IC Markets Review

• Leverage: 1:30 | 1:500
• Regulation: ASIC, CySEC, FSA
• Min. Deposit: 200 US$
• HQ: Australia
• Platforms: cTrader, MT4, MT5
• Found in: 2007

IC Markets Licenses

• International Capital Markets Pty Ltd – authorized by ASIC (Australia) registration no. ACN 123 289 109. AFSL 335692
• IC Markets (EU) Ltd – authorized by CySEC (Cyprus) registration No 362/18
• Raw Trading Ltd – authorized by FSA (Seychelles) registration no 8419879-2

What is IC Markets?

IC Markets is a large Forex Trading Company incorporated in Sydney, Australia in 2007 by a team of financial professionals who aimed to bridge the gap between retail and institutional clients offering trading solutions. IC Markets provides an ECN trading environment with spreads from 0.0 pips from the liquidity suppliers from over 50 different banks and dark pool liquidity sources across 60 forex pairs.

Where is IC Markets based?

Recently, as we see with our data and research the broker grows to one of the leading trading providers in Australia with its headquarter and also expand beyond as serves international and European entity, also establish a Chinese Support centre and proposes truly competitive trading conditions.

Is IC Markets a CFD broker?

Even though, IC Markets is CFD broker too, so the execution brings speeds and low latency through fiber optic connects traders’ orders to the market by servers in the NY4 & LD5 IBX Equinix Data Center New York and London. Yet, instrument and execution might be different based on the instrument you trade.

IC Markets Pros and Cons

IC Markets is a broker with good reputation, a great selection between platform including MT4, MT5 and cTrader platforms, also with good quality education provided for free and 24/7 customer support. There is a selection between spread basis and raw spread accounts also various instruments are available, which makes it a favorable choice for various traders with our opinion.

On the flip, the proposal vary according to the entity and is larger via offshore entity, also we found some spreads higher than average for other instruments.

IC Markets Review Summary in 10 Points

Headquarters	Australia
Regulation	ASIC, CySEC, FSA
Platforms	cTrader, MT4, MT5
Instruments	FX, Equities, Commodities, Futures CFDS, Stocks and Bonds, Crypto trade
Demo Account	Available
Minimum deposit	200 US$
EUR/USD Spread	1 pip
Base currencies	10 currencies offered
Education	Included on a free basis
Customer Support	24/7

Overall IC Markets Ranking

With our Expert finds and review we consider proposal quiate good one, with quite favorable trading conditions and low fees for Forex trading. IC Markets is a choice for high-volume traders, scalpers, EA traders and robots that can enjoy no dealing desk with no manipulation at the prices.

• IC Markets Overall Ranking is 8.5 out of 10 based on our testing and compared to over 500 brokers, see Our Ranking below compared to other industry Leading Brokers.

Ranking	IC Markets	BlackBull Markets	Pepperstone
Our Ranking
Advantages	Instruments	Fees	Platforms

IC Markets Alternative Brokers

Yes, we found IC Markets instrument offering mainly offering Forex and CFDs, also in its international entity trading conditions are different. Even though, spreads, platforms and education are good in IC Markets it good to consider other brokers too, see our selection of Alternative Brokers below:

• eToro – Good for CopyTrading and Cryptocurrency Trading
• Dukascopy – Excellent for Shares, Futures Trading
• BlackBull Markets – Good for High Leverage Trading

Is IC Markets safe or a scam?

IC Markets is known as a safe broker, as the licensed and regulated trading companies are constantly overseen and audited by an external reputable authority.

See our conclusion on IC Markets Reliability:

• Our Ranked IC Markets Trust Score is 8 out 0f 10 for good service along the years it operates and reliable license from ASIC and European license making proposal available for European clients. Yet, the only gap is International trading available via the offshore entity so we advise to check conditions well

Is IC Markets legal?

In the case of IC Markets, the broker is incorporated in Australia it does its service regarded by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) license (read more why trade with ASIC Brokers). Also, IC Markets runs a regulated entity in Cyprus, therefore officially and legally operating trading service for European clients.

• With a license and regulation from ASIC, which one of the strictest and most demanding financial regulators, IC Market traders can feel completely confident. The money protection provided through multiple regulated ways and includes the client money segregation while accounts accessed by the client only and used for the purpose of facilitating their own trading.
• In addition, IC Markets is a member of the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), an approved Australian external dispute resolution scheme that fairly and independently resolves disputes between consumers and member financial services providers.

Leverage

IC Markets offers leverage based on the entity you trade. While initially leverage opens the path to the forex market for Retail traders with a quite low or small initial deposit to cover margins. The use of leverage can magnify gains but you should always remember that losses can also exceed your initial deposit.

• Maximum of 1:30 available for Australian clients
• 1:30 allowed for European traders
• 1:500 for an international proposal

Leverage is known as a loan given by the broker to the trader to enable trading with a bigger capital and increase potential gains. However, we would recommend to any trader use tool smartly and read carefully how to set up correct leverage to a particular instrument or trading strategy, as also leverage defined by the IC Markets entity and particular jurisdiction regulations. 

Account types

There are three main account types offered by IC Markets as we found, all featuring the same compatibility and power provided by the company, yet are designed to meet the expectations and needs of different trading styles. Two first account offering raw spread condition and commission charge per trade also offering either MT4 platform of cTrader for your selection.See our find of good and negative points forr IC Markets accounts.

IC Markets demo account

Risk-free demo account is available on both MT4 and cTrader that allows the practice of the trading strategy, which is great to start with the broker. Also, the accounts are available in multiple currencies, up to 10, are fully segregated from the company’s funds, and supported by a multi-lingual customer team. Additionally, traders that follow Sharia rules can sign for Swap free or Islamic account as an option at IC Markets too.

Trading Instruments

The market’s offer includes a range that suits demands of any trader and include the major instruments to trade, along with new additions alike Cryptocurrencies. The asset classes consist of FX, Equities, Commodities, Futures CFDS, Stocks, and Bonds. The IC Markets Crypto trade offers trading pairs with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dash, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Ripple, and allows go long or short with a leverage 1:5 margin of 20% and a minimum lot of 0.01.

• IC Markets Instrument Score is 7 out 0f 10 for good trading instrument proposal mainly for Forex and CFDs, also the range is different based on entity

Fees

IC Markets offers different pricing defining trading fees on applicable accounts, as the fees are slightly diverse based on the account type and platform you choose. Also, beware that various IC Markets entities in different jurisdictions may apply its own trading conditions, so be sure to check it out as well.

• IC Markets Fees are ranked low with overall rating 8 out of 10 based on our testing and compared to over 500 other brokers. Overal fees are at good level, some deposits and withdrawals are free of charge but it worth to check conditions fully

IC Markets Spreads

Here are some of our finds on Spreads and trading costs: The Standard Account enabled through MetaTrader4 with CNS VPS Cross-Connect and spread only basis from 1.0 pips. While the True ECN account or Raw Account allows micro lot trading from 0.01 size, deep institutional grade liquidity, ECN spreads from 0 pips and a commission of 3.50$ per 100k traded available at MT4 also.

cTrader ECN account offering approximately the same feature as MT4, but with the difference of the platform that is used by mainly professional traders of a bigger size. The applicable spread also starts at 0.0 pips and a commission of 3.00$ per 100k traded that serves execution through Equinix LD5.

• IC Makets Spreads are ranked low with overall rating 8 out of 10 based on our testing comparison to other brokers. We rank it very good proposal for Currency trading considering spreads are among lowest in industry. Yet, fees might be different based on entity offering and for some instruments are slightly higer than average. See our findings of fees and pricing in the table below.

Trading Fees of IC MarketsAsset/ PairIC Markets SpreadAvaTrade SpreadeToro SpreadEUR USD Spread1 pip1.3 pip3 pipCrude Oil WTI Spread5 pip3 pip5 pipGold Spread1 point4045

Overnight Fee

IC Markets overnight fee or a swap rate determined by the overnight interest rate differential between the two currencies involved in the pair and whether the position is a buy ‘long’ or sell ‘short’. The fee originally varies from one currency to another, but you should always bear in mind its existence that may bring you either a negative or a plus to your account.

Here is a snapshot of IC Markets Spreads

Deposits and Withdrawals

IC Markets offers 10 flexible funding options in 10 major base currencies AUD, GBP, JPY, HKD, SGD, NZD, CHF, CAD, EUR, USD. Which is great, since you may choose the suitable one for you and avoid extra conversion fees.

• IC Markets Funding Methods we ranked Good with overall rating 8 out of 10. The Miniimum deposit is among average, yet Fees are small also allowing to benefit from account based currencies and avoid conversions, which is good overall

Here are some good and negative points for IC Makrtes funding methods found:

Deposit Options

From the client secure area, there is an ability to deposit or withdraw funds throughout

• Cards,
• PayPal,
• Bank Transfer including local ones,
• Neteller, Skrill, WebMoney, Qiwi,
• China UnionPay, FasaPay and more.

IC Markets minimum deposit

Minimum deposit for IC Markets is 200$ for Standard Account on MetaTrader4, along with other two account types available at IC Markets. See our snapshot on fees below

IC Markets minimum deposit vs other brokers

Withdrawals

IC Markets withdrawals allowing to use popular Bank Transfer, WebMoney, Cards and e-wallets, IC markets does not charge additional fees for deposits and apply 0$ fee for withdrawals. Yet, for International Bank Wire withdrawals, IC Markets pass the transfer fees charged by the company banking institution, which is approximately AUD20 that is deducted from the amount of your withdrawal.

How long does it take to withdraw money from IC Markets?

Various payment methods will process withdraw money in its defined time, while IC Markets accounting team confirms transactions quite quickly within 1-2 business days.

Trading Platforms

Apart from the sophisticated technical optimization of the execution provided by leading technologies, we see IC Markets Platform offers advanced software proposals inclduing – MetaTrader 4 and cTrader are two of the best trading platforms available in the market today, hence IC Markets have both options in their direct access to provided ECN trading environment.

Nevertheless, you can still trade through MetaTrader5 an updated and improved version that is packed with brand new features if you prefer so.

• IC Markets Platform are ranked Excellent with overall rating 9 out of 10 compared to over 500 other brokers. We mark it for good offering of market leaders MT4, MT5, also included powerful cTrader. Besides we mark good research and excellent tools provided for all platforms

Trading Platform Comparison to Other Brokers:

Desktop Platform

Each of the platforms is available in different versions suitable for use either via Web Platform or directly from your browser or you can install Desktop version and enjoy full customization MetaTrader or cTrader offers. See platform look below:

• Overall, there are good comprehensive tools, where IC Markets brings trading to the next level. There are a lot of additions and extensions to the platforms such as a one-click trade module, market depth, spread monitor, trade risk calculator, and advanced order types previously not available on MetaTrader 4.

Mobile Platform

Mobile Apps are also available and are very useful for modern traders stay updated with market conditions on the go. Likewise, MT4, MT5 and cTrader are available via Android or iOS devices, also permitting account management and control over the positions.

Auto Trading

In addition, Auto trading compatible with all broker’s platforms, EAs at MT4 or MT5 myfxbook at cTrader platform and as an addition, ZuluTrade is available too. ZuluTrade is one of the best social trading platforms that allow to choose among thousands of talented traders and to follow their trading signals for free.

• Moreover, if you are willing to go into the partnership with the broker there is an offer by MAM and PAMM multi-account management systems that are flexible and easy to use tools. FIX API delivers a great opportunity for high-volume traders, while VPS (Virtual Private Server) allows running a variety of automated trading strategies with the possibility to get free VPS use (if a required minimum volume of 15 round turn (FX) lots per calendar month is reached).

Customer Support

IC Markets strives to offer not only the best technological solutions but understanding the necessity of good quality customer service and support. The broker support is available 24/7 and runs customer offices in various regions, so that all global is covered with IC Markets available to answer or assist teams.

• Customer Support in IC Makrets we rank Good with overall rating 9 out of 10 based on our testing. We got fast and knowledgeable respond,  also availability of multilanguage and 24/7 is definitely great.

See our find and Ranking on Customer Service Quality:

IC Markets Education

Since, IC Markets team has a significant amount of experience within the forex industry, hence understands what traders want and need exactly. Educational materials provided on a free basis and allows to obtain a clear vision of the topic through regular technical analysis reports, video tutorials, informational tools, webinars and more.

Research tools are available as well, including inbuilt numerous analysis tools inside platforms, as well as offering IC Markets designed Market Analysis Blog, Economic Calendar and trading ideas available through platforms, allowing beginning of professionnal traders to get bgood tools.

• IC Education ranked with overall rating 8 out of 10 based on our research. We found good quality Education Materials and advanced research tools, yet some Broker might ruun education more professionally alike Trading 212

IC Markets Review Conclusion

In conclusion, the IC Markets offers quite advanced trading offering, while you are able to choose from a wide range to tailor solutions to almost any trading parameter, which instrument to trade, a platform to use, account to open, to use auto trading or social trading, or even become a partner.

Indeed we mark, IC Markets technical optimization is among the strongest in terms of execution, platform optimization, the range of tools and provided support.

Based on Our findings and Financial Expert Opinion IC Markets is Good for:

• Beginning Traders
• Professional Traders
• Traders who prefer MT4 or MT5 platform or cTrader
• EAs running
• Algorithmic or API Traders
• Currency Trading
• Suitable for a Variety of Trading Strategies