company that we are there now but i want to see all products on the platform before I agree with them.

hope that helps

peter

Interesting answer, I get back with reflections later.

 

[Ross Spur]

Interesting answer, I get back with reflections later.

I think the SB definition of 'scalper' is a client who makes a consistent profit from trades lasting less than about 5m. If you make a loss trading 500 times a day, you're not a scalper.

One way of getting rid of people who happily take a few pt here and there is to widen the spread, of course, which seems to be the situation with next gen at the moment.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

hi ross
nop dont agree. that is heavy trader not scalper. scalp means to skim off the top

as for your other comment will treat it with the contempt it deserves.
have a nice weekend.

Peter

I think the SB definition of 'scalper' is a client who makes a consistent profit from trades lasting less than about 5m. If you make a loss trading 500 times a day, you're not a scalper.

One way of getting rid of people who happily take a few pt here and there is to widen the spread, of course, which seems to be the situation with next gen at the moment.

 

[pboyles]

I once visited your office and saw an award from Business Britain Magazine being displayed, it was in a cabinet on the right as you enter reception. A bit of digging revealed that they had also given 'awards' to various dubious companies. You might be surprised to learn that Business Britain was a magazine in name only, in fact it was just a crappy website run from a backstreet office in Leeds or somewhere. When contacted they could not provide any written article or reference to your prize at all.

And you call scalpers chancers.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

Hi Pboyles

Firstly can we get the facts right. I did not call scalpers chancers so please lets get your facts right. Please read the blog again. I said are they traders or chancers followed by a question mark. It was a question non a statement from me.

I said '' from a sb company point of view it doesnt matter'' The point I was trying to make is that we have to quote a price and deal on that price doesnt matter why the end user trades, we have to quote and trade.

Not sure why you are upset by my comments. I tried to give a balanced view of the situation from our point of view from the other side of the fence. I also tried to explain that we are putting a system together to accommodate everybody including sclapers.

thanks for your time to blog.
regards Peter

I once visited your office and saw an award from Business Britain Magazine being displayed, it was in a cabinet on the right as you enter reception. A bit of digging revealed that they had also given 'awards' to various dubious companies. You might be surprised to learn that Business Britain was a magazine in name only, in fact it was just a crappy website run from a backstreet office in Leeds or somewhere. When contacted they could not provide any written article or reference to your prize at all.

And you call scalpers chancers.

 

[pboyles]

...and the point about the fake award?

 

[Ross Spur]

hi ross
nop dont agree. that is heavy trader not scalper. scalp means to skim off the top

as for your other comment will treat it with the contempt it deserves.
have a nice weekend.

Peter

Forgive my ever so slightly cynical attitude, but in my experience (not with CMC because I never tried to use the platform for short-term trades) SBs used to put clients on some sort of hit list as soon as you made a few quick and profitable trades, even on a minimal stake. Apart from being unfair, that goes against MiFID, don't you think?

And isn't it just a fact that scalping isn't feasible if the spreads are widened, 2pt instead of 1pt, 3 pt instead of 2pt, or whatever?

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

well whats your point about the award not sure what you are trying to say. we get tons of awards from all around the world if this is not genuine then will bin it

thought you were going to apologise for making false statement

...and the point about the fake award?

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

hi ross
Think it is harder to scalp if spreads are wider but still possible. dont forget bank spreads widen during volatile periods. you should see some of the quotes we get in from major banks during volatile periods they can be all over the place at times.

no idea about mifid if you want you can contact me compliance department and they will fill you in

cheers good weekend
pc

Forgive my ever so slightly cynical attitude, but in my experience (not with CMC because I never tried to use the platform for short-term trades) SBs used to put clients on some sort of hit list as soon as you made a few quick and profitable trades, even on a minimal stake. Apart from being unfair, that goes against MiFID, don't you think?

And isn't it just a fact that scalping isn't feasible if the spreads are widened, 2pt instead of 1pt, 3 pt instead of 2pt, or whatever?

 

[oiltanker]

what's your take on the flash crash? was it profitable with the stops being hit?

 

[pboyles]

well whats your point about the award not sure what you are trying to say. we get tons of awards from all around the world if this is not genuine then will bin it

thought you were going to apologise for making false statement

It just arrived in the post one day and you thought it would make a nice ornament in the office? I think there may be more to it than that.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

what do you think

what's your take on the flash crash? was it profitable with the stops being hit?

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

you thought wrong then

It just arrived in the post one day and you thought it would make a nice ornament in the office? I think there may be more to it than that.

 

[pboyles]

you thought wrong then

Thanks for your comprehensive explanation.

 

[PC at CMC Markets]

welcome

Thanks for your comprehensive explanation.