Wondering whether to switch to Interactive Brokers from ATC Brokers/FXCM

I started off considering MB Trading, ATC Brokers, and Interactive Brokers.

I went with ATC Brokers for now, and I think it’s pretty good - decent commissions, good spread, and I like the Trading Station II platform thus far.

The reasons I am still considering switching -

  • while I don’t always scalp, I like the option to do so, and Interactive Brokers seems to get good reviews for not only the lowest commission ($2 per side/lot), which is half ATC’s $4 per side (although ATC is always $4 regardless of currency; I believe IB depends on the conversion to USD first), but also filling orders better than the spread listed;

  • I am still not sure if there are any “games” going on with FXCM - it seems sometimes the price slips from what it was when I placed an order, but it is still very fast and gives a feeling of confidence; I think my partial wondering is because I used to have a Standard account with them years ago and remember the pain of realizing how much they marked up the spread for profit; so logistically here my question is, can better fills be had with IB? Or only with a much larger account with an outfit like Dukas?

  • I am considering getting back into futures (currency and otherwise); I could just use a separate broker, but it would be nice to use the same capital base for all trading with IB’s true universal account.

On the other side, I feel very confident with the Trading Station II platform overall; so far I like the Daily FX Plus analyst overviews, but am looking into TradersAudio and other news sites.

I’ve read varying reviews on IB, from it crashing a lot when using charts to the order book system being an improvement for forex trading specifically.

So I am hoping to gain some insight as to whether it is worth switching or not.

1 Like

Hi,

I’m with interactive brokers and don’t have too many issues with them so far. The learning curve to use their interface is quite steep but not impossible. The main issue I have with them at the moment is a new risk disclosure statement from them which hints that they’ll be a market maker going forward. Any one have any views on this?

Zsan