Markets.com Spread Betting Review
Markets.com has established itself as a prominent online brokerage, offering a wide range of financial instruments across various asset classes.
This detailed review aims to explore the key aspects of Markets.com, including its trading platforms, account types, trading conditions, and customer service, providing traders with in-depth insights into its offerings.
- Comprehensive trading platform offering a wide range of assets including Forex, stocks, indices, and commodities
- User-friendly interface suitable for both beginners and experienced traders
- No deposit or withdrawal fee
- Regulated by top financial authorities
- Great trading tools and resources, including technical analysis, webinars, and educational materials
- Competitive spreads and no commission on trades
- Some users may find withdrawal process slower compared to other brokers
- Product and service offerings may vary significantly depending on the trader’s country of residence
- Does not accept clients from certain countries due to regulatory restrictions
- May have higher spreads on certain assets compared to industry leaders
Company Overview
Founded in 1999, Markets.com operates under the regulatory framework of a Market Maker/Dealing Desk (MM/DD) model. With its headquarters located at 148, Strovolos Avenue, 4th Floor, Strovolos CY-2048 Nicosia, Markets.com has grown into a global brokerage with a strong reputation for safety and reliability in the trading community.
Can You Spread Bet with Markets.com?
Yes, you can spread bet with Markets.com. This broker, regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), offers both spread betting and CFD trading to UK clients. Markets.com provides access to a wide range of asset classes, including forex, indices, commodities, and shares, making it a versatile platform for spread bettors who want to speculate on price movements without owning the underlying assets.
Markets.com is known for its user-friendly platform, Marketsx, which includes advanced charting tools and technical analysis features, as well as support for MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, allowing for automated trading and risk management strategies. The platform also provides negative balance protection, ensuring that traders don’t lose more than their account balance, a crucial feature for spread bettors.
Trading Platforms
Markets.com offers a variety of trading platforms to cater to the diverse needs of its clientele:
MetaTrader 4 (MT4) at Markets.com
- Platform Availability: MT4 is accessible on Windows, iOS, and Android platforms, ensuring that traders can engage with the market from their desktop or mobile devices seamlessly.
- Advanced Charting Tools: Known for its robust charting capabilities, MT4 provides a range of technical indicators and graphical tools that allow traders to conduct in-depth market analysis. This feature set is essential for developing sophisticated trading strategies.
- Automated Trading: Through the use of Expert Advisors (EAs), MT4 facilitates automated trading strategies. This enables traders to automate their trading processes, allowing for 24/7 market engagement without constant manual oversight.
User-Friendly Interface: Despite its extensive feature set, MT4 maintains a user-friendly interface that is accessible to traders of all experience levels. Its intuitive design ensures that traders can easily navigate through the platform and manage their trades effectively.
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) at Markets.com
- Platform Compatibility: MT5 extends its reach to Windows, iOS, and Android devices, offering an upgraded trading experience across both desktop and mobile platforms.
- Enhanced Technical Indicators and Timeframes: Building on the foundation of MT4, MT5 introduces an expanded array of technical indicators and additional timeframes. This allows traders to perform more nuanced and detailed market analyses.
- Advanced Trading Functions: MT5 offers a suite of advanced trading functions, including improved order management tools and the ability to access more complex financial trading instruments. This makes it suitable for traders looking for more sophisticated trading capabilities.
Markets.com Trader
- Proprietary Trading Platform: The Markets.com Trader platform is the proprietary trading solution of Markets.com, designed to cater specifically to its users’ needs with advanced trading features and an intuitive design.
- Advanced Trading Features: The platform provides a comprehensive set of trading tools, including sophisticated charting options, risk management tools, and one-click trading, tailored to enhance the trading experience.
- Intuitive Design: With a focus on user experience, Markets.com Trader features an intuitive layout and design, facilitating easy navigation and efficient trading operations.
- Exclusive Market Insights: One of the unique aspects of the Markets.com Trader platform is the integration of exclusive market insights directly within the platform. This provides traders with actionable intelligence and analysis, helping to inform their trading decisions.
By offering a mix of industry-standard platforms like MT4 and MT5, along with its proprietary Markets.com Trader platform, Markets.com caters to a wide range of trading preferences and strategies, from those who value traditional and widely-used systems to traders seeking unique features and insights available only through Markets.com.
Account Types and Features
Markets.com simplifies the account setup process by offering a single account type with features designed to suit various trading strategies:
- Classic Account: Combines low spreads with high leverage, providing flexibility for traders of all experience levels.
- Islamic Account: Sharia-compliant accounts are available, catering to Muslim traders by offering swap-free trading conditions.
Key Specifications
- Minimum Deposit: 100 USD/EUR/GBP/DKK/NOK/SEK/PLN/CZK/AED, making it accessible to a broad range of traders.
- Maximum Leverage: 1:30 – fairly standard
- Minimum Trade Volume: 0.01 Lots on MT4, allowing for precise position sizing.
- Commission: 0 USD, ensuring trading costs are kept to a minimum.
- Spread Type: Variable Spread, providing competitive pricing across all trading instruments.
- Account Currencies: Supports a wide range of currencies, including SEK, DKK, NOK, ZAR, PLN, AUD, GBP, EUR, USD.
Trading Instruments
Spread Bettors at Markets.com have access to a diverse portfolio of instruments:
- ETFs, Stocks/Equities, Indices, Commodities, Forex/Currencies, enabling a comprehensive market exposure and diversification opportunities.
Education
Market.com has fairly extensive resources for learning including:
- Calculators: Probably the widest & most comprehensive range of calculators I’ve seen. Find them in the ‘Trading Tools’ section
- Glossary: YES, this is a hugely positive addition to any Spread Betting broker and Markets.com excels at this, you can go on for days searching through and clocking on every glossary item.
- Education centre: What they call an Education centre, I call a full-on trading guide with articles on everything from ‘How to invest in Formula 1, to ’10 tips on how to trade CFD’s on forex’. Pretty darn good I’d say.
- Trading Basics: Hmm… more of a large, very useful, infographic. It could definitely be more comprehensive here or link out to some of the other useful spread betting 7 trading resources, but still. Not bad.
- Webinar library: Again, less comprehensive than other providers like Activtrades but there are some webinars pretty interspersed, a calendar of webinars would be useful if it’s that infrequent.
Deposit and Withdrawal
Markets.com ensures a smooth financial transaction process:
- No Deposit or Withdrawal Fees: Pretty good when comparing to other spread betting brokers!
- Fast Deposit: Most deposits are processed within 24 hours, while withdrawals can take between 2 to 7 working days, depending on the method.
Company and Service
Markets.com distinguishes itself with exceptional customer service and a global presence:
- Global Offices: Signifying its international reach and commitment to catering to traders worldwide.
- Customer Service: Available via phone, email, live chat, and social media platforms, providing quick and helpful responses in multiple languages, including Arabic, Bulgarian, English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish.
Conclusion
Markets.com stands out as a reputable broker offering a user-friendly trading environment, competitive trading conditions, and exceptional customer service. With its comprehensive platform offerings, flexible account structure, and a wide array of financial instruments, Markets.com caters to traders looking for a reliable and versatile online trading experience. Its commitment to regulatory compliance further enhances its attractiveness as a safe and trustworthy broker in the global forex and CFD trading landscape.
James is a former FTSE100 AI Director and trader with 10+ years trading his own capital. He is the Managing Director of SpreadBet.AI and currently trades his own capital through both CFD trading & spread betting as well as working with one of the leading prop firms in the world.