Interactive Brokers
Founded in New York, USA in 1978 by Thomas Peterffy, Interactive Brokers has grown into a global brand with over 2.1 million clients. It is an American Multinational brokerage firm headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut. It has become one of the leading online trading solutions for traders, investors, and advisors. The brokers give access to over 5000+ tradable assets including forex, CFDs, warrants, ETFs Options, Futures, Mutual Funds, and Bonds. To trade online, IBKR offers WebTrader, FIX API, MobileTrader (MobileApp), and TWS trading platforms. To learn more about IBKR, you can read our review of Interactive Brokers
Interactive Brokers Overview
- Founded In: 1978
- Founder: Chairman Thomas Peterffy
- Headquarters: Greenwich, Connecticut, United States
- Minimum Deposit: None
- Maximum Leverage: 500:1
- Regulations: SEC , CFTC ,FCA, FSCS, ASIC , IIROC , FSA
- Trading platform: WebTrader, FIX API, MobileTrader
- Account Types: Family Office Account ,UGMA/UTMA, IRA, Trust ,Joint, Individuals
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), ACH (Automated Clearing House), BPAY, Check, Direct Debit, Local Bank Deposits, Transfer from Existing Broker
- US Traders: Accepted
RCG Markets
Established in 2018, RCG Markets is a South Africa-based forex and CFD broker that offers online trading services. While licensed by the South Africa Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA: FSP49769), it lacks regulation from other major regulatory bodies. The broker offers a wide range of trading instruments including forex, indices, shares, commodities, and energies. The broker provides access to the MT4 platform with competitive spreads and commissions.
- Founded In: 2018
- Minimum Deposit: R100
- Maximum Leverage: 1:3000
- Regulations:SEC, FINRA, and FCA
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5
- Account Types: Classic, Raw, ECN, Royal100
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, AdvCash, BitPay, bitwallet, ecoPayz, ePayments, FasaPay, Help2Pay, Neteller, Payfinder, Skrill, SticPay, TransfterMate, TroniPay, UnionPay, Uphold
- US Traders: Not Accept
Interactive Brokers vs: RCG Markets Features
Interactive Brokers
- Trading Instruments: 5000+Trading instruments including forex, CFDs, warrants, ETFs Options, Futures, Mutual Funds, stocks, options, and Bonds
- Maximum leverage: 50:1 for US Clients, 30:1 for EU clients, and 400:1 for global clients.
- Minimum Deposit: The Interactive Brokers minimum deposit is $0 for a cash account, $2,000 for a T Reg margin account, and $110,000 for a portfolio margin account. The minimum deposit is subject to change depending on the trading account opened and the base currency selected.
- Trading Fees: spreads starting from as low as 0.1 pips, Stock fees USD 0.005 per share.
- PAMM/ MAM: Not Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed with Capitalise.ai
RCG Markets
- Trading Instruments: A wide range of trading instruments including Forex, Indices, Shares, Commodities, and Energies.
- Maximum Leverage: The maximum leverage of RCG Markets is as high as 2000:1. However, leverage may vary based on tradable assets and account types
- Minimum Deposit: The minimum deposit of RCF markets is as low as R50
- Account Types: Four ( RCG Classic Account, RCG RAW, RCG ECN Account, ROYAL 100)
- Trading Fees: Spread starting from 1.5 pips for the RCG Classic Account and RCG Royal Account; commission of $7 for the RCG ECN Account. No commission and no spread for the RCG Raw Account
- PAMM/ MAM: Not Available
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
Interactive Brokers vs RCG Markets: Pros and Cons
Interactive Brokers Pros & Cons
- IBK is a Forex and Stock Broker
- Excellent reputation (founded in 1978)
- Regulated by top regulators like ASIC, FCA, FSA, SFC, IIROC
- A wide range of products offered warrants, ETFs, Options, Futures, Mutual Funds, Bonds
- Over 18,000 no-transaction-fee mutual funds.
- No monthly inactivity fee
- Low trading fees and high interest (up to 4.58% for USD) on cash balances
- Access to international markets and exchanges
- Mobile apps are convenient for individual investors.
- Complicated account opening
- Learning Curve for Beginners
- The maximum leverage is only 1:40
- No Metatrader platforms (MT4, MT5) offered
- High minimum deposit requirements for some account types
- Interactive Advisors (Robo-advisor feature) is only available for US customers
- No fixed spread is available
RCG Markets Pros & Cons
- Regulated by FSCA.
- Offers popular trading platform (MT4).
- The maximum leverage is as high as 2000:1.
- Allows EA trading, scalping, and News trading.
- Spreads starting from as low as 0 pips.
- Offers multiple account types.
- Provides ECN Executions.
- A wide range of trading instruments are offered including Forex, Indices, Shares, Commodities, and Energies.
- Lack of Regulatory Oversight (Only regulated by FSCA in South Africa).
- The demo account is only valid for 14 days.
- Limited Trading Platforms.
- Limited research and educational resources.
- No Social Trading Options.
Interactive Brokers vs RCG Markets: Side-by-Side Comparison
Interactive Brokers Vs RCG Markets: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, Interactive Brokers and RCG Markets, 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.
