Spread betting

Spread betting is any of various types of wagering on the outcome of an event where the pay-off is based on the accuracy of the wager, rather than a simple "win or lose" outcome, such as fixed-odds (or money-line) betting or parimutuel betting.

A point spread is a range of outcomes and the bet is whether the outcome will be above or below the spread. As of 2006, spread betting was a major growth market in the UK, with the number of gamblers heading towards one million.[1] Financial spread betting (see below) can carry a high level of risk if there is no "stop".[2] In the UK, financial spread betting is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority rather than the Gambling Commission who regulate spread betting on sports.[3]

  1. ^ "World Cup to kick off boom in spread betting". The Sunday Times. June 11, 2006.
  2. ^ "The perils of spread-betting". The Times. Sep 20, 2007. Archived from the original on July 19, 2008.
  3. ^ "Gambling Commission - Home". www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk.