Good to get some (as always) widely differing opinions. Been...

Good to get some (as always) widely differing opinions. Been away on hols for a while so I didn't get any of these responses until now, so not sure if any of you are still loking at this thread...

What I was getting at is not just whether CFDs are suitable for beginners, or suitable fullstop, but rather whether they are simply a scheme to prey on beginners and those who are tempted to gamble a bit more - you know the type, the ones who love going to the races and playing the pokies.

Options are complicated to trade, requiring a certain type of mind and a degree of analysis, whereas CFDs can be traded by any old mug off the street with no trading experience whatsoever. (While CFDs are not the same as options, they certainly share some of their characteristics, which is why I was asking whether anyone thought whether they were a watered-down version of options.)

Not to take anything away from those of you who trade CFDs successfully, and take your trading of them seriously - I do too - but I believe it is simply wrong that companies are signing up people with no experience trading with leverage, who then end up losing a packet.

As some people have said here, trading CFDs is not for those who don't have experience with leverage, and not for those who have a tendency to gamble - go to the track instead, you'll lose far less and have a much better time doing it.

FF