When the market moves
Underlying crypto markets operate continuously, but a CFD provider’s hours, maintenance periods, and weekend conditions are product-specific. Liquidity and spreads can vary substantially by time and asset.
Markets / Crypto
Navigate continuous, high-volatility markets.
Crypto CFDs track digital-asset price movements without requiring a wallet or ownership of tokens. Prices can differ across venues and react sharply to liquidity, regulation, technology, and market positioning.
CFD exposure only. You do not own the underlying asset.
Crypto watchlistIllustrative
BTC/USD67,210.4▼ 0.02%
ETH/USD3,502.1▲ 1.12%
SOL/USD168.4▲ 2.31%
XRP/USD0.6▼ 0.44%
ADA/USD0.5▲ 0.18%
Market structure
How crypto trading works.
Understand the contract
Pairs are commonly quoted against USD or another currency. Contract size, minimum movement, margin, and financing depend on product specifications.
Price discovery
What moves crypto prices?
Price responds to changing expectations. These are the main categories to monitor.
01
Liquidity and positioning
Liquidations and leveraged positioning can amplify moves in both directions.
02
Regulation
Policy, enforcement, approvals, and access rules can rapidly change sentiment.
03
Network and technology
Upgrades, outages, security events, and adoption affect individual assets.
04
Macro conditions
Rates, dollar liquidity, and risk appetite can influence the broader market.
Market map
Types of crypto exposure.
Bitcoin
The largest network by market value and a common market benchmark.
Smart-contract assets
Networks designed to run applications and programmable transactions.
Stablecoins
Tokens designed to reference another asset; they carry issuer and mechanism risk.
Altcoins
Other digital assets, often with lower liquidity and higher idiosyncratic risk.
Category risk
Know what can go wrong.
Crypto CFDs use leverage. Product-specific risk must be understood before an order is placed.
Continuous volatility
Large moves can occur at any time, including weekends and holidays.
Venue fragmentation
Prices and liquidity vary across exchanges and reference sources.
Liquidation cascades
Leveraged positions can trigger forced flows and accelerate price movement.
Regulatory and technology risk
Rules, exploits, outages, or protocol changes can affect value abruptly.
Before the trade
Use a repeatable preparation checklist.
A checklist cannot remove risk, but it can reduce avoidable errors.
01
Confirm the CFD’s actual trading hours and price source.
02
Review weekend, maintenance, and financing rules.
03
Size for unusually high volatility and slippage.
04
Check asset-specific regulatory and network events.
Key terminology
Speak the language of crypto.
- Blockchain
- A distributed ledger maintained under a network protocol.
- Wallet
- Software or hardware used to control keys for owned crypto; CFDs do not require one.
- Market dominance
- An asset’s share of total crypto market value.
- Funding / financing
- Periodic cost mechanics associated with leveraged exposure.
Crypto FAQ
Common questions, clear answers.
Do I own crypto when trading a CFD?+
No. You receive price exposure without owning tokens or controlling private keys.
Does crypto always trade 24/7 here?+
Underlying markets do, but CFD availability and maintenance periods depend on provider terms.
Why can crypto move so quickly?+
Fragmented liquidity, leverage, liquidations, news, and continuous trading can amplify movement.
Explore other markets
Important risk warning
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. [XX]% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Trade only what you understand.
Review the product terms, costs, and risk before opening a leveraged position.