This is not a pretty story for the spread betting industry or for the many investors who had money with WorldSpreads.
In 2012, WorldSpreads went into administration.
KPMG were appointed by the High Court as joint special administrators of Worldspreads Ltd. on 18 March 2012.
Also see the telegraph article: WorldSpreads directors accused of bet scandal.
Want a Spread Betting Account?
If you are looking for a spread betting account with a different firm, please see our spread betting company comparison.Note that the WorldSpreads information below is no longer accurate, it is maintained purely as part of the CleanFinancial.com archive.
About WorldSpreads
Founded in March 2000, WorldSpreads Group has offices in Dublin, London, Athens, Austria, Budapest and Madrid. They now trade under two distinct brands; WorldSpreads for financial markets trading and SportsSpread for sports betting.Why open a spread betting account with WorldSpreads? Here’s what they say:
“WorldSpreads aims to provide high quality sports and financial betting services to a global audience whilst offering a full range of prices on the World’s equity, forex, interest rate and commodity markets in a low cost and tax efficient manner.
Extended Dealing Hours
“The markets do not sleep and WorldSpreads offers extended trading hours on most instruments. You can call us between 7am and 9.15pm Monday to Friday London time. You can also check exact trading times for each instrument on our site.
Instant Execution**
“You do not have to wait for a broker to get back to you before entering or closing any spread bet. Whenever you feel like betting, WorldSpreads offers instant execution via the phone or our online dealing platform, assuming appropriate liquidity in the markets.
Go Long or Short
“Profiting from falling markets is not reserved to institutional fund managers or hedge funds anymore. Individual investors who have an account with WorldSpreads can now also benefit from the ability to short financial instruments, therefore maximising profits in volatile markets.
No Currency Risk
“Once you have elected your reference currency; Euro, Dollar or Sterling, you can process all your transactions in that reference currency and without running any currency risk. This is because, as opposed to standard share dealing, WorldSpreads quote prices per point move, not per Euro, Dollar or Sterling amount.
Trade in Small Sizes
“WorldSpreads lets you trade from as little as £1 (or currency equivalent) per point on all markets. This is far smaller than you would be able to trade with a broker on the underlying markets.
Hedging facilities
“If you know of a foreign currency payment to be made in the near future and are happy with the current exchange rate, WorldSpreads can help you hedge against any adverse currency movement. We quote the main FX cross rates and are happy to consider any specific request. This also applies to hedging a portfolio of stocks for a limited period of time, or arbitraging between particular stocks.”
Stability and Regulation
Spread Betting Company Comparison
Also see – Spread Betting Companies Comparison.WorldSpreads Markets
Below you will find a sample of the markets offered by WorldSpreads along with their typical in-hours spread size and the minimum stake for that market. See WorldSpreads for full details.WorldSpreads offers spread bets on a range of stock indices including: Nikkei 225, Hong Kong 40, SGX NIFTY (Indian “Nifty Fifty”), Russell 2000 and more.
WorldSpreads offers spread bets on a range of commodities including: Silver, High Grade Copper, Platinum, Corn, Wheat, Robusta Coffee and more.
WorldSpreads offers spread bets on a range of forex markets including: Sterling/Japanese Yen, Australian$/US$, Euro/Swiss Franc, Euro/Swedish Krona and more.
WorldSpreads £100,000 Spread Betting Competition
Competition Now ClosedWorldSpreads is offering a prize of £100,000 to any spread betting account holder who can open and close ten consecutive profitable trades in a row between Monday 15th November and Friday 10th December. To qualify, the trade must earn a profit of at least five points.
The competition celebrates 10 successful years in which WorldSpreads has grown globally and become, from a price perspective, one of the most competitive spread betting companies in the UK.
A recent study of WorldSpreads customers’ spread betting activity showed that almost 75% of clients’ bets are closed in profit. In fact, 7 WorldSpreads clients placed 10 such consecutive winning trades between May and July of this year.
If more than 1 spread bettor wins, the cash will be divided equally. If no-one achieves 10 such profitable trades in a row, the prize will be award to the client(s) with the highest number of consecutive winning trades.
The competition is open to new and existing spread betting customers.
WorldSpreads CEO Conor Foley, says that this is a chance for any type of investor to show what they can do, “This competition is for everybody. It celebrates not only our birthday but the appeal of spread betting for those trading for a living or just for fun. I look forward to handing over the cheques in time for Christmas” he said.
World Spreads – Trading
‘Open and Closed’ trades means new trades, not a series of profits from one trade, for instance, by profitably trading the Wall Street index ten times in an hour. A five point profit must be achieved for a trade to qualify.WorldSpreads clients can take a position on multiple asset classes using a single account. Spread betting lends itself very well to short-term trading, with low transaction costs and real-time pricing on a web-based platform. With the exception of those taking a longer-term view of stocks and shares, the majority of a spread-bettors’ positions are closed on the same day they are opened.
**WorldSpreads retains the right to refer any trade to a dealer for manual price adjustment if, in our opinion, the price being traded is not the correct market price. In these circumstances, you will always be re-offered the amended market price for you to accept or reject.
Spread betting and CFD trading carry a high level of risk to your capital and you may lose more than your initial investment. Spread betting and CFD trading may not be suitable for all investors. Only speculate with money that you can afford to lose. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.