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CMC Forex

CMC Markets. Before you begin using a forex broker, you should get as much information about the company as possible. You want to be confident that the company you chose fits your needs and will offer exactly the kind of service that suits you. CMC Group is one of the most significant forex brokers in the UK, and they are worthy of some close consideration.

About CMC Group

In 1989, CMC Group was founded by Peter Cruddas in the UK as “Currency Management Corporation”—a Foreign Exchange market maker. In 1996, the company offered one of the earliest real-time forex trading platforms on the internet. CMC Group also began offering Contracts for Difference (CFDs) in 2000 and online spread betting in 2001. CMC largely defined how these products have been delivered to the retail market by offering them on the internet. CFDs and online spread betting are the core of CMC Group’s business today.

Plans for an IPO were scuttled in 2006 because of market conditions, but Goldman Sachs bought a 10% stake in the company in 2007. Profits declined in 2009 with the Global Financial Crisis, resulting in the closing of seven offices. CDC Group currently operates offices around the world, but not in the US due to regulations on CFDs and spread betting. They continue to be one of the largest global providers of these products with a little over 1,000 employees and annual revenue of £193 million. Though they are based in London, with the acquisition of the stock broker “Andrew West” in 2008, the company also conducts significant business in Australia. As members of that stock exchange (ASX), CMC allows Australians to purchase ASX-listed equities.

Key Registrations

  • CMC is registered with the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).
  • CMC is regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the UK (FSA).

Contact Information At A Glance

The best way to find out more information or apply for an account is always through their web-site, because it is unusually helpful and clear.

  • Phone: +44 (0)20 7170 8207
  • Fax: +44 (0)20 7170 849
  • E-mail: info@cmcmarkets.co.uk.
  • Web-site: http://www.cmcmarkets.co.uk

Trading with CMC

Trading Desk

CMC uses a completely online interface in place of a trading desk. The company’s own platform, Marketmaker, is a completely online and real-time system that makes the Forex trading experience as efficient as possible. Marketmaker mobile is a more recent innovation which allows customers to manage accounts from their mobile devices. Because the entire process is electronic and automated, CMC Group is able to cut delays and decrease overhead.

Trailing Stops

They do not offer stop orders, limit orders, or trailing stops, but they do have a free demo account.

Minimum Deposits

The minimum deposit is $2,000.

Account Management and Trading Spreads

CMC allows the customer to determine their own amount of leveraging, allowing as little as £1 per point on all of their financial instruments. CMC also charges no commission or account management fees on spread betting. The company prides themselves on having some of the tightest spreads in the market. Their spreads include a huge range of commodities and international markets. They also provide very competitive margin rates, ranging from 1% to 15%.

Who can use CMC?

The company is regulated by the FSA and provides accounts to individuals or corporations. Spread betting accounts are available only to individuals in the UK and Ireland, while anyone can open a CFD account. With offices in more than a dozen countries throughout the world and translation into all of these languages, CMC provides access for many customers and also provides access to many international markets. In addition, retail partners can use CMC services as the core of their business through white-labeling. This has been a very successful part of CMC Group’s core business.

Advantages of Using CMC

Free Online Education

Another significant value is the free online education courses that CMC offers all of their customers. These range from advanced training schedules for experienced traders, to simple education for people that are new to spread betting. Anyone that registers for an account has access to this impressive library of information.

Technology

CMC’s greatest asset may be in its technology. As one of the first to provide this kind of internet trading, the company has been committed to providing cutting-edge innovation from the beginning. Marketmaker is a well-rounded suite of trading software that has won a number of prestigious awards. CMC continues to make major investments in their proprietary trading platform and mobile software, and the result will be a long-term asset for them and their customers.

Simplicity

One other intangible strength has probably contributed to making CMC successful—they have made the entire trading process intuitive and accessible to inexperienced traders. The CMC web-site is well-organized and easy for anyone to use. Their explanations and tools are simple and visually clear. They answer basic questions that the uneducated consumer would certainly ask and they provide extensive information on all of their financial products. All in all, they work to make CFDs and spread betting as unintimidating as possible.

Sophistication

But this is not at the sacrifice of advanced information for the experienced trader. In fact, CMC works to provide both simple and advanced information so that either kind of individual will benefit from their services. As yet another aspect of their technological strength, CMC offers free services to advanced traders, such as risk-management tools, research tools, and sophisticated charting. Most of these tools are built in as part of CMC’s free software platform.

Disadvantages of Using CMC

Risk to Inexperienced Users

On the other hand, the advanced flexibility and leveraging possibilities of CMC’s platform could also combine with their “anybody can use our product” simplicity as a liability. If inexperienced consumers try their hand at trading and take advantage of the heavy leveraging, they could find themselves in more trouble than they understand. Still, this is an unavoidable danger of providing cutting-edge, sophisticated financial products while also making trading available to the retail market.

Limitations in the US

Unfortunately, one of the greatest weaknesses of the company is the fact that they do not have offices in the US and that only those in the UK or Ireland can open spread betting accounts.

Establishing an Account

The application process is delightfully easy, with complete application online, nothing to print and nothing to send in. It only takes a short time to fill out the required online forms and establish an account. Payment can be made to the account via credit and debit cards, bank transfer, or by sending a check.

Summary

All in all, this is an excellent company that reaches out to customers on all levels of skill and experience. Not only have they made huge investments in their platform, but they have also made a complex process seem simple by providing all the information someone might need to use their products. American consumers interested in this type of trading can only wish that the full range of CMC Group’s products were available in the US.

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One Review of “CMC Forex”

  1. Bonnie Smith Says:

    Helpful company to deal with.

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