Contracts For Difference
CFDs or contracts for differences are traded on margin between a trader their CFD provider, in an agreement to pay or receive the cash differential between the opening and closing prices of a transaction. CFDs allow retail investors to trade products that may not usually be accessible to retail investors,such as equity indices and futures. Trading CFDs is flexible you can trade long (if you think it is going up in value) or short (if you think it is going down in value) and there are no commission, trading fees, clearing fees or stamp duty to pay.
One Single Account
You can trade across multiple asset classes from just one account.Trade CFDs, forex pairs and precious metals on a single dealing platform. Clients can build their diversified investment portfolio in this account and can easily manage and monitor their exposure.
Hedging with CFDs
You can use CFDs to short sell and to profit from falling market. Traders can use this facility as a hedging tool against a portfolio. So if you have a portfolio of UK Blue chip stocks, which you wish to keep for the longer term, despite the fact you believe that stock prices could fall in value .You could mitigate any near term losses by shorting the CFDs for the UK 100.
*The use of leverage can magnify profits but it can do the same for losses. Forex and CFDs are leveraged products, involve a high level of risk and can result in the loss of more than your invested capital. Please consult our full risk warning notice.
Contract Information
| MT4 Code | P/L Currency | Trading Hours (GMT)* | Break Time (GMT) | Target Spread | Digits | Trade Size Minimum (lots) | Trade Size Maximum (lots) | Trade Size Step (lots) | Standard Contract Size | Minimum Value per Tick (CCY) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A50 | USD | 01:00 – 08:30, Monday – Friday | Daily from 08:30 – 01:00 | 12.5 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 USD |
| AUS200 | AUD | 22:50 – 21:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily from 05:30 – 06:10, 21:00 – 22:50 | 2.3 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.05 | 20 | 2 AUD |
| DE30 | EUR | 00:15 – 21:00, Monday – Friday | Daily from 21:00 – 00:15 | 1.8 | 2 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.05 | 20 | 2 EUR |
| ES35 | EUR | 07:00 – 19:00, Monday – Friday | Daily from 19:00 – 07:00 | 10.3 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 EUR |
| F40 | EUR | 07:00 – 21:00, Monday – Friday | Daily from 21:00 – 07:00 | 3.2 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 EUR |
| HK50 | HKD | 01:15 – 08:30, Monday – Friday | Daily from 00:00 – 01:15, 04:00 – 05:00, 08:30 – 00:00 | 10 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.02 | 50 | 5 HKD |
| JP225 | JPY | 23:00 – 21:15, Sunday – Friday | Daily 21:15 – 23:00 | 13.5 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.01 | 500 | 50 JPY |
| STOXX50 | EUR | 00:15 – 21:00, Monday – Friday | Daily from 21:00 – 00:15 | 3.2 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 EUR |
| UK100 | GBP | 01:00 – 21:00, Monday – Friday | Daily from 21:00 – 01:00 | 2.7 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 GBP |
| US30 | USD | 23:00 – 22:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily 21:15 – 21:30, 22:00 – 23:00 | 4.3 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.1 | 10 | 1 USD |
| US100 | USD | 23:00 – 22:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily 21:15 – 21:30, 22:00 – 23:00 | 2.3 | 1 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.05 | 20 | 2 USD |
| US500 | USD | 23:00 – 22:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily 21:15 – 21:30, 22:00 – 23:00 | 0.83 | 2 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.02 | 50 | 5 USD |
| USOil | USD | 23:00 – 22:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily 22:00 – 23:00 | 0.5 | 3 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.01 | 1000 | 10 USD |
| UKOil | USD | 23:00 – 22:00, Sunday – Friday | Daily 23:00 – 01:00, Monday - Thursday | 0.5 | 3 | 0.1 | 10 | 0.01 | 1000 | 10 USD |
Leverage
Leverage allows you to hold a larger positions than your initial cash deposit would otherwise allow. Your deposit is multiplied or leveraged by your broker to increase the value of your underlying investment. The higher the level of leverage applied,then the larger the position a trader can hold open, for the same size of initial deposit*.
*The use of leverage can magnify profits but it can do the same for losses. Forex and CFDs are leveraged products, involve a high level of risk and can result in the loss of more than your invested capital. Please consult our full risk warning notice.
For example,a client using leverage or gearing of 30:1 could control a position in the forex market of $30,000 with a margin requirement of just $1,000.
Leverage or gearing can raise the potential for high returns when the market moves in your favour. However, you should note that leverage will act against you if and when the market moves in the opposite direction to your prediction.
Leverage Levels
Different leverage level applies to different Account Settings.
Margin Requirement
When an investor opens an account with a broker, an initial deposit is required in order for the investor to be able to open a position in the market. This cash deposit acts as a buffer to cover any credit risk / market movement. Depending on their agreement, the investor will allowed by the broker to leverage their deposit up to a predetermined limit.
The margin requirement for a forex trade is calculated by using the following formula:
Margin = (Lot Size * Contract Size * Opening Price) / Leverage
Examples below based on a Standard /Classic account 1:30.
Forex
Margin requirement for one standard contract position in EUR/USD at 1.2500 is calculated as follows:
Margin = (1 * 100,000 * $1.2500) / (30) = $4166
Spot Gold
Margin requirement of one standard contract position in Gold at 1579.01 is calculated as follows:
Margin = (1 * 100 * $1579.01) / (20) = $7895
Spot Silver
Margin requirement for one standard contract position in Silver at 28.70 is calculated as follows:
Margin = (1 * 5000 * $28.70) / (20) = $7175
Note: Interest is not required to be paid on the borrowed amount, but if the investor decides to hold his position overnight, interest will be charged as the rolled over rates on the total positions held.
Margin Call
Margin Call is a level set by a brokerage that defines the minimum amount of money required to trade in the market. When your account falls below the margin call level, you will need to make an additional deposit to maintain your positions. Alternatively, you can close some of your positions to reduce your required margin. At Blackwell Global, Margin Call is set at 80%.
Stop Out Level
In the event you are unable to maintain sufficient funds in your account after hitting Margin Call, and if your account value depreciates to the Stop Out level, all your open positions will be closed automatically to prevent further loss to your capital. At Blackwell Global, Stop Out level is set at 50%.
Swaps
Blackwell Global CFD trading is only undertaken on a “spot” basis with all trades settled two business days from inception, as per market convention. Blackwell Global uses internationally recognised benchmarks based on overnight deposit rates as a basis for determining applicable interest rates. Spreads around these benchmark interest rates are applied to determine the rollover interest rate.
This rollover interest is calculated and applied to accounts at 23:59 (GMT+2) Server Time on a daily basis. Please note Blackwell Global do not arrange for or undertake physical delivery.
Any open positions held from Friday to Saturday, on a trade date basis, are charged three times the rollover interest . This additional payment takes account of interest that would have been charged on Saturday and Sunday when the market is closed.
Please note that some CFD products will have a dividend payout on certain days. This dividend will reflect in that day’s swap, so the swap may have a fluctuation on the dividend payout date.
