IC Markets Review

Regulation and safety of funds

IC Markets operates through three separately licensed entities: International Capital Markets Pty Ltd, regulated by Australia's ASIC (license 335692); IC Markets (EU) Ltd, regulated by Cyprus's CySEC (license 362/18); and Raw Trading Ltd, regulated by the Seychelles FSA (license SD018), which handles most clients outside Australia and the EU. Client funds are held in segregated accounts with tier-one banks, separate from company operating capital. The ASIC and CySEC entities give traders access to a stronger regulatory framework, including negative balance protection and (for CySEC) the Investor Compensation Fund, while the Seychelles entity operates under lighter-touch oversight. Which entity you're onboarded to depends on your country of residence, so it's worth checking your account agreement to see which regulator actually covers you.

Fees and spreads

The Raw Spread account is IC Markets' flagship offering: spreads from 0.0 pips on major pairs plus a commission of $3.50 per lot per side on MT4/MT5 ($3.00 on cTrader), which is competitive for an ECN-style account. The Standard account is commission-free but carries wider spreads, from around 0.8 pips on EUR/USD, making it simpler but costlier for high-frequency trading. There are no deposit fees and no inactivity fees on any account. Withdrawals via card, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, or crypto are free, though international bank wires can pick up charges from intermediary banks along the way. Overall, active traders and EA users get some of the lowest all-in trading costs in the industry, while casual traders may find the Standard account's spread-only pricing easier to budget for.

Platforms and tools

IC Markets doesn't build its own trading platform — instead it gives traders a choice of MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and cTrader, all connected to the same low-latency infrastructure hosted in an Equinix NY4 data center. MT4 remains popular for automated trading and a huge library of custom indicators and EAs; MT5 adds more asset classes and order types; cTrader is favored for its cleaner interface, built-in copy trading, and Level II market depth. TradingView charting is also integrated, letting traders analyze markets and place trades through TradingView's interface while executing on IC Markets' liquidity. All platforms are available on desktop, web, and mobile, and support algorithmic trading via MQL4/5 or cTrader's cAlgo/cBots.

Deposits and withdrawals

The minimum deposit is $200 across Raw Spread, Standard, and cTrader accounts. Funding options include international and local bank transfer, Visa/Mastercard, PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, and a range of regional payment gateways plus cryptocurrency. Card, PayPal, and e-wallet deposits are typically processed instantly, and accounts can be denominated in a choice of base currencies (including USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, and others) to avoid unnecessary FX conversion. Withdrawals are generally processed within 24 hours on IC Markets' side, though the funds may take a further one to five business days to actually land depending on your bank or payment provider. There are no deposit or withdrawal fees from IC Markets itself, but bank wires can incur charges from the receiving or intermediary bank.

Customer support

IC Markets offers live chat and support close to round-the-clock during the trading week, roughly matching forex market hours, alongside email support and country-specific phone lines for markets including Australia, the UK, Thailand, Indonesia, and South Africa. Trustpilot reviews are unusually strong for the industry — around 4.8 out of 5 from more than 56,000 reviews, with the EU entity scoring even higher — suggesting most clients get their account, deposit, and withdrawal issues resolved without major friction. That said, as with any large multi-entity broker, response quality can vary depending on which regional team and regulatory entity you're routed to, and a recurring minority of negative reviews describe withdrawal delays or accounts flagged for a documentation-heavy 'risk review' after a profitable run.

Who is it for

IC Markets is built for traders who care most about execution speed and raw pricing: scalpers, EA and algo traders, and anyone running high-frequency strategies will get the most value from the Raw Spread or cTrader account. It also suits traders who want flexibility across MT4, MT5, and cTrader rather than being locked into one platform. Beginners can still use the Standard account for simpler, spread-only pricing, and the $200 minimum deposit keeps the barrier to entry low. It's a weaker fit for buy-and-hold investors wanting a large stock or ETF selection, or for traders who specifically want the strongest possible regulatory protection everywhere, since the entity you're assigned depends on your country and the Seychelles entity carries lighter oversight than ASIC or CySEC.