IG: Fees, Pros and Cons and Features

Founded 1n 1974, IG is one of the captains of the industry, offering traders and investors more than 15,000 leveraged financial assets.

IG Group is a UK-based brokerage with operations in 16 countries across five continents and 1,500 staff.

We have put it to the test by testing their platform, pros, cons, etc. Read our full review to find out all you need to know about this broker.

What is IG?

IG Markets is part of IG Group corporation, a financial CFD and forex providers for more than 195,000 clients as of May 2018.

IG group was founded in 1974 in the United Kingdom by Stuart Wheeler as a spread betting business and expanded in 2001 to offer contracts for difference. Nowadays, IG is one of the biggest CFD and spread betting providers in the world offering an enormous selection of financial assets in a variety of markets.

The company is publicly traded in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) with a market cap of £3.1 ­billion under the symbol IGG and is part of the prestigious FTSE 250 index.

IG Markets and Products

Score: 10/10

One of IG’s main advantages if the huge selection of financial instruments across a variety of markets. IG compete with other brokers like City Index for the biggest CFD provider in the world.  The broker also offers unique trading derivatives such as options, and knock out trading.

• Forex – 70+ currency pairs.
• Indices – 40+ global indices. 
• Commodities – 39 global commodities.
• Stocks (shares) – 11,000 stocks in different exchanges across the globe.
• Cryptocurrencies – 5 crypto coins. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Ripple.
• Bonds and interest rates
• Options
• Exchange Traded Funds (ETF’s)

IG Special Features

Score: 9/10

Whether you are are a beginner or experienced trader, you must investigate your broker’s offered features and trading tools, that can make the difference to become a profitable trader.

Knock Out Trading

IG offers the ‘Knock Out Trading’ which are CFD trades on an option on major forex pairs, global stock indices, and commodities. Knock out trading options move similarly to the underlying asset and close automatically if your chosen knock-out level is hit.

Automated Trading – Terminals and API’s

Another feature offered by IG is automated trading. The broker provides a system which allows you to trade via API. It is also designed to get you coding as quickly as possible, with a sample app, fully featured online documentation and interactive developer tools to assist you. IG also allows you to insert the Bloomberg terminal in order to submit orders for shares through your own Bloomberg EMSX for full compatibility with IG’s execution systems.

Direct Market Access (DMA)

IG also offering direct market access (DMA) platform with a level two trading platform. The DMA platform is a different trading experience suitable for scalp/day traders.

Overall, IG provides traders with top-notch trading tools and features.

Supported Countries

Score: 7/10

IG offers its services to 23 countries categorized into five regions of the world – Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Africa and the Middle East. Note that IG accepts traders from the United States, Japan, and China. Traders in the United States cannot trade CFDs or spread betting but can trade other products offered by IG US.

Languages

Score: 9/10

IG supports all the languages of its regulated operations, making the website accessible for all users from various regions. Here are the languages supported by IG:

1. English
2. Spanish
3. Chinese
4. Danish
5. Norwegian
6. Russian
7. German
8. Italian
9. French
10. Portugese
11. Swedish
12. Dutch
13. Romanian
14. Japanese

Note that IG also supports its in-house trading platform in multiple languages.

IG Trading Platforms

Score: 7/10

When it comes to trading platforms, IG offers its clients an interesting selection of trading platforms for different types of trading. The broker provides the popular Meta Trader 4, the IG web-based platform, the L2 Dealer, and the ProRealTime.

MetaTrader4

IG main trading platform is the popular MetaTrader4. The broker provides additional MT4 features including automated trading, a free VPS for the expert advisor, and a range of free add-ons and indicators plugin for stock trading apps. The MT4 is available on a desktop and your mobile phone.

IG Web-Based

IG offers its in-house web-based trading platform which is one of the most innovative and nice looking platforms we have reviewed. The IG platform is available on Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer 11, and Safari.

The platform has a convenient and clear interface and combines great trading tools and features including trading signals and alerts, automated trading and the ProRealTime.

Advanced Platforms

L2 Dealer – The L2 Dealer is a direct market access (DMA) platform downloadable desktop platform with level two for share and forex trading. Note that in order to use the L2 Dealer, you may be liable to pay the exchange’s data usage fees.

ProRealTime – The ProRealTime is an advanced charting package on the web, offering powerful monitoring tools, flexible access, and advanced analysis resources.

You can get access to ProRealTime for free for your first month. Following that, you can continue to access the platform for no extra cost if you transact at least four times in a given month.

Fees and Limits

Score: 8/10

Trading and Non-Trading Fees

Rollover/Overnight fees – IG charges overnight/rollover (swaps) fees for FX and CFDs at the end of the trading day, including the broker’s fee of 2.5%.

Inactivity fee – $18 fee on the first of every month, if no dealing activity has occurred for two years or more

Account documentation fee – IG charges a US$50 fee on accounts which have not supplied a mandatory W-8 or W-9 form prior to the dividend ex-date of a qualifying trade on a US-incorporated stock. 

IG might charge exchange fees for special service such as the DMA platform and the ProRealTime service.

Deposit and Withdrawal fees

IG does not charge any deposit and withdrawal fees, however, there is a minimum of $150 or equivalent in order to withdraw your funds and a maximum amount you can transfer back to your card of $35,000.

Spreads

As expected, IG offers competitive spreads compared to other Australian forex brokers in the industry. The broker offers variable and fixed spreads with the EUR/USD spread, for example, is as low as 0.6 pips. Here are IG spread on major FX pairs:

In conclusion, IG provides their clients with a full disclosure of their fees, offering competitive spreads and a fair commissions rate.

Minimum Deposit

Score: 8/10

There’s no minimum deposit to open an account with IG. However, in order to start trading you need to fund your account – In the UK and the EU, a minimum deposit of £250 is required. In the US, the minimum deposit requirement is $250.

Account Types

Score: 7/10

IG account types are vary depending on the location and the markets available in the region. The account types offered are CFD, Spread betting account and Share dealing account.

IG also offering accounts based on your needs and preferences: Personal account, Corporate and trust account, Self-managed super fund (SMSF) accounts, and Joint account. The broker also provides traders to choose the Islamic (Swap-free) account for those who comply with the Sharia principles.

How to Sign Up and Trade on IG

Open a trading account with IG can be done easily and quickly. Follow the next steps:

1. Login to IG website and click the ‘Create live account’ button on the top right corner of the screen.
2. Fill in you personal, contact and financial details.
3. Then, you can log in to to IG we-based platform.
4. Once you are ready, fund your account through one of the IG’s payment methods.
5. Start trading.

How to Configure Your IG Account

IG offers several trading platforms – MetaTrader4, IG web-based trading platform, the L2 Dealer and ProRealTime.

IG Web-Based and Desktop Platform

Once you open the account, you can log in to the platform’s dashboard. You can choose one of the available platforms – the CFD or the options platform.

As you can in the image below, you have the menu on the left side, a window (workspace) of the most popular instruments and another window that shows your positions, orders and account balance. You also have the option to stay updated with notifications and tweets on the right side of the platform. You can open another workspace window by clicking the plus button at the top of the screen and insert your preferred instruments.

If you wish to transact, you can click on one of the instruments and a new market order window will pop-up. You can insert an immediate execution, a limit order if you click the ‘order’ button and you can insert an alert for a certain price or an indicator.

Meta Trader 4

MetaTrader 4 is one of the most popular trading platforms for forex and CFD traders. IG offers MT4 on a desktop as well as on your mobile phone.

After you download the platform, you can see the MarketWatch (instruments quotes), trading charts and the terminal (positions, orders, account balance). MT4 configuration is an easy process – You can organize the MarketWatch based on your preferences and open a number of trading charts with more than 80 technical indicators.

Note that you can also add paid and free plugins to the MT4 platform. In addition, IG offers a free VPS for your automated trading Expert Advisor which executes orders when your PC is turned off.

Security and Regulation

Score: 8/10

Regulation

IG is a highly regulated and authorized broker by several top regulators in different regions worldwide. The broker is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) in Australia. In addition, the broker complies with the ESMA. IG is also regulated in the United States by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Security

Forex and CFD brokers like Coinbase know the risk involved with cybercrime and offer security measurement for traders. As one of the leading broker in the industry, IG provides security and safety tools in terms of funds protection and web and trading platforms security. The broker offers two-factor authentication, a secure 256-bit SSL encryption for the mobile app, Face ID and Touch ID security for all mobile apps, all client funds are held in segregated accounts. In the UK and Europe, compensation of up to £85,000 is ensured for traders under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Deposit and Withdrawal Process

Score: 8/10

Unlike other forex and CFD brokers, IG does not charge any deposit and withdrawal fees. The broker offers a video tutorial explaining how to fund your account.

Deposit

The broker offers these payment methods in order to fund your account:

• Credit/Debit card
• Bank wire transfer
• PayPal

Withdrawal

IG withdrawal process can take up to 2-3 working days. There is a minimum of $150 or equivalent in order to withdraw your funds. Withdrawals can be made through a bank wire transfer or back to your credit/debit card.

Education and Resources

Score: 9/10

IG Markets acknowledge the importance of traders’ eduction, offering a section on their website of education materials. Those include news and trade ideas, managing your risk, trading strategy, financial events, and a glossary of trading terms. IG also offers the IG Academy which includes webinars and seminars, an interactive education, demo account and the ability to use IG’s education material through the mobile app. The broker also publishes daily market news and analysis as well as an economic calendar.

IG also supports the IG community that includes a forum, blogs, IGTV, tutorials and more.

☎️Customer Service

Score: 9/10

IG customer support is available 24/7 from 8am Saturday to 10pm Friday (GMT) via phone, chatbot, email, live chat, and IG’s Twitter account. The broker operates offices in 16 different locations.

In addition to all customer support forms available, the broker offers Making a complaint for any regulatory issues.

Overall, IG customer service is great with knowledgeable friendly staffs around.

Mobile App

Score: 9/10

IG offers a mobile trading app for its in-house trading platform and for the popular MetaTrader 4. The IG trading platform is available on iPhone, Android, iPad and Android tablet on the App Store and Google Play. The IG mobile was voted for the best trading app by a number of forex and CFDs websites and indeed, the application is unique and modern.

In addition to the IG mobile app, IG also offers the user-friendly MT4 mobile app.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

There is no doubt about the ability of IG Markets to deliver a safe and reliable trading connection for online traders and investors. Founded in 1974, IG is an experienced broker offering all the necessary tools and the extra features and tools to provide traders the most secure and innovative trading experience. The broker offers excellent conditions for all levels of traders including education hub, market news, and analysis, a huge selection of financial assets and trading platforms and a transparent service environment. The broker is also highly regulated by the FCA, ASIC, and SEC.

Based on the result of our test of the broker, we recommend our users to trade with IG.

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