For anyone new to futures or options trading, accumulating enough risk capital to trade futures freely can seem like a daunting task. This is nothing new. In Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality among People, Jean Jacque Rousseau said in the 1700s, "Money is the seed of money, and the first guinea is sometimes more difficult to acquire than the second million."

However, even traders of modest means need not despair. Option spreads provide a way to begin trading with relatively low–risk capital. Bull call and bear put spreads, butterfly spreads, and strangles have limited cost and loss potential. Traders of these spreads must settle for relatively modest rewards, but carefully deployed, these strategies can generate enough gains to help traders build their capital.