IC Markets and ActivTrades are Forex and CFD brokers offering online trading services to traders and investors worldwide. Both brokers are regulated by top-tier regulatory authorities. IC Markets is regulated by 3 regulatory authorities , including the ASIC, CySEC, FSA. On the other hand, 5 regulatory authorities , including the FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN, and FSC. These two brokers offer almost similar services. However, each broker has its strengths and weaknesses.
In this article, we will compare IC Markets with ActivTrades regarding trading platforms, regulations, tradable assets, fees, customer support, and overall trading experience score. We will also explore if IC Markets is better than ActivTrades. This comparison lets you understand which broker is better for your trading style and preferences.
IC Markets vs ActivTrades: In a Nutshell
IC Markets
Founded in 2007 by Andrew Budzinksi, IC Markets is an Australian-based forex and CFD broker offering trading services to institutional and retail traders worldwide. The broker offers 2250+ trading instruments including Forex, commodities, indices, bonds, stocks, futures, and cryptocurrencies. Over the years, the broker has improved in quality and services. It offers true ECN trading with low spreads, high leverage, and fast executions to a global clientele. IC Markets is a multi-asset trading platform of choice for high-volume traders, scalpers, and robots. To learn more, you can read our review on IC Markets where we have covered its features, pros, cons, ratings, and more.
ICMarkets Overview
- Founded In: 2007
- Founder: Andrew Budzinksi
- Headquarters: Australia
- Minimum Deposit: $200
- Maximum Leverage: Upto 1000:1 for FSA Jurisdiction, 30:1 for ASIC, CySEC clients.
- Regulations: ASIC, CySEC, and FSA
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5, TradingView and cTrader
- Trading Instruments: 2150+ Trading Instruments including Forex, Crypto, Stock, Commodity Indices, Bonds, Futures.
- Account Types: Standard, Standard, Raw (Metatrader, Ctrader)
- Fees: Spread starting from 0.8 Pips(Standard Accounts) or $3 to 3.5 Commission (Raw Accounts)
- Payment Options: bank/wire transfer, Paypal, credit card, Skrill, Neteller, UnionPay, Bpay, FasaPay and Poli.
- US Traders: Not Accepted
ActivTrades
ActivTrades is an online forex and CFD broker that offers MT4, MT5, and the ActivTrader proprietary web and mobile trading platforms. Alex Pusco founded ActivTrades as a stock brokerage in Switzerland in 2001. Later he moved to London in 2005. The broker added MetaTrader 4 in 2007. It also added CFDs on indices and commodities to its offer in 2008. ActivTrades offers over 45 currency pairs, Indexes, ETFs, as well as Commodities and Shares CFDs for your personal investment and trading options. To learn more, you can read our review of ActivTrades
ActivTrade At a Glance
- Founded In: 2001
- Founder: Alex Pusco
- Headquarters: London, UK
- Minimum Deposit: No Minimum Deposit. However Chinese and Brazilian traders require a $500 Minimum Deposit.
- Maximum Leverage: 1:200 for retails traders, and 1:400 for Pro traders
- Regulations:FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN and CVM
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5, ActivTrader and Tradingview
- Account Types: Professional Account, Retail Account
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, Maestro, Ngan Luong, PayPal, Skrill, SOFORT
- US Clients : Not Accepted
IC Markets vs: ActivTrades Features
IC Markets:
- Regulations: ASIC, CySEC, and FSA
- Trading Instruments: 2150+ including Forex, commodities, indices, bonds, stocks, futures, cryptocurrencies
- Minimum Deposit: $200 or Equivalent
- Maximum leverage: up to 1000:1 in FSA jurisdiction, in some countries, it offers 500:1 leverage, for ASIC, and CySEC entity the brokers offers up to 1:30 leverage.
- Account types: Standard Account and Raw Account (Metater, Ctrader)
- Fees: Spread starting from 0.8 pips for Standard Account or 3.00 to 3.50 per lot for Raw Account on a single Trip.
- PAMM/ MAM: Not Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
ActivTrades
- Trading Instruments: 1000+Trading instruments including Forex ( Major, minor, exotics), shares, Indices, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, Commodities, Bonds, etc
- Maximum leverage: The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000 for the Mauritius entity (FSC regulation). 1:30 for retail traders of UK and European branch, 1:400 for professional accounts, 1:200 for SCB
- Minimum Deposit: For the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each.
- Account Types: Two ( Professional, Retail)
- Trading Fees: ActiveTrades charges spread. The spread starts from as low as 0.5 pips. It does not charge any commission.
- MAM: Available
- PAMM: Not available
- Zulutrade: Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
IC Markets vs ActivTrades: Pros and Cons
IC Markets
- Fully Regulated broker, ( One tire-1 , jurisdiction, one tire-2 jurisdiction)
- Super fast trade execution speed
- Straightforward registration process
- Low spread, starting from 0 pips.
- Easy and Fast Account Opening
- Free deposit and withdrawal
- Offers standard and raw spread account
- Trading EA is Allowed
- Ability to trade from a mobile device
- A demo Account is available
- Higher minimum deposit
- No investor protection for non-EU Clients
- Limited Product Selection
- No weekend Trading
- US Traders are not accepted
ActivTrades
- Regulated by FCA, SCB, CMVM, BACEN, and FSC
- For the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each.
- The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000.
- Free deposit and withdrawal.
- Allows scalping, news trading, and EA trading.
- Has MT4, MT5, TradingView, and ActivTrades platforms.
- Offers 1000+ trading instruments.
- Spreads start from 0.5 pips.
- Provides fast order execution.
- Lloyds of London insurance up to $1,000,000.
- Offers 24-hour customer support in 14 languages.
- Supports a variety of bank accounts.
- Available to customers in more than 140 countries
- Not regulated by ASIC or CySEC.
- Only forex and CFDs are offered; no real tradable instruments are available.
- No passive investment programs like PAMM or MAM accounts.
- Mediocre customer support.
- Not authorized to trade real stocks.
- Offers 24/5 support.
- A bank wire withdrawal fee is applicable.
- Wide spreads in crypto pairs.
- An inactivity fee may be charged.
- The minimum deposit for Brazilian and Chinese traders is $500.
IC Markets vs ActivTrades: Side-by-Side Comparison
IC Markets Vs ActivTrades: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, IC Markets and ActivTrades, 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.
IC Markets :
ActivTrades:
Final Verdict :
IC Markets and ActivTrades are regulated forex and CFD brokers in the industry. They offer similar trading services. Both brokers allow scalping, hedging, EA trading, and Copy trading. The minimum order size for both of them is 0.01.
However, there are a few areas where you may find some differences. For example, the minimum deposit for IC Markets is $200, whereas Activtrades the minimum deposit For the Chinese account, the 2nd account requires a $500 minimum deposit. For the Brazilian account, both the 1st and 2nd accounts require $250 each. Additionally, the maximum leverage for IC Markets is 1:1000. In contrast, the maximum leverage for ActivTrades is 1:1000. IC Markets offers passive investment programs like MAM and PAMM, while ActivTrades offers passive investment programs like MAM.
Our score for IC Markets is 9.3, and for ActivTrades, it is 9 So, if you are looking for the most trusted forex brokers with MAM and PAMM services, you may choose IC Markets. However, if you prefer another forex brokers that offer similar services, you may choose ActivTrades.
