>>937714it is legit as it avoids having to pay stamp duty on UK equities and allows you to short + trade with margin
for US equities it isn't needed as you can short and trade with margin anyway + they don't apply stamp duty
there are however two types of CFD provider - one type is the scammy bucket shop type that just provides you with a two way quote for you to trade against, you might as well just use a spreadbetting service from the same provider
the other type actually gives you access to the orderbook on the exchange you're trading on, you can whack in limit orders etc.. direct to the exchange, these are essentially orders executed by the firm on your behalf - for retail clients I think there are only two providers of this no scammy way of trading CFDs - IG Markets and Interactive Brokers - you'll have to check for yourself but I think the costs are much lower at interactive brokers (you need to look at both the cost of commissions and the rate applied when using leverage)
