CFDs vs. Futures
Contracts for Variance (CFDs) and Futures are two types of widely used derivative contracts, as their prices originate from distinct underlying properties. They encourage traders to bet on price volatility without owning securities. Both are heavily leveraged financial instruments, giving traders higher exposure with a limited initial investment equal to a small portion of the underlying asset's real value.
CFDs and Futures: What are they?
A futures contract is an obligation to purchase (long) or sell (short) a financial commodity based on an underlying asset at a fixed date. These contracts include the exact amount, location, sale/ purchase date of the physical asset, and the predetermined price. When the deal ends, a trader can resolve it in cash or by debiting or crediting the money from the account of the party involved, or by the actual transfer of the underlying asset. Future futures are exchanged only on particular markets, precisely specifying each trade's parameters.

CFDs are arrangements to swap the price differential of an asset between contract start and end or merely a deal dependent on an underlying asset's price volatility. The trader speculates on price movement, and if they conclude that prices are going to grow, they take a long position, and if they assume prices will decline, they take a short market position. The faction who has their speculation right gets the market fluctuation profit.
What are their differences?
Standardization
Both are derivatives, but they vary where they are sold. Future contracts are exchanged in official exchanges such as London Stock Exchange, Euronext, NASDAQ Futures Exchange (NFX), and more. Highly regulated and structured futures contracts with fixed parameters. Just the settlement date varies from contract to contract.
Difference contracts are instruments traded over-the-counter (OTC). Often they are not issued by official exchanges but by traders with their terms and conditions. CFD companies organize an asset-to-trade market and often generate and deliver real-time rates.
Spreads
This is the disparity in an asset's buying or selling price. Futures and CFDs are sold using spreads. However, spreads on the futures market appear to be small. Often, CFD companies use the futures market to hedge their bets and give the CFD market a wider spread.
Versatility of Leverage
Leverage helps a dealer to achieve much greater leverage than they will use the quantity of their portfolio. The increased debt will multiply the potential benefit, but greater exposure will also mean higher potential risks.
For futures, leverage ranges from contract to contract, but it's not very flexible. An exchange or clearing house decides the original margin or amount deposited to acquire a futures contract. This margin is around 5-10% of the contract's real value.
Brokers build CFDs, allowing the broker to set the initial contract margin. This offers a range of opportunities for individual traders in terms of initial margin, depending on their risk appetite.
Scale
of contract
Regulations
There are fewer controls on CFDs relative to futures, making it easier to open an account to sell CFDs. Future contracts are heavily regulated by exchanges, making opening an account complicated. Fewer rules often facilitate CFDs with far less money than futures.
Expiration
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