Hi everyone, I am looking for a good trustworthy broker located in Europe (basically because of the bank fees). Everytime I find a broker which looks fine I read a bad reviews and so I am in the cycle of finding a good broker for me. I want to open a micro account with around 1000 euros, also I want to trade micro-lots. I prefer STP broker, I read about DD brokers and their intention to rob you. Which one do you guys recommend? I had a look at HotForex, Armanda, Alpari.
IC markets however they are ECN
are they in Europe? I thought it´s Australian broker
both alpari and hotforex are good in EU region, im not sure about armada markets haven’t tried them yet
Good judgement, yes all three of these are fine brokers.
Regarding IC markets and ECN:
IC Market is Australian.
ECN or STP are mostly similar in nature unless you want to be specific.
I had a question for you guys… for ECN brokers I was told by a fellow trader that a spread should never be more than 2-3 pips on any given instrument. I have noticed that IC markets spread on the AUD/CHF during news events and during the firday close can go 5 pips or even higher… whats your thoughts on this?
My trader buddy said to me that even during NFP his spread was only @ 0.7 pips is this true? or am i missing something I have found during news events that its literally impossible to trade with this broker due to excessive slippage 30Pips+
I am sorry to suggest that you got misleading information. Hypothetically, the spread on ECN on major pairs should not exceed 2-3 pips under normal conditions (even during some news breaks). At least, this is what some leading industry analyst think of today’s retail ECN environment. Also, it is generally true that some major European and Australian brokers running ECN regularly get price feeds of less than one pip on EUR/USD. Therefore, it is widely accepted that a true ECN (or nearly true ECN) should always be able to offer extremely low spreads (often less than 0,5 pips during regular trading of EUR/USD and maybe few other major currency pairs). During major news break, the spread may go up on these major pairs (lets say up to 4,5 ) but not more than that. Now, it is not a rule of thumb. These characteristics are just based on my research on popular pairs on ECN (if the broker is marketing its platform as ECN).
Now, there is nothing wrong with AUD/CHF going above 2-3 on IC Market ECN during news breaks. I think, the pair has reached a high (split seconds) of around 10 and 6 pips on Thursday on IC Market ECN. Mostly, the spread was around 1 with small deviations (may be two or four times) of 2-4 pips for one minute. Interestingly, comparing AUD/CHF with other major ECN brokers yield similar analysis with insignificant differences. SO YES, it is not a problem and in my opinion spreads on AUD/CHF are very competitive on IC Markets.
Also remember that you are going to get large spreads on weekends when the market closes. Even during daily transition (lets assume for the sake of simplicity at 12:00 at midnight) spreads can spike up momentarily. Therefore, please please please educate your friend on these market dynamics.
Again I am not defending IC Markets and you should also get advise from other community members. Everyone has their own opinion. Hope this helps, Thanks
Yea thx thats what I thought too but he was really adamant in his way of thinking and was like There is NO way spreads should be that much… Oh well a guy can hope right? haha
I read a lot of good reviews for HotForex, but would you gyus send your money to a broker located in Cyprus? It´s my only issue with this broker.
generally speaking, if I have to select a broker regulated in developing countries, one of them would be hotforex. For me, hotforex has excellent reputation and products. Besides reputation,
- hotforex is regulated,
- offers segregated accounts
- Accounts held in off-shore tier-1 Europeon banks
This is how I judge brokers in developing countries.
Now, the only question is: would you trust a broker in Cyprus…I WOULD, if the broker fulfills all requirements 1,2,3 and has a very good reputation among retail forex community.
For those who suggest that brokers in Cyprus are a joke…sorry to say that they must have never come across anything concrete (besides trading at their terminals and watching soap operas). Cyprus is fast becoming a mature market and it
has one of the most stringent regulations among developing countries. Yes, there are buck shops in Cyprus but authorities are very vigilant on cracking these down and closing the loopholes. As for safety of funds, remember how the Cyprus crisis fueled rumors of Cyprus brokers closing and getting bankrupt. Still, some of the largest brokers in Cyprus not only weathered the storm but came out even stronger (i,e, hotforex). And account segregation with top-tier off-shore banks in Europe makes Hotforex an excellent choice in case of any financial problems ( so that customer can easily pull out their money without government interference). Again, this is my subjective opinion. BUT please dont listen to gossips and misinformation that just bashes every Cypriot broker (and you will be surprised how some seemingly knowledgeable people retain this myth)…Good Luck.
I am using Armada Markets for a while now. I have using them over 3 months. There has been not a single requote or disconnection during this time. It would be great if they would offer also a webtrader.
I think it was sometime last year that armada opened an office here in manila, but I did not trade with them, I do trade with hotforex and its been quiet good, alpari is another known broker, I cant really compare i guess i lack the knowledge but I do with you best of luck 
How is it different from a broker located in the US. If a broker wants to run away with your cash, it does not matter where it is located. These guys are here for serious business. So, I don’t think they will just come online and roll up the next day. The money you are even scared of losing, you will lose for sure with one of them claimed regulated brokers who will manipulate spread or even spike up the market. What happens in that case? You will lose your money in a way that you can’t file a complain. Untrustworthy brokers disguise themselves in the name of regulation, I hate this because I have lost money with one of them.