Stay Away from InterBank FX (IBFX)

Broker Discussion Forex Brokers
1

Hi all,

Although I had already opened a different thread about IBFX and talked about the ways they cheat their clients, as I have found something new with them I had to open a new thread for it.

Today I found out that the spread they show in their demo accounts are different from the spread they have in live accounts. I was watching the same currency pair (eur/gbp) in the demo and live account at the same time. The spread was 10 in both live and demo accounts but suddenly it went down to 4 in the demo account but didn’t change in the real account. So the trade I had in the demo account triggered the target and became closed but the same trade I had in the live account stayed open.

Then I decided to let the support knows about this problem. Becuase what you see in the demo has to be the same as live account otherwise you can not make a correct decision about opening a live account with that company.

I admit that the speed of placing the orders in demo and live accounts is different BUT the spreads should not be different at all.

And here below please read the conversation I had with their support team and see how rude, arrogant and stupid they are:

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info: Thank you for contacting us. The next available agent will be right with you. Our goal is quality service. You may tell us how we do today by clicking HERE.
info: You are now chatting with ‘Client Services 40’
Client Services 40: Hello, this is [B]Thomas[/B], how may I help you?
[B]vahid:[/B] Hi Thomas
[B]vahid:[/B] Is the spread you have on the demo account different from what you have in live accounts?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Same spreads for all account types.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] The markets are very volatile now. There is an interest rate announcement coming up tomorrow from the FOMC and the speculation is that the US interest rate may be lowered from 1% to 1/2%.
vahid: But I was watching a demo and a live account at the same time. The EUR/GBP spread was about 10 in both. Suddenly the spread in demo account went down to 4 but it was not changed in live account.
[B]vahid:[/B] How do you justify that?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] I don’t justify it.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] The demo accounts are a means for clients to learn to use the platform and trade the currency markets.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
[B]vahid:[/B] But just a few minutes ago you said “Same spreads for all account types”, didn’t you???
[B]vahid:[/B] On the other hand, it was the live account that was stuck and didn’t change and had lagging not the demo account.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
[B]vahid:[/B] I read it.
[B]vahid:[/B] and I answered you.
[B]vahid:[/B] On the other hand, it was the live account that was stuck and didn’t change and had lagging not the demo account.
[B]vahid:[/B] So do you still say that “Same spreads for all account types” or you have changed your mind?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
[B]vahid:[/B] It was the live account that was stuck and didn’t change and had lagging not the demo account.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] The spreads would be the same.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] That is what is happening now.
[B]vahid:[/B] ok! So now you are saying that “Under normal condition the demo and live account spreads will be the same not under all conditions.”
[B]vahid:[/B] is that correct?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
Client Services 40: Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.’
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] What else can I say.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] The spreads you see are what you get.
[B]vahid:[/B] Ok! So finally we came to this conclusion that the spread you see is what you get, right?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Because of 10s of thousands of demo accounts there may be a lag in price changes.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] The spreads you see are what you get.
[B]vahid:[/B] hmmmmmmmmm
[B]vahid:[/B] You know what?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Hello my name is Nicole, how can I help you today?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Sorry, wrong button.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Did I answer all your questions today?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] What else can I help you with.
vahid: No you are not trying to answer any question. You are trying to get rid of me.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] What else can I help you with.
[B]vahid:[/B] Who is responsible in your company?
[B]vahid:[/B] Who can we ask our questions from?
[B]vahid:[/B] Give me his email address please.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] We are all responsible.
[B]vahid:[/B] So you are responsible?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] [email protected]
[B]vahid:[/B] so please answer my question properly.
[B]vahid:[/B] Should the demo and live spreads be the same or they can be different?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] You keep asking the same question over and over.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] I keep answering that question over and over.
[B]vahid:[/B] because you don’t answer me. So I have to repeat my question.
[B]vahid:[/B] Answer my question and I will not keep on asking it over and over.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] And the question???
[B]vahid:[/B] Are the demo and live spreads the same or they can be different?
[B]vahid:[/B] with the same currency pair and at the same time?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Read above. I said that there could be a lag in the demo account quotes.
[B]vahid:[/B] But this is not what you said at the begining.
[B]vahid:[/B] You said “Same spreads for all account types”
[B]vahid:[/B] didn’t you?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] That is the answer.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same
[B]vahid:[/B] Ok so now you have learned that the spread is not the same in the demo and real account with the same currency pair and at the same time.
[B]vahid:[/B] So next time that someone else asks you this question don’t say that “Same spreads for all account types”
[B]vahid:[/B] ok?
[B]vahid:[/B] Now…
[B]vahid:[/B] If you don’t know, let me tell you that the demo account and live account spread HAVE to be the same under any condition.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Please, what do you want?
[B]vahid:[/B] you can not show something in the demo and then show something else in live accounts.
[B]vahid: [/B]This is called “misleading.”
[B]vahid:[/B] I am telling you what I want.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] That is my answer.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Under normal market conditions the spreads will be the same or nearly the same
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Ok, then close your demo account and open one with another company.
[B]vahid:[/B] shame on you
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] You’re from Canada. Open an account with Oanda.
[B]vahid:[/B] It seems I am talking to a stupid robot who can only copy and paste and is not able to think and answer.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Shame on you.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Good bye.
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Thomas logging off.
[B]vahid:[/B] You know what?
[B]Client Services 40:[/B] Please do not chat back. We have many other clients who need our attention.

2

To me i dont care much about spread, each company is just different 1-3 pips
i do care about customer service, and their LIMIT ORDER ( i can in put how many pips away from current price i want)

i read your chat conversation. That’s bad service. If your account is standard then u had the right to report him. If not they dont care.

GFT is had good service but statement is too hassle.

3

Yes my account is standard but I think it doesn’t make any difference to report him. The whole company is corrupt.

4

Report this to the Better Business Buero. You’d be suprised how accommodating they get.

5

No offense, Vahid, but, frankly I think your tone to the CSR was not called for. His initial answer to your question about the rates being the same was, conceptually, the correct answer. He explained the possible reasons for the differences but you seemed to want to attack him for some ill conceived inconsistency.

I couldn’t imagine talking with customers like that all day.

At any rate, thats the power of a competitive market place - you can take your business anywhere you want.

I on the other hand have been happy with IBFX. Money withdrawals fast, easy to get support, metatrader platform, free tools.

To each their own, I guess…

6

My biggest gripe with IBFX is the requotes which I don’t ever recall getting with Oanda (yes, there probably has been one or two but not in recent memory.) Both claim to be a straight pass-through system but why requotes on one and not the other, and I trade the same 8 prs on both, is a mystery to me.

7

Anyone had different experience with IBFX?

I read somewhere IBFX is a good broker.

8

Holy **** thats horrable!!!

I was thinking of opening an acct with them, but now **** that!!!

and as for the tone you use? they are customer service - its their job to accomodate customers, even frustrated ones!

9

i agree Vahid ibfx are beginning to suck bigtime, they were pretty decent for a while but as they got bigger they’ve begun taking their customers for granted.

The spreads they charge are just outrageous with the same old excuse "it depends on our liquidity providers at the time blah blah … "

Its basically daylight robbery … stand and deliver.

10

They are proud of having no dealing desk and repeat this all the time but they steal more than those who have a dealing desk. Their spread has to much less than those who have a dealing desk but it is almost twice.

11

a NDD (no dealing desk) is the same as a dealing in that they don’t themselves take the other side of your trade but they pass your order through electronically to their liquidity provider. then they take the other side of the trade. FXCM is like this and it seems that scalper EAs like FAPturbo seem to have requote problems. hmmm, wonder why!? someone once said that a NDD is like saying you’re not gay, but your boyfriend is! LOL! sorry if that offended anyone! but that’s basically how it is with these guys! then they say the have liquidity problems and spread problems but yet right on their site, they say they do [B][I]70 billion in trade volume monthly[/I][/B]!

wiat a minute, you do [B][I]70 billion in trade volume monthly[/I][/B] and you have liquidity problems?! really now?! :rolleyes:

12

The Black Knight who blogs here on Babypips gave some education on this issue of MT4 and the trustworthiness of brokers a while ago on his website forum. I hope this isn’t breaking a forum rule or something that I have pasted it in full here for information:

Black Knight

Reply #2 on: Friday, October 03, 2008 - 13:27 �

While we’re on the subject, I thought I would post a few words on the dealing desk (market maker) vs. ECN (electronic computer network) debate, as questions about this come up fairly often.

Market makers are not inherently “bad” - just the dishonest ones who hunt stops and trade against their clients. A market maker’s job is actually to try and match orders in-house first (if one of their clients is selling and another buying, for example), which leads to faster fills and lower spreads. The honest ones to not trade against their clients, they let clients trade against one another, then offset the difference to their own liquidity provider.

I’ve seen what trades look like from the broker’s side, and it is extremely difficult to zero in and trade against one user specifically. Think of a grid like an Excel spreadsheet with hundreds of rows and tiny little cells, where the numbers change in each cell second by second. No charts.

With ECN brokers, there tend to be variable spreads, wider spreads, and slippage - which reflects the true nature of the markets, since there is no “buffer” in the middle (after all markets invented market makers for a reason). But, certainly, it is much harder for an ECN broker to interfere with accounts (since everything is automated), so perhaps the higher price is worth paying.

If you require the MetaTrader platform, you will find that everyone who uses it is a market marker (it was designed for market makers). Crown Forex and FXCM are currently in the process of trying to adapt it for ECN use, though as we’ve seen both have encountered issues and delays. We have several people who use Crown, FxPro, and FXDD (myself included for the first two), and despite their being market makers there have been NO reports of irregularities thus far. In fact, strangely enough, when slippage occurs with FxPro it tends to favor the client.

If you do not require MT4, then our recommendation would be for FXCM UK or FXCM - they are a true ECN broker with multiple liquidity providers, geared primarily at institutional traders with demanding needs, and a solid firm with thousands of accounts, a reputation spanning years, and strong financials (they bought out Refco and several other failures in order to save client accounts, and even withstood the death of Lehman, who was a majority shareholder). And, you can always switch to MT4 later, if you like, when they’ve finished adapting it. Advanced users (who use us as their IB) can switch already. FXCM UK is who I trade my client accounts through, because there have slightly stricter client protection regulations in the UK than in the US.

13

Hi,

I came across this post regarding InterbankFX from over a year ago and wanted to respond because I am an employee of InterbankFX.

The first issue mentioned referred to our spreads.

Our spreads are not fixed and fluctuate (widen and/or narrow) with market conditions. We have a page on our website showing recent InterbankFX performance including spreads, execution rates, and execution times.

One of our proudest achievements is the technology connecting our clients to our global network of banks. This multi-bank liquidity allows InterbankFX to access competing prices from global financial institutions, and offer the best available prices to our clients. And when a trade is placed, our smart routing system directs the trade to the right liquidity partner. This multi-bank liquidity helps give us a competitive edge.

Another issue mentioned in this thread was if InterbankFX is a Dealing Desk.

The NFA’s definition of a dealing desk is a broker who holds client’s trades. We do hold some trades. However, the general public perception of a dealing desk is a broker that sets its prices based on clients open positions. We do not set prices based on client positions and we do not trade against our clients.

Note: InterbankFX is not a Market Maker or an ECN. As explained earlier, we are a FOREX broker with a multi bank liquidity feed. We work with a list of the world’s major banks to provide the best available prices for our clients.

I hope this information clarifies your understanding of InterbankFX and I encourage you to open a demo account with us and test our system for yourself. You can download demo account with InterbankFX at our website.

Be well,
Allison-

14

Demos always will be different with any broker, i’m working with ibfx for three years now.

15

Having lost a considerable amount of money by trading with IBFX, I have continued to give them the benefit of the doubt; however recently, in a conversation with a customer service rep, I heard some information that aroused my suspicion about their integrity. First of all, previously my main complaint about them was when I put on a trade with a limited amount of margin, the trade will go against me right up to the point of being closed out because of lack of sufficient margin, BUT then it will reverse course just a few pips away from the closed out point. I read about this on stop losses as well. On one occasion the trade moved approximately 100 pips against me, and closed me out and reversed less than 1 pip above where it closed me out. coincidence? Not very likely. This has happened more than once. Now what I heard from a customer service rep was that IBFX actually created the MT4 platform and they allow other brokerage firms to borrow it. This sounds to me like they have complete control over the vertical direction of the pip movements. By loaning the platform to other firms prevents making comparisons because they are all using the same platform. Has anyone else had similar experiences, or any opinions on this subject?

16

It happens all the time, but i am still profiting

17

This broker is not good for scalpers or day traders, i can tell you that, by experience, this broker suits better for swing, position and carry traders like me.