CantorIndex; Women making a killing on the Orient Express ; One sends her six-year-old to check share prices while she's in the bath. Another stressed trader wears gloves so she can't bite her nails. A third has made pounds 2,000 by the time the train returns to Victoria. They're the new spread betting high-rollers;
Tim Hogman, public relations officer for Cantor Index (see review here), explains the purpose of the day: 'We recently noticed that more women clients were having success with spread betting,' he says. 'This is a way of thanking clients and letting them meet and maybe swap some trading tips. In a male-dominated arena it is important to support our female clients.' As the 11 elegant, umber-and-cream Pullman carriages snake out into the countryside on their way to Stratford- upon-Avon, Warwickshire, it isn't long before the women start talking enthusiastically about stock markets.
THERE are about 100,000 spread betting account holders in the UK. There are seven major financial spread betting providers: CantorIndex, which launched three years ago, City Index, CMC Markets, Financial Spreads, IG Index, Spreadex and Tradindex.
'Don't be afraid to take profits before a contract expires, particularly when you first start.' With conversation still centred largely on the markets and trading, we all move on to Anne Hathaway's cottage in Shottery, just outside Stratford. Our final call is at [William Shakespeare]'s birthplace. We amble round the house and grounds before heading back to the coach and Stratford station Over a four-course meal and fine wines on the return journey to London, Susan de Sousa, 33, tells how she became involved in spread betting.
ON a bright, sunny morning at Victoria Station in London, eight smartly dressed women wait on platform two, ready to board the plush Orient Express. They range from fulltime mothers to City investment bankers. But one thing unites them - the joy of gambling.
The women are all clients of spread betting firm CantorIndex. Instead of buying shares, they take dozens of short-term bets on whether shares, stock market indices, bonds, interest rates or currencies will go up or down.
At 9.20am the train is ready for boarding.
Our party of 16, which includes six Cantor Index staff, has been assigned the opulent Ibis carriage and the group quickly makes itself comfortable.
As the train pulls out of London, a delicious breakfast of smoked salmon, scrambled eggs and champagne is served by an attentive, and handsome, waiter.
Tim Hogman, public relations officer for CantorIndex, explains the purpose of the day: 'We recently noticed that more women clients were having success with spread betting,' he says. 'This is a way of thanking clients and letting them meet and maybe swap some trading tips. In a male-dominated arena it is important to support our female clients.' As the 11 elegant, umber-and-cream Pullman carriages snake out into the countryside on their way to Stratford- upon-Avon, Warwickshire, it isn't long before the women start talking enthusiastically about stock markets.
Jenny King, 35, from Thorpe Bay, Southend, Essex, started spread betting after being made redundant last June from the Royal Bank of Scotland where she was head of fixed income operations. She now combines day trading - where trades are not left to run into the next day - on various world indices with looking after her three children, Hannah, 6, Reece, 4, and sixmonthold Luke.
Jenny, whose partner is a stockbroker, says she makes a comfortable living through spread betting. She points out that one of the major benefits compared with ordinary equity investing is that her profits, as with all betting activity, are tax-free.
But she warns that it can become addictive: 'I watch the markets keenly. I have Teletext on during the day, or I check online,' she says. 'Sometimes if I'm in the bath, I'll ask my daughter Hannah to check the TV to tell me if the US Dow index is red or green.
THERE are about 100,000 spread betting account holders in the UK. There are seven major financial spread betting providers: CantorIndex, which launched three years ago, City Index, CMC Markets (formerly known as Deal4Free), Financial Spreads, IG Index, Spreadex and Tradindex.
IG, the oldest and largest firm, has been running for almost 30 years.
'There has been huge growth in the past year due to the volatile markets,' says CantorIndex's Hogman. 'Consumers quickly realise that the concept offers a way to make money when markets are falling.' But spread betting is not for the fainthearted. Risks are high and losses can be significantly larger than the original stake. Agnieszka Ziemba, a Polish-born trader with years of experience in the City, reveals that she has to wear gloves when trading at home to stop herself biting her nails.
Spread betting may be appealing to a greater number of women, but they are still a tiny minority at just one per cent of CantorIndex's client list.
The Orient Express pulls into Leamington Spa station at 12.45pm and our party is ushered on to a waiting bus. From here we travel to the 16th Century house of Mary Arden, the mother of William Shakespeare, in Wilmcote, near Stratford.
There is a falconry in the grounds of the house and Dr Jaye Akintola, one of the CantorIndex guests, holds one of the kestrels.
Jaye, a scientist for a large pharmaceuticals company, lives with her husband in Chingford, Essex. She has been spread betting for two years and most of her trading is on the FTSE 100 and the US Dow Jones indices.
She is quick to emphasise the importance of understanding the principles behind spread betting before becoming involved.
She says: 'You must be comfortable with how spread betting works and the risks. It's a steep learning curve, so start small and only build up your trades when you have experience.
'Don't be afraid to take profits before a contract expires, particularly when you first start.' With conversation still centred largely on the markets and trading, we all move on to Anne Hathaway's cottage in Shottery, just outside Stratford. Our final call is at Shakespeare's birthplace. We amble round the house and grounds before heading back to the coach and Stratford station Over a four-course meal and fine wines on the return journey to London, Susan de Sousa, 33, tells how she became involved in spread betting.
SUSAN, single and living in Chelsea, west London, has been a client of CantorIndex for about a year. She is a computer consultant and had her own company until recently.
'When the technology market began to struggle, I sold up and started to look around for other things,' she says.
She is now a fulltime spread better and says she makes a very good living out of it.
Susan says it is a myth that beginners need a great deal of money, but stresses that people must be aware of how much they can lose. 'The beauty of spread betting is that you can gain when the markets fall,' she says.
'Volatile markets are best because the gains can be higher, but you must know how to control your losses.' It is 8pm and we are nearing London Victoria. Susan makes a quick call to CantorIndex and discovers that the Dow has broken through 9,000 points.
This is good news. Susan has an 'up' bet on the US index and has already made pounds 2,000 on paper on her position today.
'It's a real buzz,' she tells me.
'Now I just want to get home quickly and trade before the market closes.'
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