Forex traders always look for trading with brokers that suit their trading needs and preferences. CMC Markets and OspreyFX are online forex brokers that offer their trading services to traders and investors. CMC Markets is a highly regulated and trusted forex broker. It is regulated in five tier-1 jurisdictions. On the other hand, OspreyFX is an offshore forex broker which is not regulated by any regulatory bodies.
In this article, we will review and compare the brokerage services offered by CMC Markets and OspreyFX. We will explore options such as regulations, reputations, fees, features, leverage, and more. Additionally, we will analyze and rate the brokers based on macro and micro categories and options. By reviewing these aspects, you will get a clear idea of which broker suits you best for your trading journey.
CMC Markets vs Ospreyfx: Overview
CMC Markets:
Founded in 1989, CMC Markets is a publicly traded broker (Ticker: CMCX). The broker is regulated in the UK, Australia, Canada, and Singapore. It offers over 9800 trading instruments, including Forex, Indices, Cryptocurrencies, Shares & ETFs, and Commodities. There is no minimum deposit requirement on IC Markets; you may deposit as low as $1. CMC Markets allows EA trading and news trading. The broker uses the most popular trading platform, MetaTrader (MT4), as its trading platform. To learn more, you can read our review about CMC Markets.
- Founded In: 1989
- Minimum Deposit: $0
- Maximum Leverage: 1:500
- Regulations: ASIC
- Trading platform: MT4 , Share trading platforms
- Account Types: SPREAD BETTING, Fx Active, CFD Trading
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard
- US Traders: Not Accept
OspreyFX:
Founded in 2018, OspreyFX is a regulated forex broker headquartered in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It operates as an offshore forex broker, offering leverage as high as 500:1. OspreyFX supports all trading styles; including scalping, hedging, news trading, copy trading, and algorithmic trading. Currently, it uses TradeLocker as its trading platform. The broker provides a wide range of trading instruments, such as forex, Indices CFDs, Metal CFDs, Commodities CFDs, Cryptos CFDs, and Share CFDs (US and EU). Being an offshore forex broker it can onboard clients from anywhere in the world, including the USA. However, the broker only accepts crypto deposits and withdrawals.
OspreyFX Overview
- Founded In: 2019
- Trading Instruments: 120+ including Forex, Crypto, Stocks, Indices, Commodities
- Minimum Deposit: between $25 and $500 (Depending on Account Type)
- Maximum Leverage: 1:500
- Regulations: None
- Trading Fees: Starting from 0.1 Pips
- Deposit and Withdrawal Fees: $0
- Trading platform: TradeLocker
- Account Types: 4 account types such as Standard ECN, Pro ECN, VAR, Mini
- Payment Options: Bitcoin, Crypto, Credit/Debit Cards, and PayRedeem
- US Traders: Accepted
CMC Markets vs OspreyFX: Key Features
CMC Markets:
- Trading Instruments: 12000+ trading instruments including forex, indices, Cryptocurrencies, Commodities, Shares, Share baskets, Treasuries, etc
- Maximum leverage: Up to 30:1 ( FCA, ASIC), up to 1:50 (IIROC), and up to 500:1 for a professional account.
- Minimum Deposit: No Minimum Deposit. However, Pepperstone recommends $200 or equivalent for the margin requirement.
- Account Types: Three (Spread Betting Account, CFD Account, Corporate Account)
- Trading Fees: only Spread is charged (Commission is only for Shares account). Variable spreads from 0.3 pips. A rollover commission is applied on open positions overnight. For the Shares account commission starts from $7.
- PAMM/ MAM: Not Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
OspreyFX:
- Trading Instruments: 120+ trading instruments including Forex, Crypto, Stocks, Indices, Commodities
- Trading Platforms: Tradelocker
- Minimum Deposit: Â $10
- Maximum Leverage: 1:500 ( Leverage may vary based on tradable assets)Â
- Trading Fees: Trading fees (spreads and commissions) depend on account types. The minimum spread is 0.4 pips for the Pro account, $7 per lot for the Standard ECN account, and $8 for the Pro ECN account.
- Minimum Trade Size: 0.01 lot.Â
- Maximum Trade Size (Lot restriction per Ticket): 1000 LotsÂ
- Funding Currencies: Bitcoin, Crypto, Credit/Debit Cards.
- Trading Style Allowed: All including Scalping, hedging, News trading, and EA Trading.Â
- PAMM/ MAM:Â AvailableÂ
- Stop Out Level (retail): 144%
- Margin Call Level: 100%Â
- Negative balance Protection: YesÂ
- Investor Protection:Â No investor protection is Available.Â
- Account Opening: Fully Online Account opening. It may take only 5 to 7 Minutes.Â
- KYC Verification: Required
CMC Markets vs OspreyFX: Side By Side Comparison
CMC Markets vs OspreyFX: Pros and Cons
CMC Markets Pros & Cons
- Regulated by FCA, ASIC, IIROC, MAS, FMA
- Founded in 1989, CMC Markets is publicly traded company
- The minimum deposit is as low as $1
- Comparatively low spread starting from 0.7 pips
- Allows news trading, EA/Robot trading
- Extensive range of tradable assets
- Excellent education and research resources
- Offered only MT4, no MT5, cTrader trading platforms
- Maximum leverage is only 1:300
- No passive investment programme or social trading platforms ( No PAMM, MAM accounts)
- Does not accept US clients
- Only CFD Trading
- High CFD spreads for certain Indices
- Spread betting only for UK residents
OspreyFX Pros & Cons
- The Maximum Leverage is as high as 1:500
- ECN STP broker model
- Faster Trade Execution with Tradelocker
- Offers Multiple Account Types including, Demo accounts and Live Accounts
- Rebates and Rewards are Available for Live Trading Accounts
- Accounts can be funded with multiple crypto coins such as BTC, ETH, LTC, USDT, DOGE, etc.
- Professional traders who can prove their competence may receive funded accounts up to $200,000 and earn up to 80% of their profits.
- Unregulated Offshore Forex Broker
- No Metatrader (MT4, MT5) Trading Platfroms.
- Offers Only Tradelocker Trading Platform
- Limited Deposit and Withdrawal Methods (Cryptos, PayRedeem)
- No managed accounts or Social Trading (MAM, PAMM) Offered
- Live chat is a bit complex. To contact the chat operator, you need to first answer a series of questions from the virtual bot each time.
CMC Markets Vs OspreyFX: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, CMC Markets and OspreyFX, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 0.1 increments. To achieve a comprehensive rating, we broadly grouped all services offered by brokers into 6 macro categories and assigned percentage weights to them. Each macro category is subdivided into several data points which contributes to the total score of 1.0-10.0 assigned to each macro category. Since all categories are not equally important, our weight percentage plays a significant role in assessing the broker accurately. For example, Regulation and Security contributes a total weight of 40% to the whole ratings because this is the most important rating category. To learn more, read our methodology.
CMC Markets:
OspreyFX:
Final Verdict:
Both CMC Markets and OspreyFX offer similar trading services worldwide. However, there are differences in their regulations, reputation, and operation. CMC Markets is a highly regulated and trusted forex broker. It is regulated by top-tier regulatory authorities, including FCA, MAS, ASIC, IIROC, FMA. On the other hand, OspreyFX is an unregulated offshore forex broker. CMC Markets provides Multiple trading platforms including Mt4, Web Trading, Mobile. On the Contrary, OspreyFX does not offer MT4/MT5. It uses only TradeLocker as its trading platform.
As CMC Markets is not licensed in the USA, it cannot accept US clients. Being an unregulated offshore forex broker, OspreyFX can onboard clients from anywhere in the world, including the USA. Therefore, non-US traders may opt for CMC Markets, while US traders looking for offshore forex brokers may consider OspreyFX. Trading with offshore forex brokers is risky and not recommended.
