Scripophilist
- 27 Oct 2004 23:40

How would you like to trade a market where you get large regular price swings every 10 minutes in the afternoon, seven days a week. A
market where all prices are set purely by supply and demand, few transaction costs, no middle men and you only pay commission if you win? Where you can freely act as a market maker and where you have direct market access and where you can create a spread for others to take?
Betfair has revolutionised the betting market and created an open platform for exchanging risk on sports events. This market is now viewed much more like a traditional financial risk market than an old fashioned betting market. Smart users have realised that there are huge opportunities on Betfair because they can buy and sell risk in much the same way they would in a normal financial market but without the burden of cost or the restricted access that is usually associated with traditional financial markets.
Click here to learn more
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 10:52
- 574 of 10502
Thanks Scrip, Fundamentalist,
Scrip re ManU and punch up. Why can't they all be angels like Arsenal :>)
At the moment I'm sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for the FTSe to trade below 4793.5 by 11am.
Diego
Scripophilist
- 13 Jan 2005 11:00
- 575 of 10502
Looks like you got that too!
Scripophilist
- 13 Jan 2005 11:00
- 576 of 10502
What price did you get?
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 11:24
- 577 of 10502
Scrip only just!!
Could you please explain something. The trade I entered in at about 10.15 was to Lay 2 '4793.5 and above' for 5. At the bottom of the window it said my profit was +10 and my liability was -8.
Now forgetting commission for the moment, I thought on this trade I would make 10. Now when I pulled up my account statement, all I can find that's been added to my account was my 2 less 10p commission. Where did my profit go?
Diego
Harlosh
- 13 Jan 2005 12:33
- 578 of 10502
Diego,
If you laid for 2 the maximum you can win is 2.
Your liability would be 8. (4x2) remembering that 1 of the odds is your stake.
Can't understand where the 10 comes from.
Harlosh
- 13 Jan 2005 12:36
- 579 of 10502
Fundy,
Sorry, wasn't around last night. Just didn't fancy the game, so I took the opportunity to surgically remove my backside from my computer chair. It's been stuck there since Scrip's course :-)
Scripophilist
- 13 Jan 2005 12:44
- 580 of 10502
2 @ 5 would be (On the lay side)
2 profit
When you lay the amount you lay is your potential profit
10 liability
You are offering 10 on the table at 5-1. The backer would put 2 down to win 10 or 8 net of their stake of 2
So in total your max upside is 2, your max liability 8 (10 on the table at 5-1 equals 5-1 less 1 for the backers stake). Does that make sense?
I was thinking of publishing on my web page a guide to the basics of Betfair. Would probably help people come to grips with it quicker.
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 12:44
- 581 of 10502
Thanks Harlosh - I think I see. I have to mentally unwind from the concept of 'back bet' (ie, being a punter) and remember when I make a 'lay' bet I'm acting as a bookie. I'm not sure where the 10 came from either. I think that's what confused me. On reflection, I think that was a very, very poor bet. FTSE was trading around 4790 with just under an hour to go. I definitely need Scrip's course.
Diego
Scripophilist
- 13 Jan 2005 12:45
- 582 of 10502
"Just didn't fancy the game"
Too many warning signs in there.
The return leg will be very interesting. Somebody has to win, Somebody has to score. You will have that in your favour and also the fact that the to win and to qualify markets will be active. I will definately be on the both return legs but the Chelsea vs Man U is the most interesting.
Kayak
- 13 Jan 2005 12:49
- 583 of 10502
Diego, backing or laying odds under 2.0 is normally preferable to laying or backing odds over 2.0. I.E. in your case laying at 5.0 is equivalent to backing the other side at 1.25, but on the other side the liquidity is going to be better and you will normally get a better price. That is not always true of course, but nearly always.
To convert from one side to the other, subtract one, take the reciprocal, and add one.
I.E. 1.25 = (1/(5.0-1))+1 or 5.0 = (1/(1.25-1))+1
This only applies to a two-outcome event of course.
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 12:50
- 584 of 10502
Thanks Scrip, didn't see your post. That clarifies it for me. Thanks again.
Diego
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 12:52
- 585 of 10502
Kayak, I've printed the whole page and stuck it on my wall.
Thanks
Diego
Piptrader
- 13 Jan 2005 13:23
- 586 of 10502
Diego - Betfair provide a handy facility to enable you to see the outcome of a particular bet, which is easier to use than the info in the betting box.
Above the selections, tick 'View P&L', then go to '[Settings]', and in there tick the 'Show a separate future position' box.
Now, as you enter the odds and stake in the normal place, the outcome of that bet - before you place it - will be shown under each selection, prefixed with >>. If you already have figures under the selections from an earlier bet, the new figures will take the earlier ones into account.
I find this facility invaluable. You can play with it without actually placing a bet.
Harlosh
- 13 Jan 2005 13:43
- 587 of 10502
Good point Pip, didn't realise he probably hasn't discovered that.
Diego
- 13 Jan 2005 13:58
- 588 of 10502
Thanks Pip - I think that's better. Backed the FTSE will be above 4790.8 by 2pm for 2.1
Diego
Fundamentalist
- 13 Jan 2005 20:27
- 589 of 10502
Scrip
agree with your comment re the return leg - should be lots of good opportunities
ps - i know its a spreadbet not betfair but went long strauss series runs in the cricket at 440 before the series started - hes gone thru 600 today with 3 innings left
Piptrader
- 13 Jan 2005 20:39
- 590 of 10502
Fundamentalist - I see you're out for a little trot at Cheltenham on 29th :-)
Fundamentalist
- 13 Jan 2005 21:26
- 591 of 10502
Pip
hopefully i will have got over the shin problems that prevented me from jumping last time out - something to prove again now
Piptrader
- 13 Jan 2005 21:35
- 592 of 10502
Sorry to hear that. I thought the odds were a little long considering you won last time I heard of an outing for you!
Scripophilist
- 13 Jan 2005 21:48
- 593 of 10502
Hoping for no late goal on the Real Madrid match tonight. Looking to go green at 1.10
No risk in the trade for me now.