The main reason why CENT accounts are popular is that the account type helps traders transition from demo accounts to live accounts and test their trading strategies in a live trading environment with the added pressure of dealing with real money. 

On ENC and Standard account types a contract size is 100,000 units, while a contract size on a CENT account is only 1,000 units. This means that CENT account holders require 100 times less capital to test trading strategies live. 

Testing a strategy before going live is crucial for several reasons. Here are a few of them:

• Helps traders to identify flaws in their strategy that could lead to significant losses. This helps traders refine and improve their strategy before risking bigger amounts of capital.
• Enables traders to better understand market conditions. CFD markets are dynamic and constantly changing. Testing a strategy in various market conditions helps traders learn how their strategy works in different circumstances.
• Improves risk management. Testing allows traders to assess their strategy in terms of risk management. This helps traders determine their position sizing, stop-loss targets, and take-profit levels. 
• Testing strategies help traders improve their confidence. Trading is not about certainty: Trading is about probabilities. Nobody knows for sure whether a given currency pair will increase or decrease in value in a given period of time, but with proper risk management and a trading edge, sustainable account balance growth is achievable. Having confidence in your trading system is crucial. When traders do not fully trust their systems, the trading rules get ignored during drawdown periods. 

The minimum initial deposit required to open this account type is as little as 15 USD. Available leverage is 1000:1. There are no commissions on this account, on the other hand, trading fees are included in spreads. 

The CENT account type is very helpful for traders that test their strategies both manually and automatically. The trading algorithms of MetaTrader platforms are called Expert Advisors EAs and the account type supports the use of EAs. The maximum available number of orders that can be opened simultaneously is 200, and the maximum lot per trade is 150. In addition, swap-free accounts, better known as Islamic accounts, are also available. 

While many people think that the demo account and the CENT account are very similar, this is not the case. The CENT account gives traders a better feel of live markets. When creating a strategy from scratch, it is logical to use a demo trading account. However, a CENT account is a better option for improving a trading system. The CENT account offers real spreads and live market conditions.

Overall, we can safely say that the CENT account offered by GMI Markets is a great way to prepare for trading professionally. And to answer the question, yes, the CENT account lives up to its purpose.