IG

In this review we will explain how to open an account with IG, a world renowned Trading platform. We will describe some basic concepts such as how the platform is used, with some advanced aspects such as a (brief) description of what CFDs are.

WEBSITE: www.ig.com

HQ: UK

YEAR: 1974

LISTED AT THE STOCK EXCHANGE: Yes - London Stock Exchange

OFFERS BANKING SERVICES: No

MINIMUM DEPOSIT: $0

IG: Online Trading with a World-Leading provider

IG is a British broker that was founded in 1974. It is one of the largest CFD providers worldwide. Being regulated by various regulatory entities globally, the most important being the UK FCA, IG is considered a very safe entity to operate in financial assets. At the beginning of 2020, IG served over 178,000 clients around the globe.

IG offers a vast number of CFDs on several financial instrument's categories, allowing clients to trade CFDs on Stocks, Forex (foreign exchange market), indices or raw materials, among others asset classes in an easy to use, customizable trading platform.

But I am not a Pro Trader... How does IG work?

As mentioned in the previous paragraphs, IG is a CFD Broker. Let's start by making a brief description of what CFDs are (Those readers who already know the definition can go directly to the next paragraph). CFDs are financial derivatives that allow investors to participate in the movement of asset prices without full ownership of the asset (they basically replicate a 'real' asset). Thus, CFDs allow you to invest in the short term movement of the underlying asset's price (the asset that the CFD replicates), without actually buying the underlying asset. An example: Investing in a CFD on a particular share listed on the New York Stock Exchange involves buying an instrument that works similarly to the real shares.

IG's Trading App has an excellent interface, where clients can trade CFDs on US stocks such as Apple or Google, currency pairs such as the Euro-Dollar, or Commodities such as gold, all at the same platform, with just a few clicks. Literally, to buy a CFD of any financial instrument, just search for it and press ‘Buy’. In other words, to operate IG's Trading platform, the user does not require any prior knowledge of how it works, because it is designed in a simplified way.

To purchase any CFD, users have to:

1. Open an account,

2. Deposit with any of the available payment methods [credit cards, bank transfersetc],

3. Search for “Shares”, “Gold” or any other instrument you want to invest in, and

4. Press the "Buy" button.

Done - you are officially trading CFDs on International Financial instruments.

CFDs offered by IG

IG offers over 17,000 CFDs on several asset classes:

Indices: Continuous 24-hour prices on 26 markets.

Forex: Over 70 currency pairs with spreads as low as 0.6 points.

Shares: CFDs on 12,000 shares, from a diversity of Global Exchanges.

Commodities: A range of CFDs on hard and soft commodities. IG is probably one of the best platforms with regards to Commodity CFD Trading.

Cryptocurrencies: CFDs on the major eight digital currencies.

Other markets: CFDs on bonds, options and rates.

Regarding the CFD offering, IG is probably one of the Brokers that offers the largest amount of financial instruments.

IG's Fees and Spreads, or in other words ... What's the cost to invest with IG?

IG differs from other CFD Trading platforms in that it charges fees for opening and closing trades. However, the financing costs of leverage are very low compared to other CFD providers such as eToro or Plus500. In terms of these fixed fees, trades can't be extremely low. Why? Since IG charges fees for opening and closing orders, the total value of the order must be relatively high compared to orders that should be opened with other CFD providers. IG's cost of financing is less than its direct competitors, this allows orders to remain open for a longer time, and still be profitable. Leaving a trade open for a long time with other CFD providers can turn a very bad decision: The cost of Financing could "gobble up" the trade's benefit.

That is why IG seems to be recommended for Traders that are interested in Trading in the Short-Medium term.

But I don't have much capital… Can I still access invest with IG? The answer to this question is a resounding Yes: IG doesn't require a minimum deposit, meaning that traders can deposit a small amount and try the platform.

IG Trading Platforms

IG allows you to trade financial assets through 3 trading platforms.

IG Trading Platform (web version)
Does not require downloading. It allows traders to build and edit custom lists and views. The platform features live Reuters news. The same technology has been built as an app supporting both Android and Apple phones.  

Metatrader 4
MT4 is one of the most popular and complete trading platforms  to trade Forex pairs. It is available through IG.

L2 Trading Platform (for Pro Accounts)
IG allows direct access to equity and currency markets through L2, a DMA platform. To trade with this trading platform (DMA for currencies), you must meet the requirements to open a Pro Account.

How to open a trading account with IG?

Opening a Forex and CFD trading account with IG is a simple process that takes only a few minutes and requires: (a) a Valid ID and (b) a proof of address (electricity, water bills, etc.), which are scanned through the platform. The methods of depositing and withdrawing money are:

• Credit Cards

• International Bank Transfer

• PayPal

It is important to emphasize that Opening a Demo Account is Free, that is, you can try the Demo, test the platform and then decide whether you will deposit or not. And remember a very interesting fact: Opening an account with Real Money does not require a minimum amount.