UK brokers

[paulm1162]

Hi everybody,
I don't know where is the right place to ask this question as the site isn't too clear.
I am looking for an FCA regulated spread betting broker, who allows micro lots, scalping and is not a market maker...any help would be most appreciated, don't trust FXCM.

I have heard a few clearly uninformed people state that spread betting is gambling ha ha, sounds like jealousy as I have done both spread betting and "normal"? trading in forex and there is NO difference only the tax break for UK residents.

all the best and thanks in advance

Paul

 

[FxMaster]

Not sure that you have chosen right place or not but according to me Company Comparisons and Competitions is the right place for this thread.

 

[Pharaoh]

As I understand it, by UK legal definitions, spreadbetting is gambling. Unless something's changed, this makes any profits into non-taxable "gambling winnings" for those in the UK. Unless I'm misinformed, spread betting firms are pure bucketshops, keeping all trades in house - just like a casino. As such, you need to check carefully with the UK regulators to make certain any such firm is in good standing.

 

[NanoAlpha]

FXCM UK insists that it's not keeping trades in house, even on spread-betting accounts.

In the spread betting pricing model, FXCM acts as a price aggregator. Once a mark-up is added, we take the best available bid and best ask prices from our liquidity providers and stream those prices to your platform.

Spread Betting - FXCM UK

 

[paulm1162]

And yet there is NO difference between opening a standard account, even an American, Aussie one etc or any standard trading account as opposed to a spread betting account, apart from tax reasons.
Spread betting = spread on pips
Standard account = spread on pips
I think don't think the FCA would be a regulator for such companies if they were bucket shops, some of the biggest names in Forex, as you can imagine being in London, offer U.K based customers spread betting accounts.
Whether it is called "trading" or "spread betting" it is in effect all betting, as one or the other outcome.
The reason the tax break is due to more people losing money on anything called betting and if it were not classified as betting it would cost the treasury Billions in tax breaks for everyone who bets on anything, as people could write the losses off as part of their tax returns, quite clever really

 

[paulm1162]

sorry about that but the site doesn't make it easy to find where to start a new post, or which post goes where, so my apologies sir,

 

[Ed_Forex]

Many brokers are registered not regulated by the FCA. Can someone please explain what's the legal difference between both?