CFDs are not authorized to be traded/sold in the US. Unless we have a lot of traders from the UK on here, I doubt there will be much of a discussion... Why don't you tell us what you think about trading CFDs though?
i use cfds through http://www.gnitouch.com/cfd/cfd_about.shtml *i don't work for them or anything* they are expensive, but most are. you deal direct access for europe, uk, us stocks. i don't mind the fees/commission though i think of it as the cost for 10x leverage, and all the other things ie data, news feeds you get. besides you can haggle wiv most cfd providers to cut a deal (of some sort ) personally wouldn't trade anyother way. plus they're based in the uk, some are offshore so be careful. good trading.
don't trade CFDS, trade the underlying. trading CFD's you are trading against a market maker by his rules and they control your fills, and there is plently of shady business going on there.
The only reason to trade them is to avoid taxes and duties. In the UK there is a stamp tax on share trading while gambling winnings are tax free. CFD and spreadbetting firms are setup as gambling outfits for the purpose of these tax laws. If your not eligible for these tax breaks there is probably no reason to be involved in CFDs or spreadbetting.
a lot are shady, but if you get a direct access cfd provider, i don't see how they control your fill, i CAN, however, see my orders in the order book (level 2).
I assume the CFD provider is hedging themselves in the underlying. So they pay the stamp duty? Or is there a way, like say brokers don't pay the stamp duty for own account trading?
I would assume that market makers do not pay stamp tax or there would be no share trading at all. I don't know what you have to do to qualify as a market maker.