1. What is Betfair?
The Internet has changed everything, including gambling, so what exactly is Betfair? Founded in 2000, Betfair became a pioneer of the betting exchange, which operates on a similar principle to eBay - its online platform that brings together buyers and sellers, or Backers and Layers as they are called in the betting exchange world.
Betfair is really big - it is one of the largest sports betting operators in the world that processes over seven million transactions a day, which is more than all European stock exchanges together.
You may ask, what Betfair can offer you? It is clear that many different people with many different interests will read this article. The principle of betting exchanges can be interesting for everyone! Whether you're male, female, come from the world of financial markets, betting, or you do not care about any of that and you’re just looking for entertainment, or a way to make money, betting exchanges can offer the following to you:
Work from home
You can work from home or from anywhere in the world where you have an internet connection. It does not matter if you are not interested in sport or betting on it, you can still trade on Betfair. In fact, I was never interested in horse racing or betting on horses, yet I have been making money on Betfair for a number of years trading on horse races without even knowing anything about them. Once you understand and learn the principle of trading bets, you too could work from anywhere and anytime. Everyone wants to be master of his own time and not just be a whole life slave for his or her employer. Maybe Betfair is what you are looking for.
Better prices
For every punter it is important they get the highest odds from bookmaker. It's like buying a TV - you are interested in how much it costs when you buy it. If you can find it cheaper somewhere else that is reputable, then of course you would buy the cheaper one, right? The betting exchange odds are on average 15-20% better than with conventional bookmakers. In other words, on average, with each bet wagered on the betting exchange, you effectively save 15-20% of your money! If you buy a car, you will definitely prefer to buy it for £ 8000 than £10 000.
Trading
If you come from the world of the financial markets, you should know what Betfair could offer to you:
- Trade without any transaction fees
- Markets available to trade 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- You can start with minimal capital £ 10
- You can use very sophisticated software, live data, and Depth of Market interface from just £ 5 a month with a 14 day trial for free
- Ability to practice in training mode without risk.
- And much, much more
Savings
Betfair offers great savings for both bettors and people interested in trading on financial markets. Why waste money unnecessarily on low prices with traditional bookmakers? Compared to financial trading, there is no need to invest thousands of pounds in capital, software, live data, nor pay high fees for every transaction you make.
Betdaq & Matchbook
In the world there is not only one betting exchange, as well as there is not only one stock exchange. Betdaq & Matchbook are the second largest betting exchanges in the world and it works on the same principles as Betfair. It would be pointless to mention all exchanges in every explanation; therefore in any article where I mention Betfair, the same would usually apply to Betdaq & Matchbook, too.
What is this tutorial for?
This tutorial serves to introduce a complete layman to the concept of trading on betting exchanges. After reading it you should have a solid idea of what a betting exchange is, how to trade on it and how to use trading software. This is very complex & comprehensive issue and it is not possible to get everything right for the first time. So if you feel we have missed anything, or have any questions please ask in the comments.
About The Author?
My name is Tomas and I am from Czech Republic. I have been trading since 2006 on the betting exchanges. I founded Chrtba.com community site that offers free information how to trade on betting exchanges, and it is now the industry's largest Czech & Slovak community. I have personally taught over 200 people to trade for free, many in one to one meetings. I'm writing this tutorial and I will also provide support - and again everything will be free for you. If after reading this series of articles you have any questions, I will try to answer it as soon as possible.
I wish you the best of luck in your study!
