So now I’m in the dumps since IBFX dropped me off to FXCM. I have no interest in FXCM, and with that, I would like to have a broker that also does stocks, futures and options. I started signing up with MBTrading, but the application process is a job in itself, and I’d rather not have a broker in New York.
Alpari was always a choice, but not any longer. Oanda was also a choice, but they are kinda weird now with needing to fund with credit card or paypal before doing a bank transfer.
I would be happy to address any questions or concerns you have regarding FXCM’s acquisition of IBFX accounts in the US and Australia. Also, you mentioned having interest in trading other markets besides forex. If your account is with IBFX Australia, then it will be transferred to FXCM Australia which is based in Sydney and regulated by ASIC allowing you to trade CFDs for stock indices, metals and energy in addition to forex.
Thanks for this info, Edacsac. CFTC regulations only allow us to offer forex trading to US traders.
I’ve sent you a private message with login details for a new MT4 demo account that will let you see the new pricing that will be available to you when your IBFX account is transferred to FXCM.
Say it ain’t so. I hope the price feed from IBFX doesn’t change. I think it represents the market as a whole the best. Once FXCM bought up ODL the volume bars started to repaint in real time! Uggh, not again.
I’ve just sent you a private message with login details to a demo so you can test the new pricing that will be available to you when your IBFX account is transferred to FXCM on September 19th.
Also, you mentioned that you use volume as part of your trading. If you haven’t seen them already, you may be interested in our new real volume indicators.
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
I’ve depended on the pricing I get from IBFX for years now so this is pretty disturbing to me. I’m not looking for anything new or different. I will take a look at the new feed since I have no choice but to change. I’ll look at other brokers as well. Thanks very much.
When your IBFX account transfers to FXCM then you will be trading on our No Dealing Desk (NDD) forex price feed. On this NDD feed, our 10+ liquidity providers compete with each other to fill your orders at the best available bid and ask prices.
Volume data are supposed to update in real time. If you feel there is some error with how our volume data update, I would appreciate more feedback from you on this, so we can investigate.
Pricing is important, so make sure you’re getting competitive spreads. But a key thing that most traders don’t think about is how execution plays into the pricing equation. A good advertised spread is useless if it doesn’t come with quality execution. Also look to clarify if your broker is under a market execution or instant execution model - are your trades being automatically hedged, or do they work under a DD etc.
These are some of the questions you should be asking when looking around. Feel free to contact me for any clarification.
Check out the OANDA orderbook for some insights into trade positioning for the majors. We’ve had this available for quite a while now.
Not if your in the US. Which by-the-way is starting to become really annoying. Whoever the jack-ass is who made up the rules that locks us out of a majority of brokers, should be tarred and feathered (and that’s me being nice).
It’s not that FXCM is against nano lot trading in principle. However, our No Dealing Desk (NDD) forex execution requires us to set a 1 micro lot (10 cents per pip) minimum order size, because that’s the absolute smallest order size our liquidity providers are willing to offset one-for-one with us. On the NDD model, FXCM does not take the market risk on the other side of client trades, so we are limited by the order size minimums of our liquidity providers.
There are dealing desk brokers out there who offset nano lots, since they can offset these orders internally. I appreciate that given your desire to trade nano lots, this is an option you are exploring. However, since FXCM’s NDD model offsets each client order one-for-one with our liquidity providers, nano lots are not something we cannot offer at this time.
If in the future our liquidity providers are able to offset nano lots, then we may offer nano lot trading at that point. It could happen, but I wouldn’t want to guess at the time frame. I’ve been at FXCM almost 10 years, and when we first introduced NDD in 2007, the minimum order size banks would accept from us was 1 mini lot ($1 per pip). Then in 2010, they started accepting micro lot orders from us.
*In some instances, accounts for clients of certain intermediaries are subject to a markup.
That means when trading 10k of EUR/USD, you would pay 0.2 pips in spread cost plus 80 cents in round turn commission (40 cents per side). That’s $1 in total transaction cost or 1 pip on a 10k trade, compared to our previous spread of 2.5 pips. That’s a 60% reduction in cost.
1 Listed spreads and commissions will not apply to some customer accounts due to their relationship with certain intermediaries.
Our new pricing is already available to all IBFX accounts acquired by FXCM this past weekend. All our existing clients in the US will be notifed by email shortly with information on the date when their accounts will be upgraded to our new pricing.
FXCM’s new pricing applies to all trade sizes, not just 10k mini lot trades. Even with commissions, the overall transaction costs should be lower than what was available to you in the past. In addition, our super tight raw FX spreads* can provide you with increased execution benefits to stop and limit orders.
For example, if you trade a 1k micro lot of EUR/USD, then with a 0.2 pip spread you would pay 2 cents in spread cost plus 8 cents in round turn commission (4 cents per side). That’s 10 cents in total transaction cost or 1 pip on a 1k trade.
If you trade a 100k standard lot of EUR/USD, then with a 0.2 pip spread you would pay $2 in spread cost plus $8 in round turn commission ($4 per side). That’s $10 in total transaction cost or 1 pip on a 100k trade.
*In some instances, accounts for clients of certain intermediaries are subject to a markup.
I’ll sure miss IBFX’s zero commissions.