IC Markets vs Blueberry Markets

Spreads

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:

• USD/JPY spread of 0.2 pips at  both brokers
• USD/CAD spread of 0.5 pips at IC Markets vs. 0.6 pips at Blueberry Markets
• USD/CHF spread of 0.5 pips at both brokers
• AUD/USD spread of 0.2 pips at IC Markets vs 0.3 pips at Blueberry Markets

The table below outlines how IC Markets compares to other leading brokers (Pepperstone, FP Markets, IG, FxPro, etc. )

IC Markets Raw Account Spreads	EUR/USD AUD/USD EUR/GBP GBP/USD USD/SGD	EUR/USD AUD/USD EUR/GBP GBP/USD USD/SGD	EUR/USD AUD/USD EUR/GBP GBP/USD USD/SGD	EUR/USD AUD/USD EUR/GBP GBP/USD USD/SGD	EUR/USD AUD/USD EUR/GBP GBP/USD USD/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	0.50	0.20	1.40
	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	0.59	N/A
	0.20	0.40	0.50	0.60	10.00
	0.10	0.50	0.60	0.60	1.30
	0.30	0.50	0.50	0.50	3.10
	0.30	0.96	0.82	0.88	1.49

Data taken from broker website. Accurate as at 02/11/2020

CFD Trading Cost

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.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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 with IC Markets – one of the market leaders globally, on this front.

Leverage

Regarding maximum leverage allowed for trading CFDs and Forex, Australian clients can take advantage of leverage ratios as high as 1:500 at both IC Markets and Blueberry Markets.

Still, clients will need to ensure a larger minimum deposit, if they are to access high leverage ratios at Blueberry Markets. For example, the minimum deposit requirement is raised from $100 to $500 for leverage ratios higher than 1:200.

Leverage on CFDs

When it comes to Forex trading, in particular, IC Markets, similar to other leading brokers such as Pepperstone, offers leverage of up to 1:500 on all types of currency pairs. In comparison, Blueberry Markets allows leverage of up to 1:500 only on major and minor Forex pairs. Australian clients will not be allowed to trade exotic currency pairs (such as USD/NOK, EUR/ZAR, GBP/SEK etc.) with leverage ratios higher than 1:100!

When it comes to CFD trading, the maximum leverage ratios, which the two reviewed brokers offer their Australia-based clients, are the following:

• Stock Index CFDs – 1:200 at IC Markets, 1:20 at Blueberry Markets;
• Shares CFDs – 1:20 on Australian and US Stocks at IC Markets, 1:5 on Australian Stocks at Blueberry Markets;
• Cryptocurrency CFDs – 1:5 at IC Markets, 1:10 at Blueberry Markets;
• Spot Metals and Energies – 1:500 at IC Markets, 1:500 at Blueberry Markets;
• Soft Commodity CFDs – 1:100 at IC Markets. Such CFD products are not available at Blueberry Markets for the time being;
• Bond CFDs – 1:200 at IC Markets. Blueberry Markets does not offer Bond CFDs
• Futures CFDs – 1:200 at IC Markets. Blueberry Markets does not offer Futures CFDs

We should note that maximum leverage ratios allowed for Forex and CFD trading are much lower in other regulatory jurisdictions. In the European Economic Area, where Blueberry Markets is not regulated, under ESMA/CySEC regulatory guidelines, the max leverage ratios offered by IC Markets to retail clients are as follows:

• 1:30 on major currency pairs
• 1:20 on minor and exotic currency pairs, Gold and Major Stock Indices
• 1:10 on Commodities different than Gold and minor Stock Indices;
• 1:5 on Shares CFDs
• 1:2 on Cryptocurrency CFDs

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

Due to the FX regulation and other leverage restrictions both forex brokers have to comply with the same leverage limits. 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 >>

Trading Platforms

The range of trading platforms along with the order execution speed, trading servers, algorithmic trading support, technical analysis tools and 3^rd 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:

1. MetaTrader 4 designed for forex trading and Expert Advisors (EAs)
2. MetaTrader 5 designed for CFD trading
3. cTrader designed for high-quality charting and automated trading

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.

MetaTrader 4 Trading Platform Features and Tools

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:

• No restrictions on limit orders, with traders being able to place orders (including Stop Loss orders) as close to the current market price as they wish
• No limits on trade sizes, with clients being able to open positions as small as 1 Micro Lot
• Position hedging due to no “first in first out” rule with IC Markets;
• Access to 20 exclusive trading tools, which previously were not featured in the MT4 trading software, including Alarm Manager, Correlation Matrix, Market Manager, Sentiment Trader, Session Map, Stealth Orders, Excel RTD and so on
• Access to 17 additional technical indicators, including Candle countdown, Chart – in – Chart, Donchian, Gravity, Keltner, Magnifier, Renko and so on
• Access to VPS service, which enables clients to run automated trading strategies 24/7 with the fastest possible connectivity to the IC Markets trading servers. VPS subscription will be free-of-charge if clients manage to trade at least 15 Standard Lots per month
• Good accessibility – the MT4 software can be run on Desktop PCs with Windows or Mac OSX, web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari or IE 10+, as well as on iOS- and Android-based devices

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 Trading Platform Features and Tools

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 built-in economic calendar are other advantages of the MT5 platform that is available through both IC Markets and Blueberry Markets.

cTrader – Forex Trading Alternative to MetaTrader

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.

Platform Execution Speed

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.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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.

CFD Products

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.

Forex Pairs Available

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.

CFDs Markets Available

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:

• Stock Index CFDs – 23 indices from across 5 continents at IC Markets vs. 10 indices at Blueberry Markets
• Commodity CFDs – 12 contracts (Energies and Soft Commodities) available to trade on IC Markets’ MT4 and MT5 platforms vs. 2 energies (US Crude Oil and Brent Oil) at Blueberry Markets. On the negative side, Blueberry doesn’t offer any soft commodities
• Metals CFDs – 6 metal pairs can be traded with IC Markets including Gold and Silver that can be traded against both USD and EUR. By comparison, Blueberry Markets only has 2 metal pairs on the MT4 platform and 3 metal pairs on the MT5 platform
• Cryptocurrency CFDs – 10 digital coins at IC Markets vs. 5 Crypto CFDs at Blueberry Markets (available only on the MT5 platform)
• Stock CFDs – Over 150 Shares traded on the ASX, NYSE and NASDAQ available on IC Markets’ MT5 platform. From September 1^st 2020, the broker will charge an AUD 7.00 commission per trade (per round trip) on ASX Stock CFDs. Blueberry Markets grants access only to Australian Stocks on its MT5 software, but it has not specified the exact number of CFD contracts

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.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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.

Customer Service

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 an 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:

• Client Relations: rm@icmarkets.com
• Support: enquiries@icmarkets.com
• Accounts: accounts@icmarkets.com
• Marketing: marketing@icmarkets.com
• IB/Partners: partners@icmarkets.com.

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).

Blueberry Markets Customer Support

Meanwhile, with Blueberry Markets, clients are able to contact the company’s customer support team by using three main channels:

• Send an email to support@blueberrymarkets.com or to global@blueberrymarkets.com
• Get in touch via a live chat
• Reach customer support via a phone call by dialling +61280397480 (for Australia-based clients) or +61280397480 (for international clients)

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.

Are there any Forex education materials available?

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.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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.

View BlueBerry Markets Review >>Visit BlueBerry Markets >>

Minimum Deposit

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 $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).

Funding Methods

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:

• Credit Card or Debit Card issued by Visa or MasterCard
• Wire Transfer
• Skrill
• UnionPay
• POLi
• FasaPay

Meanwhile, IC Markets clients have the alternative option to deposit funds using 9 additional electronic wallets, including: 

• PayPal
• Neteller and Neteller VIP
• Thai Internet Banking
• Broker to Broker
• Rapidpay
• Klarna
• Vietnamese Internet Banking.
• Bpay

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 intermediary bank’s handling fee.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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.

Regulation

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:

• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• And, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)

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.

Blueberry Markets Regulation

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).

What do both brokers offer in terms of client security?

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.

Negative Balance Protection

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.

IC Markets vs. Blueberry Markets: Conclusion

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.