IC Markets Review Of 2020

IC Markets Broker Spread Comparison

Compare Forex Brokers compares the average spreads of the top forex brokers MetaTrader 4 ECN account. The MT4 Raw Spread account has each month in 2020 had the lowest spreads of any ECN broker account.

IC Markets Raw Account Spreads	EUR/USDAUD/USDEUR/GBPGBP/USDUSD/SGD	EUR/USDAUD/USDEUR/GBPGBP/USDUSD/SGD	EUR/USDAUD/USDEUR/GBPGBP/USDUSD/SGD	EUR/USDAUD/USDEUR/GBPGBP/USDUSD/SGD	EUR/USDAUD/USDEUR/GBPGBP/USDUSD/SGD
	0.10	0.20	0.40	0.40	0.30
	0.16	0.27	0.35	0.40	1.07
	0.10	0.20	0.40	0.20	1.30
	0.20	0.20	0.40	0.50	1.50
	0.44	0.42	0.40	0.85	1.30
	0.17	0.30	0.54	0.60	N/A
	0.20	0.40	0.50	0.60	10.00
	0.10	0.50	0.60	0.60	1.30
	0.40	0.70	0.60	0.70	3.00
	0.32	0.97	0.75	0.82	1.60

Data taken from broker website. Accurate as at 01/09/2020

Based on the lowest published average spreads the broker was awarded the 2020 lowest spread forex broker. It should be noted that the EUR/USD which IC Markets has the lowest spread is the most traded currency pair. Having a low spread on this forex pair is therefore critical when judging the lowest spread broker.

Key factors that help IC Markets achieve the lowest spreads worldwide is their:

• Direct access to liquidity including 50+ banks and dark pool providers
• No Dealing Desk execution with no spread markups on trades
• Leading-edge Electronic Communication Network technology setup
• High trading volume (USD $646 Billion in March 2020)

IC Markets Commission

IC Markets offers 10 base currencies including the AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, SGD, JPY, CHF, NZD, CAD to HKD. The base currency a trader chooses when opening an account will set the commission rate. Below shows the commission for the MetaTrader 4 Raw account.

The MT4 raw spreads charged are on par with the best forex brokers worldwide. The graph below compares the rate if a trader chooses to open an account with an AUD base showing how competitive IC Markets is.

You can view our comprehensive 2020 spread and commission comparison article for more detail on the forex broker’s fees. It should be noted there is also an Islamic account that has no interest fees (swap-free). These account types are available on either the cTrader of MetaTrader forex trading platforms.

Spreads And Fee Summary

The IC Markets raw spread trading accounts (formally true ECN account) are considered the ‘best value’ based on their:

• Lowest average spreads of any forex broker
• Competitive commission of $3.50 per lot
• No deposit or withdrawal fees

Compare Broker Spreads >>Visit Broker >>

IC Markets Trading Platforms

IC Markets offers the three most popular forex trading platforms. These forex platforms offer the best desktop and mobile trading. This includes all mobile devices from the iPhone, iPad and Android applications which offer both demos and live accounts.

MetaTrader 4

• The world’s most popular trading platform for beginner, intermediate and scalping traders
• An interface that is easy to use with prompt order management functionality
• Algorithmic trading and Expert Advisors for scalping traders

MetaTrader 5

• Has a built-in Market of trading robots for easy automated forex trading
• Includes the Virtual Hosting service (Forex VPS) to maximise execution speeds
• Access to the  MQL5 community including free trading robots

cTrader Platform

• An interface that can be personalised with detachable charting options and an android app
• Direct access setup to liquidity pools designed for algorithmic forex trading
• cTrader platform back-testing facilities based on past market data

Advanced Trading Tools

There are 10 additional tools the CFD broker integrates into the forex trading platforms. These enhance currency trading in most trading conditions giving traders the edge. Features include:

1. Alarm Manager
   The trading assistant that notifies the trader visa SMS, email or SMS of market changes and events on the account. This assistant can also take automatic actions.
2. Correlation Matrix
   Helps a trader identify the symbols with strong or weak correlation. This occurs on different time-scales to enable superior decision making.
3. Correlation Trader
   Highlights the correlation over a configurable time-frame between two symbols. This allows trading on the emerging differences).
4. Trade Terminal
   Trade execution tool with in-depth features to analyse the markets. This tool consists of a market watch, account summary or order list.
5. Market Manager
   This tool provides a ‘watch list’ and allows opening and closing of positions, provides headline information such as equity, lists tickets and positions and provides a summary of price activity.
6. Sentiment Trader
   Illustrates the sentiment based on current positions whether long or short when it comes to open position. These are calculated based on real-money accounts.
7. Session Map
   Provides forex traders with a market overview via a map using local time. It also provides markers for future news events and price activity during each session.
8. Smart Lines
   This tool uses line objects as the stop-loss or take-profit for positions. Features include a trend-line stop-loss, multiple partial stops and time-based stops.
9. Stealth Orders
   This tool hides a forex traders entry and exit levels from the market. This feature buys or sells at the current market price when the price level is reached.
10. Tick Chart Trader
    This shows tick charts in a variety of styles. It allows forex traders faster trades using a mouse or keyboard.

Forex Platform Execution Speeds

The three forex trading platforms above use Equinix servers (the LD5 server in London for the cTrader platform and NY4 in New York for MetaTrader) maximising the execution speeds of the three trading platforms shown above. They also have a direct access inter-bank price feeds from more than 50 banks and institutional liquidity providers minimising slippage when forex trading.

Summary Of Why IC Markets Has The Best Forex Trading Platform

IC Markets forex platform is the leader of the Australian forex brokers based on three factors:

1. Choice of MT4 or cTrader (the two most popular platforms)
2. Over 10 advanced features to boost these platforms
3. Fast servers and infrastructure to minimise latency times

Minimum Deposit Requirement

The minimum deposit requirement is USD $200 with IC Markets. If your base account currency is not USD then you will need to deposit a USD $200 equivalent when opening the account. There are 19 funding methods (most fee-free) to make a deposit with the most popular strategies including:

• Credit Cards and Debit Cards
• Wire Transfer and Bpay (Australia Only)
• Neteller and FasaPay (US only)
• Skrill and Union Pay (China only)

IC Markets Withdrawals

Like deposits, making an IC Markets withdrawal has no fees charged by IC Markets. Some banks may charge $20 AUD for international bank transfers. Within the secure client area withdrawals can be requested with the daily cut-off time at 12:00 AEST. The time it takes to receive the withdrawn amount depends on the method used including:

• Paypal/Neteller/Skrill = Instant
• Domestic Wire Transfer = 1 working day
• Credit Cards + Debit Cards = 3 – 5 working days

It should be noted that the withdrawal method needs to be the same as the deposit method chosen. As an example, if you use a debit card to make a deposit then the same card needs to be used for the withdrawal. Webmoney also used to be offered but is no longer available.

View our detailed IC deposit page for more details on deposit methods, requirements and fees.

Forex Pairs & CFDs

There are a number of CFD trading services with no dealing desk available including:

1. Indices
   Gain exposure to the 17 of the larges indices around the world with 200:1 leverage. This can be traded on all three trader platforms with no commissions charged.
2. Commodities
   Trade with 500:1 leverage across agriculture, metals and energy predicting the USD against these commodities. 19 mainstream commodities can be traded on both spot and futures CFDs trading.
3. Stocks
   There are over 120 stocks that can be traded as a CFD. This is only available through the MetaTrader 5 forex platform. These shares are across the NYSE, Nasdaq and the Australian Stock Exchange.
4. Bonds
   Six core bonds can be speculated on including the UK, Japan, USA and Europe. There is 200:1 leverage available with no commissions charged.
5. Cryptocurrency
   Trades can predict if cryptocurrency from Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin to Ripple goes up or down with a 20:1 leverage. Social trading can also be integrated including ZuluTrade and MyFXbook.
6. Futures
   With up to 200:1 leverage, 4 Global Futures available can be traded with no commissions. This includes both the ICE Dollar Index and the CBOE VIX Index. You must have the MT4 platform to trade futures with the CFD broker.

IC Markets Regulated Authorities

There are three main regulators that IC Markets have a licence with.

1) ASIC (Australia)

International Capital Markets PTY LTD is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). There Australian Financial Services Number (AFSL) is 335692. ASIC has a number of safeguards to protect forex traders including the requirement for brokers to hold funds in a segregated bank account. IC uses are the National Australia Bank (NAB) and Westpac Banking Corporation (Westpac). View our ASIC regulated page to compare IC Markets to other Australian forex brokers.

CYSEC (Cyprus)

IC Markets (EU) LTD is Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission regulated division with Licence No 362/18 for those living within the EU. Traders in this region are aligned to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). This is why it’s important that they can choose the CySEC regulated option. It should be noted that ESMA has strict rules covering several areas including:

• Reduced leverage (discussed in the next section)
• Restrictions on bonuses and promotions
• Negative balance safeguards

Seychelles

For traders outside of Australia and EU IC Markets has a subsidiary under the name Raw Trading Ltd. This is registered in Seychelles (Africa). The Company number is 8419879-2 and dealer licence number is SD018. The Financial Services Authority of Seychelles is less well known than CySEC or ASIC and provides more freedoms on aspects such as leverage discussed below.

Overall, IC Market has regulation in two ‘tier 1’ and one ‘tier 3’ region which will give traders peace of mind. Brokers that may seem similar to IC Market such as Hugo’s Way do not have regulation in any ‘tier 1’ region and should be avoided.

IC Markets Leverage Spread Comparison

IC Markets offers the highest leverage level of up to 500:1 from its ASIC and SC regulatory divisions. This leverage can vary across the 65 currency pairs and other CFDs such as cryptocurrencies. Below compares IC Markets to the other leading brokers such as IG.

If your within the European Union and trade through the CySEC division the maximum leverage is significantly lower including:

• Forex Leverage = Up to 30:1
• Major Indices = 20:1
• Commodities = 10:1
• Cryptocurrencies = 2:1

So What Is Leverage?

Leverage is effectively the amount a forex broker allows a trader to borrow when trading currency. It’s a multiple of the deposit so for the maximum of 500:1 leverage this means you can trade up to 500 times the initial capital. For example, a $200 deposit can lead to $100,000 worth of currency to be traded on currency markets.

Forex Trading Leverage Example

• A trader has a $100 deposit and selects leverage of 100:1 for the AUD/USD pairing.
• The markets move in the trader’s favour by 0.4% and the position is closed
• The trader will make $100 * 100 * 0.004
• The total profit is $400 (or 40%)

Why Is High Leverage Important?

Currency markets normally have relatively small movements each day compared to other financial products. If you used a conventional forex exchange service (eg purchasing USD currency) the returns would be normally very modest. To amplify these movements leverage is required which can make it easy to make a profit (or loss) from small movements.

High leverage is particularly suited for forex traders who have a high-risk tolerance, use scalping software (eg expert advisors) or trade currency pairings with low volatility (or during a low volatility period). The high risk of losing funds means that lower leverage may be more suited to certain traders.

Risk Management Tools

IC Markets provides the highest leverage of 500:1 increasing exposure to the market. This is ideal for forex traders with a high-risk appetite or those using third-party tools such as expert advisors. While high leverage offers the best trading experience for experienced traders those new trading CFDs may want to consider risk management features.

1) Guaranteed Stops

A guaranteed stop such as offered by Plus500 is when you can pre-set the maximum amount your willing to lose on an individual trade. Regardless of market conditions, this predetermined amount is set. This different from icmarkets.com stop-loss order facility, which allows a trader to set the maximum loss but in high volatility environments losses may exceed this amount.

2) Negative Balance Protection

IC has an advanced margin call facility that detects when a trader is approaching a $0 balance and exits the trader automatically. The key issue is that in extreme market events such as the floating of the Swiss Franc this software may not have the ability to exit the market fast. This can lead to losses exceeding deposits and the Australian forex broker may request for the outstanding debt to be paid.

Overall, IC is an ECN broker which means faster execution speeds and lower spreads but market maker broker features that interfere with trading can’t be offered. You can view our comparison with easyMarkets to compare an ECN broker vs market maker broker.

Customer Support Levels

IC offers local customer support from their Sydney office located at Level 6 309 Kent Street Sydney, NSW 2000. CFD traders can reach them through different channels like email, Skype or by phone. Their Sydney response time is within 15 minutes based on our enquiries with most complex issues solved within a day. Customer service is open 24 hours, 5 days a week. Live chat is also available through the CFD provider. The company is also dedicated to their educational centre (video journals and articles) which is great for those who have no previous knowledge in trading. Pepperstone is one of the only fx brokers that has won more awards for customer support than IC.

Research

IC offers some research support when forex trading including:

• Their blog offering fundamental and technical analysis
• Content from 3rd parties including trading central
• An economic calendar
• Myfxbook news headlines
• ZuluTrader social copy trading
• FX Blue LLP Advanced Trading Tools

Outside of these features our IC Markets review found the forex broker doesn’t offer advanced research features such as new headlines and pattern-recognition tools.