There are various types of traders in the financial markets, each with their own strategies and goals. IC Markets offers different types of accounts to meet their needs. There are cTrader, Raw Spread, and Standard accounts available for traders. 

cTrader account

The account type gets its name from its trading platform, namely cTrader. The platform is available on this account type as the main trading software. 

cTrader is a multi-asset trading platform developed by Spotware. The platform offers a range of features including level II pricing, depth of market (DOM), advanced order types, and trade automation capabilities. The main advantage of cTrader over its rivals is that it offers the ECN (Electronic Communication Network) model, which allows traders to access interbank liquidity and execute trades directly with other market participants, rather than through a dealing desk. This can result in lower spreads and better execution speeds. 

In addition to the desktop platform, mobile trading apps and web trading terminals are also available. The mobile version of cTrader is available for iOS and Android users. 

There are no spread markups on this account. Instead, traders are charged commissions of 6 USD per lot round turn. The maximum available leverage is 500:1 and the starting deposit is 200 USD or the equivalent in the account currency. Traders can open accounts in the following currencies: AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, CHF, NZD, JPY, SGD, CAD, and HKD. 

Algorithmic trading is allowed on the cTrader account. The platform uses the C# programming language which is simpler than the MetaTrader programming languages. Trading algorithms built for cTrader are called cBots. The maximum number of orders that can be opened simultaneously per account is 2,000, which makes this account ideal for algorithmic trading. 

Raw Spread account

Similarly to the cTrader account, the Raw Spread account doesn’t have any spread markups, instead, traders are charged with 7 USD commissions per lot round turn. The minimum initial deposit required to open this account is 200 USD, and the maximum available leverage is 200:1. The Raw Spread account is the most popular among clients of IC Markets. It should be mentioned that the cTrader platform is not available on this account, only MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5) are offered. We’ll expand on this topic in the trading platforms section below. Because this account type offers raw market spreads, the trading conditions are ideal for active traders that place multiple trades daily.

Standard account

There are no commissions on the Standard account. Instead, trading fees are included in spreads. Spreads on EUR/USD start from 0.6 pips. This simply means that for every trade opened in EUR/USD, 0.6 pips is charged as a trading fee. In a live trading environment spreads can be much higher, especially when liquidity is low. The maximum available leverage is 500:1 and the minimum initial deposit required to open this account is 200 USD or the equivalent in the account currency. Algorithmic trading is allowed and the MT4 and MT5 platforms are available. 

Each trading account offers access to different trading software. Traders have to choose between cTrader, MT4, and MT5 platforms. Each of these platforms have their strengths and weaknesses and it’s important to learn about them before making a decision. 

cTrader is known for its modern and user-friendly interface, while MT4 and MT5 have a more traditional look and feel. MT4 was released in 2005 by MetaQuotes. In 2010, the company released MT5. cTrader was also created in 2010. However, developers have been upgrading their platform all the time since, while MetaTrader’s look stayed the same. On the other hand, the MetaTrader platforms are highly reliable and can run on inexpensive and old devices smoothly. 

Here are some key differences between cTrader, MT4, and MT5:

• MT5 is created for trading various asset classes, such as stocks, ETFs, options, futures, indices, commodities, currencies, and cryptocurrencies. MT4 was primarily built for currency trading. At IC Markets, cTrader doesn’t support real stock or CFDs on stock trading.
• MT4 uses the MQL4 programming languages, while MT5 uses MQL5. MQL5 is a bit more complex and enables traders to create or purchase more advanced trading algorithms called Expert Advisors (EAs). cTrader uses an even simpler coding language, namely C#. 
• MT5 supports a greater number of timeframes than MT4, including 2-minute, and 3-minute timeframes. However, cTrader offers a wider range of timeframes than MT5, with intervals ranging from 1 second up to 1 month. 

As already mentioned, there are many different trader types and they all use various strategies. Here are some of the most popular trader types and account types of IC Markets that best suit them: 

• Day traders (best suited for cTrader and Raw Spread accounts): Day traders are traders who open and close trading orders within the same day. They aim to profit from small price movements and usually close out their positions before the active trading sessions end. The most active trading hours are during London and New York sessions.
• Swing traders (best suited for Standard accounts): Swing traders hold positions for several days to a few weeks, aiming to benefit from short and medium-period price movements.
• Position traders (best suited for Standard accounts): Position traders aim to profit from major price movements in the markets. Often they rely on mainly fundamental analysis. Position traders hold positions for a longer period of time, usually weeks, months, or even years.
• Scalpers (best suited for cTrader and Raw Spread accounts): Scalpers aim to make multiple small profits from very short-term trades, often holding positions for just seconds or minutes. 
• Fundamental traders (best suited for Standard accounts): Fundamental traders focus on the underlying economic and financial factors that impact a security’s value. They analyze financials, and economic data, as well as political and other news events.
• Technical traders (best suited for cTrader and Raw Spread accounts): Technical traders use charts and other technical indicators to identify trading opportunities. Technical traders may use tools such as MACD, moving averages, Bollinger Bands, etc. 

Overall, if you are looking for a great platform design and ECN trading, a cTrader account is for you. Moreover, the cTrader platform is best suited for high-frequency trading, algorithmic trading, scalping, and news trading. The Raw Spread account is for active traders that trade intraday and prefer the MetaTrader platforms over cTrader. MT5 enables traders to access not only currency markets, such as with MT4, but also gives access to CFDs on stocks. The Standard account doesn’t charge traders any commissions, instead, there are spread markups. The Standard account type is best suited for beginner traders and swing traders. The maximum available leverage for all three account types is 500:1, and the minimum initial deposit requirement is 200 USD or the equivalent in the account base currency.