When you first look at spread betting, you can make comparisons to gambling. However, there are considerable differences that make spread betting a preferable option to many. Gambling is one of the world’s most lucrative industries, with online casinos dominating the space. When you wager your money on an online casino game, there is no way to predict the outcome because there will always be hidden variables. Even when you gamble on the football, there might be a better team, but you can never account for off days and luck of the ball. If you take spread betting, you can eliminate a lot of the risk and stand a better chance of reaping a higher reward. Throughout this article, we will define spread betting and highlight the key differences to gambling.
What is Gambling?
Gambling refers to the betting of something valuable on the outcome of an event. Today, the majority of gambling takes place in online casinos. When you gamble, there is high risk because you can’t control the variables. For example, when you play roulette, you wager your stake on where the ball is going to land. The more high-risk your wager, the greater the pay-out. Although there are plenty of ways to win on roulette, you can never predict the outcome because there is no set pattern.
What is Spread Betting?
Spread betting refers to market trading. Typically, when you approach a stockbroker about buying shares, you will be given two prices. One will be the bid price (the value you receive when selling). The other is always higher and called the offer price (the amount you pay when buying shares). The difference between these two figures is known as the spread.
When you wager via a spread betting broker, you take the offer price if you believe the value will rise, and the big price if you think it will fall. Although you can stand to lose or make significant money, you can analyse the global market and make more educated bets. You can find examples of spread betting here to help you better understand.
The Risk Factor
The primary difference between spread betting and gambling is the risk involved in each strategy. When you gamble, you knowingly take a risk by staking money no matter what the outcome. When you load money into an online slot game and hit the spin button, you can’t possibly know what the outcome will be but you’ve staked the money anyway. With trading, you can practice the game and become fully accustomed to how the market works. Then, you can make educated wagers with stopwatches in place to help you withdraw the bet at the right time.
Knowing When You Are Gambling
Although the outcome of spread betting can be better predicted, you need to know the market to avoid it crossing the lines into gambling. First, you need to understand what your position is and the reason why you’re betting in the first place. Next, you need to know when to close the position and withdraw. Further, you can choose to do nothing as long as it’s justified. If you keep your position open without reason, you are turning your spread bet into gambling.
Staking money on the outcome of an event always comes with a price. When you gamble, you agree to take on the risk and stake money regardless of the outcome. However, when you choose to spread bet, you can analyse the market and better predict the outcome. Remember to make sure that you fully understand the market, otherwise, your spread bet will turn into a blind gamble.
