A comprehensive study of the 30-year old, London-listed CFD broker

Introduction to CMC Markets-

Established in 1989 in London, CMC Markets Plc. is a publicly listed company on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the ticker symbol CMCX. Recognized as one of the top global online forex brokers, CMC Markets Plc offers retail and Institutional clients the opportunity to trade in a broad range of CFD products spread across six asset classes: FX, indices, shares & ETFs, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and treasuries.

Clients registering with one of the best global forex brokers can access close to 10,500 financial instruments from their state of the art trading platforms. If you are residing in the UK or Ireland, the CFD broker has the option of the tax-free financial spread betting, where you can profit by speculating on the rise or fall in the price of an asset. In Australia, the CFD broker offers retail clients the choice of investing in stocks listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) and the Sydney Stock Exchange (SSX)- previously APX Exchange via its exclusive stockbroking platforms.

CMC Markets operates in 14 countries and comes under the regulations of the

• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
• Financial Market Authority (FMA), New Zealand.
• Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC).
• Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

In the six months, from April to September 2019, the company reported a net operating income of £130.8 million, a solid 45% jump year on year, with profit before tax and earnings per share (EPS) surging by 318% and 252% correspondingly.

A wide range of tradable products-

CMC Markets offers CFD trading in close to 10,500 products across forex, commodities, cryptocurrencies, indices, shares, and treasury instruments. Clients can access all the products from the multiple trading platforms provided by one of the best Australian CFD brokers, although only the CFD trading terminals offer the entire product mix. While International clients can trade in more than 9000 share CFDs, including ETFs, the stockbroking platform accessible by Australian clients comprises of about 2000 listed companies trading on the ASX and SSX. Besides, the CFD broker in Australia also offers “Countdown,” a limited-risk product where clients can speculate against short-term price movements in FX, commodities, and indices. For clients residing in the UK and Ireland, the CFD broker allows spread betting on the entire range of tradable instruments.

The following table illustrates the asset classes and the various CFD trading instruments by the top forex broker

CFDs		Number of products
Forex- Major, Minors, Exotics		338
	Cash	315
	Forwards	23
Indices		99
	Cash	22
	Forwards	77
	Forex	12
Commodities		117
	Cash	33
	Forwards	94
Cryptocurrencies		12
Treasuries		55
	Cash	12
	Forwards	44
Shares- Australia		4905
Shares- International clients		9000

CMC Markets offers a variety of trading platforms-

Access a range of trading platforms from one of the best CFD brokers in Australia. The CFD platforms comprise of the proprietary next-generation systems for web and handheld devices, and the globally acclaimed MetaTrader 4 desktop application. In Australia, the best CFD broker also provides the award-winning Standard and Pro stockbroking platforms which come with advanced charting features.

A quick comparison of the trading platforms offered by the other top CFD brokers and you will notice that CMC Markets is at the top in the variety of platforms offered to retail clients. Coupled with an extensive range of markets, quick order execution, and an assortment of trading tools, you can seamlessly trade across asset classes and instruments.

When it comes to fundamental stats, clients can monitor quantitative equity research reports from Morningstar in addition to market news and the macro-economic calendar from Reuters. Besides, ASIC regulated forex broker also broadcasts trading insights, expert analysis, and Youtube videos.

In our forex broker review of the CMC Markets, we analyze the exclusive web and mobile application along with the state of the art MT4 trading platform.

Web trading platform-

The flagship web trading platform supports about 9750 financial instruments from one of the best globally acclaimed forex brokers. You can trade in 340 FX pairs, 128 commodities, 15 cryptocurrencies, 123 stocks plus forex indices, 9082 shares, and 56 treasury instruments.

The web platform is a graphical user interface, easy to navigate and comes loaded with tons of features, and trading tools. The default workspace comprises three panels- The watchlist, charting, and the account info. While clients have the option to create additional tabs in each panel, they can also modify the theme or the workspace to fixed/floating, multi charts, trade signals, or create their custom working area.

The watchlist window comprises the basic columns, with the option to place one-click buy/sell orders and to activate charts. The charting panel comprises 13 chart types with 18-time frames, with the time interval varying from one second to one month. The panel comes with a wide array of trading tools and indicators, including overlays, oscillators, and candlestick chart patterns. Besides, you can also compare charts, place price alerts, and access live trading signals. The chart panel supports the market, limit, and stop orders with the choice of the SL/TP.

Key features-

• The platform supports the market, limit, stop, and SL/TP orders.
• One-click order entry from the watchlist panel.
• View charts in the buy/sell mode or the mid-price of the two.
• News and market analysis from Reuters, although the choice is not given to demo account holders.
• The charting tools include pattern recognition and emerging chart patterns.
• Access a range of 68 candlestick chart patterns- Continuation and reversals.
• Trade-in forward contracts from one month-six months.
• Examine price action with the module linking feature.
• Analyze the performance of the technical analysis signals before implementing trades.
• Get in touch with the live chat team or browse the support section for answers to the frequently asked questions.
• Connect with the chart forum community members to discuss and share trading ideas.
• Copy the technical analysis studies and compare the forex broker’s analysis with your own.
• Monitor the trades of the other clients from the client sentiment tool.

Drawbacks-

While the top forex broker provides real-time news from Reuters, you cannot access it from the demo account. The other drawbacks were the lack of preference to carry out automated trading while the CFD broker did not provide access to trade in some of the longer duration forward contracts.

The MT4 desktop platform-

For clients interested in automated trading, CMC Markets offers the MetaTrader 4 with a range of custom-built indicators and expert advisors. The MT4 supports Windows and macOS and although clients can trade CFDs in forex, commodities, cryptocurrencies, stocks, and indices, the CFD broker’s offering is limited to forex, precious metals, energy, and indices.

Key features-

• The platform comes with the market, pending, and SL/TP order types.
• Access 15 custom-built technical indicators and ten EA tools from one of the best CFD brokers in Australia.
• Technical analysts can analyze charts using the 30 in-built indicators and 24 graphic objects.
• Place one-click orders directly from the charting panel.
• Clients can hedge positions.
• Free access to the Expert Advisor editor/compiler tool.
• Strategy tester to assess and optimize EA’s.
• Subscribe to trading signals from members of the MQL5 community.

Mobile application-

The mobile trading software supports iPhone, iPad, and Android smartphones and can be downloaded from the App Store or the Android Playstore correspondingly. The platform has retained most of the features of the web application, including the range of tradable products.

In our review of the mobile trading platform, we analyzed the Android version of the trading software, which comes with a customizable dashboard and a user-friendly interface. The app features popular products, trading insights, news, economic calendar, trading alerts, a range of notifications, and support tools for clients to access on the move. The software also includes fingerprint login, option to manage funds on the move, and access to the CFD broker’s customer support during market hours.

The watchlist panel streams real-time quotes along with the corresponding spread, and syncs with the web platform. You can place orders directly from the Marketwatch panel or use the one-touch option to activate charts. The chart panel, on the other hand, comes with a product overview, client sentiment indicator, and real-time news from Reuters.

Overview of the key features-

• The platform runs the choice of market, limit, stops, GTD, GTC, trailing stops, and SL/TP orders.
• You can access 38 technical indicators and drawing tools.
• The market-depth window gives clients access to the top buyers/sellers and their matching volumes.
• You can place guaranteed stop-loss orders for a small cost, and refundable if the order is not triggered.
• Hedging allowed.
• Clients can save watchlists and chart analysis.
• Trades are automatically closed out if the margin drops below 50%.

 

  

Trading Conditions- Spread, margins, and order types-

In our review of the trading conditions at the CFD broker, we analyzed the spread, margins, and the order types at CMC Markets, which are relatively economical in comparison with the other top forex brokers.

CMC Markets offers one of the lowest spreads in the industry, starting at 0.7 pips for the major FX pairs for all account types. Besides, the top forex broker charges commission only for CFDs in share trading. For clients registering in Australia, the ASIC regulated CFD broker charges a minimum spread of 0.3 pips, probably one of the least in the industry.

Tabled below are the various financial instruments and the minimum corresponding spread

Products		Minimum spread
Forex pairs	Major	0.7 pips
	Minor	0.9 pips
	Exotic	1.6 pips
Indices		1.0 point
Commodities		0.3 points
Cryptocurrencies		1.4 points
Shares		0.10%
Treasury		1 point

The margins offered by CMC Markets correspond to the regulatory requirements in the country of operations. While the CFD broker offers the best margins for clients registering in Australia, the margins for International clients are comparatively lower and match up to the forex broker’s offering for UK clients.

Tabled below are the various financial instruments and the corresponding margin requirements

Products	Margins- International clients	Margins- Australian clients
Forex	3.3%	0.20%
Indices	5%	0.20%
Commodities	5%	0.50%
Cryptocurrencies	50%	10%
Shares	20%	1%
Treasury	20%	0.25%

Coming to order placements, the top forex broker provides a range of flexible, and advanced order types to cater to the risk-management strategies of individual traders. Besides, clients can include stop-loss/take profit orders in default settings to efficiently manage risk.

Clients of CMC Markets can access the following order types-

• Marker orders- Open or close trades at the current price.
• Limit/ stop entry orders- Enter trades at a specific price above or below the current market price.
• Trailing stop-loss orders- Follows prices as it moves in your favor and at the distance stated when placing the order.
• Guaranteed stop-loss orders- Guarantees execution of the stop-loss order at the specified price.
• Boundary orders- Stipulate a price range within a boundary while placing market and stop entry orders.
• Price ladder- Place large volume trades with a wider spread.

Education and support resources at CMC Markets-

Develop your trading skills with a host of educational tools and resources from one of the best CFD brokers in Australia. The forex broker has a library of informative material on its website for individuals who wish to learn about the various CFD instruments, leverage, spread, blockchain, day trading, etc.

Besides, you can also access a range of analytical tools on the web and mobile trading terminals, including a tour of the platforms, popular trading strategies, live events, and trading articles to enhance your knowledge of the markets. Traders with prior knowledge of CFD trading can go to market insights, the chart forum, analyze signals from the pattern recognition software or log in to the top forex broker’s blog to monitor news and analysis, region-wise.

We also reviewed the support channels of the CFD broker, which broadly comprise of the online help and the 24/5 direct interaction with the support desk. Individuals opting for online support can access help topics, FAQ’s on a variety of subjects on the products/ services offered by the forex broker, and a glossary of financial terms.

On the other hand, if you wish to get in touch with the support team directly, you can contact the helpdesk at CMC Markets 24/5 via phone, email, or live chat. If you are residing in Australia, you can also book a one on one meeting with the CFD broker by filling out a simple form.

Highlighted below is the contact info to get in touch with the top CFD broker via phone and email

Customer services- Australia
Phone	1300 303 888
	+61 (0) 2 8221 2100
Email	[email protected]
Customer services- UK
Phone	+44 (0) 20 7170 8200
Email	[email protected]

  
The bottom line- CMC Markets is one of the best retail CFD brokers 

One of the fundamental reasons clients consider a CFD broker is the experience and the security of funds. Following our extensive review of CMC Markets, we are of the opinion that the CFD broker has quite a bit to offer in both the areas. Firstly, CMC Markets is operating since 1989 and secondly, the broker is covered by five tier-1 regulators. While this ensures adequate security of client deposits, CMC Markets is also a member of two investor protection funds- The FSCS in the UK and the CIPF in Canada. The tier-1 regulations guarantee all client deposits are in segregated accounts in top banks and separated from the broker’s funds for hedging and capital requirement.

When it comes to trading conditions, CMC Markets is value for money. Not only can clients open zero-balance trading accounts, but the CFD broker offers one of the lowest spreads in the industry for both retail and corporate clients. The range of markets is extensive and the platforms are state of the art, catering to all categories of traders: Beginners to experienced, and CFD traders to equity investors.

As for the drawbacks, we were not very happy with the response time of the live chat support, the proprietary platform has a few bugs, and the top CFD broker should consent demo account holders to access real-time fundamental data.

That said, CMC Markets should be one of the top choices for retail traders looking to register with a forex broker.