Our IC Markets (IC) vs Blueberry Markets guide found IC has 64+ currency pairs (i.e. EUR/USA) while BlueBerry offers 44. With IC you can trade over 150 CFDs like Indices, bonds and crypto while Blueberry Markets is more limited with 55 CFD products.
Updated: 11/06/2021
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Compare below the features and benefits of IC Markets vs Blueberry Markets forex accounts from your number one source for forex brokers comparison. Both brokerages provide their clientele with a choice of multiple live trading account types. More precisely, there are:
IC Markets’ Raw Spread Account allows trading with the lowest spreads, starting from 0.0 pips. What is more, the average spread offered on EUR/USD remains 0.1 pips, which makes the broker’s offer extremely competitive. On the other hand, major currency pairs such as EUR/USD or GBP/USD can be traded on Blueberry Markets with average spreads of 0.2 pips respectively 0.4 pips.
IC Markets is able to offer extremely low spreads since prices are derived directly from its deep pool of 25 top-tier liquidity providers. By comparison, Blueberry Markets sources prices from a pool of 12 tier-one liquidity providers.
Clients can trade 64 currency pairs and 15 major Stock Indices on IC Markets’ MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms by depositing as little as $200. In exchange for deep interbank liquidity and fast execution, the broker will charge a small commission of $7.0 per round turn for 1 Standard Lot traded.
Meanwhile, Blueberry Markets has ensured access to real-time raw pricing and tight spreads on its Professional Account. The minimum deposit required is $1,000, which is higher than the industry standard price set by IC Markets. Similar to other ECN broker offers, Blueberry Markets will charge a small commission of $7.00 per round turn for every 1 Standard Lot traded.
IC Markets offer another ECN account type, this is the cTrader Raw account. This account has similar trading conditions to those on the Raw Spread Account, the only difference is the available platform for this account is cTrader.
IC Markets’ Standard Account allows access to raw pricing with a spread that covers all trading costs. Clients can trade 64 currency pairs, 16 Commodities and 16 major Stock Indices on the broker’s MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms with no commissions by depositing as little as $200. Spreads are quite competitive, as they start from 1.0 pip on EUR/USD.
By comparison, Blueberry Markets’ Standard Account matches IC Markets’ offer, with spreads starting from 1.0 pip on major Forex pairs. The minimum deposit required for a Standard Account is $100.
Along with the live trading account types, a free demo account is available at both brokerages, so that clients can test platform features, indicators and strategies with no risk before they start trading with actual money.
Note: Between the two forex brokers, only IC Markets offers swap-free accounts that are compliant with the Sharia law.
Overall, IC Markets tops Blueberry Markets because it accommodates all types of forex traders, has more features, a diverse selection of account types and trading platforms along with more tradable instruments. IC Markets also offer a free demo account to drive test the main features. Just click the button below and claim yours today!
The spread comparison depicts IC Markets as the winner for both spread-only and commission accounts. For our review, we compared the average ECN account spreads offered by IC Markets and Blueberry Markets. Both forex brokers offer variable spreads that can go as low as 0.0 pips, but the historical average spread can offer a much honest overview of the total trading cost.
Being an ECN + STP broker, IC Markets can keep the size of the spread extremely low. The average EUR/USD spread is 0.1 pips and according to some third-party reviews, 95% of the time, IC Markets clients can trade with EUR/USD spreads of 0.0 pips. By comparison, Blueberry Markets’ FX spreads are double in size.
The average EUR/USD spread is 0.2 pips respectively 0.8 pips for the GBP/USD pair. The side-by-side spread comparison on other major currency pairs looks like this:
The table below outlines how IC Markets compares to other leading brokers (Pepperstone, FP Markets, IG, FxPro, etc. )
Data taken from broker website. Accurate as at 04/06/2021
The cost associated with trading CFDs is included in the spread. At IC Markets the CFD spreads starts from 0.3 points on stock indices and $0.2 on metals. By comparison, Blueberry Markets has a much higher cost of trading CFDs. The spread on stock indices starts from 1.2 points respectively 1.7 points on spot metals.
We can safely conclude that the lowest spread forex broker is IC Markets. The average spreads for the entire product list offered by IC Markets is extremely competitive, which gives traders institutional-like trading conditions. As for the spreads, Blueberry Markets seems to be not quite in the same league as IC Markets – one of the market leaders globally, on this front.
Regarding maximum leverage allowed for trading CFDs and Forex, clients can take advantage of leverage ratios as high as 1:500 at both IC Markets and Blueberry Markets offshore branches. To access 1:500 leverage, you’ll need to sign up to either IC Market’s FSA regulated branch (Seychelles) or Blueberry Markets VFSC (Vanuatu) branch.
On the other hand, both brokers operate in Australia, where the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) enforce leverage caps of 30:1 for forex trading. IC Markets is also regulated in Europe by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), where the same leverage limits apply. When trading CFDs in these areas, your broker offers maximum leverage of:
Due to the FX regulation and other leverage restrictions, both forex brokers have to comply with the same leverage limits but under a different jurisdiction. However, at IC Markets, traders can find more buying power for stock indices and shares CFDs while everything else is the same as Blueberry Markets’ offerings. Blueberry Markets clients only have the advantage to have more buying power for cryptocurrency trading as compared to IC Markets.
View BlueBerry Markets Review >>Visit BlueBerry Markets >>
The range of trading platforms along with the order execution speed, trading servers, algorithmic trading support, technical analysis tools and 3rd party tools integration are the factors used to determine which broker has the best trading platforms.
IC Markets is another leading Forex broker that strives to provide the best possible trading conditions to its clients, by offering a set of three powerful trading platforms as well as an array of advanced trading tools:
In comparison, Blueberry Markets can hardly compete on this front, as it offers two platforms (MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5) with no additional trading tools, at least for the time being.
IC Markets has ensured that the MetaTrader 4 trading software meets the preferences of even the most sophisticated traders. The trading platform offers quite much in terms of features and tools, including:
In comparison, Blueberry Markets’ MetaTrader 4 software solution includes 50 technical indicators and charting tools, 4 pending orders, 1 Trailing Stop, 3 order execution modes and 9 timeframes. More, for trading on a VPS, Blueberry Markets gives access to VPS hosting service – the subscription will be free of charge if clients manage to trade at least 10 Standard Lots per month.
MetaTrader 5’s more advanced interface can be found with both forex brokers. With its advanced charting technology and sophisticated tools for order management, IC Markets’ MetaTrader 5 software ensures better control of trade orders.
The table below outlines the default MT5 trading tools and features for both forex brokers.
IC Markets MT5 gives you access to the market depth that discloses the entire range of available prices coming directly from all of IC Markets’ top-tier liquidity providers. Position hedging and a built-in economic calendar are other advantages of the MT5 platform that is available through both IC Markets and Blueberry Markets.
IC Markets’ clients can choose to trade through another powerful trading platform – cTrader, which delivers high-speed performance combined with full depth of market, multiple order types, flexible layout customization and expanded symbol display capabilities and also grants access to cAlgo and Smart Stop Out features.
In the fast-paced electronic markets every second count. Slow trading platforms can have a negative impact on your profits which is why forex traders need fast order execution speed. IC Market’s no dealing desk (NDD) execution model ensures low latency and ultra-fast execution of trade orders. This is suitable for scalpers, high-volume traders or clients who employ Expert Advisors.
Unlike a market maker who matches clients’ orders internally, IC Markets has a dedicated MT4 server located in the Equinix NY4 data centre that is connected with various liquidity providers. The broker’s MT4 platform delivers an average order execution speed of 36.5 ms.
In comparison, Blueberry Markets can’t compete with IC Markets on this front.
Overall, IC Markets has a wider range of trading platforms, more useful trading tools, advanced trade simulation, institutional-grade order speeds and so much more. On the other hand, forex traders will find with Blueberry Markets only the default MT4 and MT5 trading package. Click the button below and download today one of the 3 powerful trading platforms offered by IC Markets.
While IC Markets offers its clients over +230 financial instruments, Blueberry Markets offers over 65 trading instruments. A side-by-side comparison shows that Blueberry Markets tends to focus more on Forex trading, while IC Markets’ online trading service focuses on both Forex trading but still, they have also included a diverse list of CFDs in their product offerings.
At the moment of writing, IC Markets offers 61 major, minor and exotic currency pairs, which can be accessed through its MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and cTrader platforms. In comparison, Blueberry Markets offers a total of 44 Forex pairs, which clients can trade on its MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 software.
Fore forex signals, IC Markets clients have 3 social networks (MyFxBook Autotrade, ZuluTrade and MQL5 Signals) compared to only 1 social platform (MQL5 Signals) offered by Blueberry Markets.
The Contract for Difference (CFDs) allows traders to speculate on the price movement of several other global markets which are not easily accessible otherwise. Both brokerage trading firms offer CFD trading, which carries a high risk of loss of capital due to leverage risk.
The range of available CFDs tends to be wider at IC Markets. More precisely, the two brokerage trading firms share the following CFD instruments:
Additional to the 5 assets classes shared among the two forex brokers, IC Markets’ product offering also includes 4 futures CFDs contracts and 10 bond CFD contracts available on IC Markets’ MT4 and MT5 platforms. In total, IC Markets’ clients can access 7 different global markets on top of forex currency pairs.
*Under new FCA guidelines, UK retail traders are no longer able to trade cryptocurrencies.
IC Markets outperforms Blueberry Markets on all metrics. IC Markets covers more asset classes and on every single global market offered it has more CFD instruments available for trading. Traders seeking to speculate on the forex market and on a wide variety of CFD instruments are better off by signing up with IC Markets.
Professional customer support service is another important aspect of any online broker. It is always to a brokerage company’s advantage when clients can contact a dedicated and user-friendly team of professionals, regardless of whether they are seeking a resolution to some technical issue, or simply want to give some feedback on the broker’s service.
IC Markets is a great example of a Forex broker with exceptional customer support service. Both live support options (live chat and over the phone) turned out to be accessible in a very short period of time. All your inquiries about account opening procedures, online trading services offered, platforms, irregularities and all matters you’re interested in can be also resolved via email or FAQ section via the Help Centre.
The email option was also good, with our three email inquiries being responded to in less than 24 hours. Again, the information we obtained was relevant.
We should also note that IC Markets’ customer support service is available 24/7. Clients can contact the support team either on the global phone number +61 (0)2 8014 4280 or on 11 toll-free numbers from different countries.
They can also make various inquiries by using some of the following emails:
Separately, IC Markets’ Chinese Support Center can be contacted on the following email (support.cn@icmarkets.com), or via a live chat during business day hours (09:00 – 23:00 Beijing Time).
Meanwhile, with Blueberry Markets, clients are able to contact the company’s customer support team by using three main channels:
Blueberry Markets’ customer support service is available for clients 24 hours per day, 7 days a week.
We were left with some positive impressions by the Forex broker’s live chat and the email feature. On the other hand, we could not immediately reach Blueberry Markets’ customer support over the phone, which we consider as a drawback given the financial markets’ relentless dynamics.
IC Markets does offer a well-structured Forex education section on its website, while, currently, Blueberry Markets has not provided any Forex trading educational content on its web page.
IC Markets’ education section focuses on topics such as Forex Trading, Technical Analysis, Fundamental Analysis, Risk Management, Trading Psychology and Trading Plan. The broker also offers a good video section with tutorials about how to download a Demo Account, how to use the One-Click Trade Manager, how to hedge order in MetaTrader 4 and so on.
Another notable feature offered by IC Markets, when it comes to global markets coverage, includes the WebTV.
Finally, IC Markets provides insight into global markets in a set of daily publications in its Market Analysis blog, while Blueberry Markets has a news blog (Blueberry News) that covers the latest developments in the Forex market.
Blueberry Markets’ clients can also subscribe to the so-called Blueberry Jam, the broker’s trading tips service. Still, all the content in the brokers’ blogs can’t be considered any form of investment advice.
When we combine the 24/7 customer support service along with the resources provided through the learning centre, IC Markets tops Blueberry Markets. The resources provided by IC Markets cover the go-to resources for education and market research.
Both brokers tend to be quite competitive in terms of minimum deposit requirements and account funding options. Both brokerages require low minimum deposits to open a live trading account ($200 at IC Markets, $100 at Blueberry Markets) and both will not charge any extra fees on deposits and withdrawals.
Note* To access the ECN trading features and interbank spreads, IC Markets clients’ needs a minimum deposit of $200 compared to the $1,000 demanded by Blueberry Markets.
With IC Markets, forex traders are able to deposit in 10 different base currencies (AUD, USD, JPY, EUR, NZD, SGD, GBP, CAD, CHF, HKD), while Blueberry Markets allows 7 different base account currencies (AUD, USD, CAD, GBP, NZD, SGD, EUR).
When it comes to deposit and withdrawal options available, clients can choose from 15 different payment methods with IC Markets and 6 payment methods with Blueberry Markets. The account funding options shared by IC Markets and Blueberry Markets include:
Meanwhile, IC Markets clients have the alternative option to deposit funds using 9 additional electronic wallets, including:
IC Markets clients can make an instant deposit with most funding options, only the standard wire transfer takes up to 2-5 business days; Bpay approximately 12-48 hours and broker to broker transfer up to 2-5 business days. The broker to broker transfer method allows with ease to move your current brokerage trading account over to IC Markets.
By comparison, Blueberry Markets will charge a deposit fee and withdrawal fee only via Skrill, which can vary between 3% and 4% respectively 0.5% with Fasapay. However, traditional funding methods come with no extra fees or charges. International bank transfer can incur additional fees with both FX brokers due to the intermediary bank’s handling fee.
Overall, IC Markets has more funding methods; supports more account base currencies; lower minimum deposit for the ECN account type; fast deposit and withdrawal methods and no additional fees. If you want fast and easy deposits and withdrawal, IC Markets has your back covered while you focus on your trading operations.
For our IC Markets vs Blueberry Markets review, we assessed the regulatory status of both forex brokers. FX regulation plays a vital role in our review process. IC Markets is among the Forex brokers that abide by the rules imposed by some of the strictest regulatory bodies in the world including:
Trading as IC Markets, International Capital Markets Pty Ltd is a company headquartered in Sydney, holding an Australian Financial Services License (AFSL No. 335692) and regulated by the ASIC. Also operating as IC Markets, IC Markets (EU) Ltd is a company, authorized to provide online trading services in Europe and falls under the regulation of Cyprus-based CySEC (License No. 362/18).
Finally, IC Markets also complies with the regulatory standards by the Financial Services Authority of Seychelles (Securities Dealer License No. SD018).
Note* At the time being, neither IC Markets nor Blueberry Markets are an FCA authorised and regulated brokers.
By comparison, Blueberry Markets holds a trading license in Australia through its parent company Eightcap Pty Ltd. The parent company is regulated by the Australian Financial Services License holding the AFSL No. 391441.
At the same time, Blueberry Markets serves the needs of forex traders from around the world through Eightcap Global Ltd. This company has its main office in Port Vila, Vanuatu, and holds a forex license from Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC).
IC Markets assures that it keeps all client funds in Segregated Client Trust Accounts at AA-rated financial institutions (National Australia Bank and Westpac Banking Corporation), while Blueberry Markets also states that it keeps client funds fully segregated at a top-tier financial institution – National Australia Bank. What this means for clients is that their deposits cannot be used for any operational expenses or purposes.
IC Markets also assures that all electronic payments are processed by using Secure Socket Layer technology and are encrypted, thus, it guarantees the security of client transactions. On the other hand, Blueberry Markets has not provided such information.
Neither IC Markets nor Blueberry Markets follow a negative balance protection policy! The retail investor accounts that incur a loss that exceeds their account balance will need to absorb the loss by themselves.
As part of IC Markets’ risk management policy, they use a 50% stop-out level to prevent retail clients to lose more than their initial investment. Forex traders can use additional risk management tools like stop-loss order and a guaranteed stop to protect themselves from the inherent high risk that comes with forex trading.
While both companies are regulated brokers, of these two forex brokers, IC Markets has two tier-one licenses, segregated account and additional risk management tools. Blueberry Markets, only holds one tier-one license from Australia’s ASIC and on the negative side, there is no NBP offered.
Justin Grossbard has been investing for the past 20 years and writing for the past 10. He co-founded Compare Forex Brokers in 2014 after working with the foreign exchange trading industry for several years. He also founded a number of FinTech and digital startups including Innovate Online and SMS Comparison. Justin holds a Masters Degree and an Honours in Commerce from Monash University. He and his wife Paula live in Melbourne, Australia with his son and Siberian cat. In his spare time, he watches Australian Rules Football and invests on global markets.
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