IC Trading Review 2025

Pros

• IC Trading provides great flexibility with its accounts. Traders can operate up to 10 live and 20 demo accounts, allowing them to have distinct profiles for varied activities like manual and algo trading.
• The digital account opening process is efficient, enabling traders to quickly start trading without a lot of paperwork. The process takes only a few minutes in testing.
• Trading Central and Autochartist are useful for technical summaries and practical trading ideas. You can access them from your account area or the cTrader platform.
• IC Trading offers leading spreads, such as 0.0-pip spreads on major currencies like EUR/USD. This makes it suitable for traders.

Cons

• IC Trading, unlike IC Markets, doesn't offer social trading options via its IC Social app or the ZuluTrade third-party platform.
• Though IC Trading is part of the reputable IC Markets group, it only holds authorization from a less recognized regulator, the FSC of Mauritius. This results in diminished financial transparency and regulatory protections.
• The educational resources need enhancement, particularly for beginners who seek a thorough learning experience, contrasted to top-ranking platforms like eToro. This issue is lessened if you visit the IC Markets website, but it can present a challenge for traders.
• During testing, customer support was disappointing. Multiple attempts to reach out through live chat were unsuccessful and emails went unanswered. This raises concerns about their capacity to handle urgent trading issues.

Regulation & Trust

IC Trading operates under Raw Trading Ltd., just like its long-established sibling IC Markets, but runs independently.

IC Markets follows strict regulations under the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Cyprus Securities & Exchange Commission (CySEC) in Europe, and it has Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) membership in the UK, which adds an extra layer of protection.

In contrast, IC Trading is only registered with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) in Mauritius, offering far less security for traders.

Regulation matters—I’ve seen firsthand how it safeguards funds by enforcing legal standards.

Brokers under strong regulatory oversight go through regular audits, ensuring transparency and trust.

Unlike IG, which is publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange, IC Trading isn’t listed anywhere and doesn’t disclose its financials, making it harder to gauge its stability.

Accounts & Banking

Live Accounts

IC Trading keeps things simple with Standard and Raw Spread accounts, catering to different trading styles.

Both start at 0.01 lots and offer leverage up to 1:500.

The Raw Spread account is ideal for scalping since it comes with lower spreads and commissions, but even the Standard account is competitive, offering tight spreads without extra fees.

With ECN, IC Trading sources liquidity from up to 50 global providers, which means no dealing desk interference or price manipulation.

Opening an account is quick and fully digital—I set mine up in minutes, though approval can take up to 24 hours, depending on time zones.

Demo Accounts

IC Trading’s demo account gives a great way to sharpen trading skills without risk.

It works with MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5), and cTrader platforms, letting you test strategies freely from the start before putting real money on the line.

Deposits & Withdrawals

IC Trading accepts deposit in 10 different currencies, which is more flexible than brokers like eToro, which sticks to USD, EUR, or GBP.

Choosing my preferred currency helps me avoid conversion fees.

Deposits go through quickly, but withdrawals take longer.

You can only withdraw to an account in your name, using the same method, until you exceed your initial deposit.

Debit card and e-wallet withdrawals usually take 1 to 5 business days and are fee-free, while wire transfers take longer and come with a $20 fee—something I try to avoid.

Assets & Markets

IC Trading specializes in forex and CFDs but doesn’t offer popular assets like stocks, ETFs, or options.

Even so, you have access to over 60 currency pairs and CFDs on precious metals, commodities, indices, futures, stocks, bonds, and cryptocurrencies.

One drawback is the lack of passive income options.

Unlike eToro and XTB, which offer interest on uninvested cash, IC Trading doesn’t provide interest on idle funds.

Fees & Costs

IC Trading stands out with competitive pricing. It offers tight spreads and low fees, making it a good choice for active traders.

Spreads depend on the platform and account type, but you can trade major currency pairs like EUR/USD with spreads starting at 0.0 pips on the Raw Spread account, which has a $3.50 commission per lot.

Even with an average spread of 0.1 pips, trading remains cost-effective.

Stock index CFDs have spread fees built into them, overnight fees are minimal, and there’s no inactivity fees, which makes managing costs easier.

Platforms & Tools

IC Trading doesn’t have its own platform, which might be a drawback for beginners looking for a simple web-based solution.

It also doesn’t integrate with the outstanding TradingView platform, unlike IC Markets.

However, you still get access to MT4, MT5, and cTrader, which makes up for it.

cTrader is an excellent platform for traders who value speed and simplicity

MetaTrader feels outdated, but I appreciate its customization options, wide range of indicators, detailed charts, Expert Advisors (EAs), and back-testing capabilities.

On the other hand, cTrader stands out with its sleek charts, fast execution, and built-in economic calendar.

cTrader also supports extra plugins, automation and copy trading, should you want to take a more passive approach.

Research

IC Trading gives access to solid research tools. However, it doesn’t provide in-house research.

IC Trading’s website features blog articles covering technical and fundamental forecasts. While these are helpful, they don’t go as in-depth as research from top brokers like FOREX.com and Swissquote.

IC Trading’s blog offers valuable technical analysis insights

What stands out is the integration of Trading Central and Autochartist, which you can access from your account page or directly within cTrader.

These tools make it easy to spot trade setups and execute them with pre-set take profit and stop loss levels.

I’ve also signed up for daily market forecasts via email, which are a great source of trade ideas.

The economic calendar on its website is also useful for highlighting key upcoming events, but I prefer to use cTrader’s built-in calendar.

Education

IC Trading doesn’t offer many education resources, which makes it harder for beginners to get started.

Unfortunately, these resources are also limited in variety and presentation compared to what competitors like CMC Markets or Interactive Brokers offer.

Accessing them through the blog rather than directly from my account page is inconvenient—sometimes, I miss out on important content.

IC Trading’s education resources are useful but extremely limited

It would make a huge difference if IC Trading could adopt IC Markets’ educational resources and introduce more structured courses with progress tracking, quizzes, and content sorted by experience level.

Also, having these available on the account page would improve the overall experience.

Customer Support

IC Trading struggles when it comes to customer support compared to other brokers we’ve tested.

I have to call Mauritius since there are no local numbers, which is a hassle due to international costs and time zones.

The live chat service is often frustrating, too—more times than not, it says no agents are available and suggests emailing instead, even though the broker claims to offer 24/7 support.

I’ve also tried IC Markets’ chat, but they couldn’t help with IC Trading issues because they are separate businesses.

I’ve sent emails to IC Trading, but often, they go unanswered, making it one of the worst support experiences I’ve had with a broker.

Improving customer support is definitely something IC Trading needs to work on if it wants to protect its reputation.

Should You Trade With IC Trading?

IC Trading offers tight spreads and supports useful charting tools and algorithms, making it a solid choice for experienced traders.

However, deciding between IC Trading and IC Markets comes down to factors like trading style, regulations, and platform features.

After evaluating both, I believe IC Markets is the better option.

Article Sources

• IC Trading Website
• IC Trading Blog
• IC Trading Education
• Financial Services Commission (FSC)

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