Markets.com Review

Markets.com is the B2C division of Finalto which itself is a subsidiary of FTSE 250 listed Playtech. Markets.com offers margin trading through the provision of CFD and Spread Betting services across Forex, equity indices, single stocks, ETF and commodities.

The business was founded in 2008 and today operates in the UK, Cyprus, South Africa, Australia and the BVI. Seen as a mid-size player in the margin trading world Markets.com offers a simplified and personalised offering to its customers, whether they are CFD traders or Spread Bettors.

The Markets.com website is very restrained and easy on the eye, as is the trading platform and to some degree that low key, low fuss layout summarises the companies approach to trading, and we found that quite appealing.

Markets.com Trading Account

Applying for and opening a trading account at Markets.com can be a very straightforward process, and if you can be electronically verified and pass their suitability test, by answering some questions about the mechanics of margin trading, then your account can be up and running almost immediately.

Once the account is open and funded you will have the opportunity to trade CFDs on a wide range of equity indices, stocks, ETFs, bonds and commodities. As well as what Markets.com calls blends, thematic stock baskets that track well know traders and market themes.

The Markets.com product range is not as extensive as some of its peers for example IG and Saxo have a far wider range of instruments but for most generalist traders the Markets.com offering should be sufficient.

Markets.com tries to offer its customers a more personalised service than many of its peers by for example providing traders with a range of free analytical and research tools, many of which can be accessed directly from the trading platform.

Markets.com Mobile App

Markets.com offer a mobile version of their MarketsX platform, and there are apps that are compatible with both Android and iOS devices. The apps can be downloaded via the respective app stores the Android version of the app has been downloaded more than one million times and scores 3.60 out of 5.0 among users who have submitted reviews.

The mobile platform is linked to the desktop, though the app uses a different layout.
That said the mobile version is easy to navigate around and intuitive to use, being driven by a simple toolbar and a menu of options, that allows you to swap between a live and a demo account very easily, for example.

You can do everything you would expect to be able to on the app, place orders, monitor positions and account balances. Check which markets are moving etc. That said if you want to view charts and research on particular products, then the desktop version of MarketsX is probably your best bet, as there is often no substitute for a larger screen when you are researching.

Markets.com Pros

• An intuitive trading platform
• A very straightforward online account opening process
• Access to free, but high-quality charting software
• A focus on US equity trading

Markets.com Cons

• Ownership of the business is currently in transition
• Not the widest product range compared to some competitors
• Website style and layout might not suit all traders
• Markets.com Pricing, Charges & Fees

Markets.com Pricing and Spreads

Markets.com charges a mix of bid-offer spreads, the difference between the buy and sale prices for an instrument, and commissions or trading fees. The charges you pay will depend on the products you trade. If you trade individual equity CFDs you can expect to pay a bid-offer spread and a flat $10.00 per trade-in commission.

Interestingly, however, rather than charging a commission on trades over ETFs, which many peers do, Markets.com prefer to just quote bid and offer spreads on exchange-traded funds.

On equity index CFDs Markets.com also charge a spread. So for example on their primary spread instruments such as the USA 30, which they trade in predetermined units, you would pay a spread of $3.50 per unit. In fact, the same spread charges apply whether you are trading these indices as CFDs over the cash, or futures as well. If you are trading the Eurostoxx 50 index you will pay a spread of €2.00 and for the FTSE 100 one of £2.00.

In commodities, you will pay spreads of US$0.05 on Brent crude and US$0.50 on gold, whilst on US 10-year bonds traders pay a spread of US$0.06.

Markets.com CFD Trading

Markets.com offer their customers the opportunity to either bet or trade on financial markets if they choose to trade then they will be using CFDs or Contracts for Differences to do so.

CFDs are OTC, or over the counter contracts, that are struck between two counterparties, in this case, the client and their CFD provider or broker.

The contracts are cash-settled and non-deliverable and typically do not have fixed expiries or settlement dates, though CFDs over futures contracts are likely to have a finite endpoint.

Under CFDs, the losing party to a contract pays the winner a cash sum equivalent to the PnL arising from their trade. That PnL or cash payment is calculated by multiplying the difference between the opening and closing prices of the CFD trade, by the trade size. So if there is a £1.00 per share move in contract over 1000 shares the PnL swing ( or payment) in the trade will be £1000.00.

CFDs attract spreads and or commissions depending on what contracts are traded. Markets.com charges bid-offer spreads and flat-fee trading commissions on CFDs over individual stocks, but only charges a spread on CFDs over ETFs.

In terms of coverage Markets.com covers leading equity indices, commodities, and blue-chip equities, however, if you are looking for coverage of small and midcap stocks then you will need to look elsewhere.

Markets.com Forex Trading

FX or foreign exchange trading allows clients to speculate on the rise and fall in the value of global currencies, relative to each other. Currencies are traded in what are known as pairs (pairs that don’t contain either the dollar or the euro are referred to as crosses or cross rates) when you trade or bet on FX you back or buy one currency, in a pair or cross, and by default sell or lay the other one.
Currency markets trade 24/5 and traders look to exploit price changes caused by economic data, variations in sentiment and a host of other factors. FX trading is a low margin high volume business with a daily turnover of trillions of dollars.

Markets.com offers 67 pairs and crosses for its clients to trade or bet on and it charges the same spreads on FX dealing whether you are trading CFDs or Spread Betting. for example on EURUSD, or eurodollar FX, the spread is 0.60 pips. The spread is 0.80pips in dollar-yen and the Aussie dollar versus the US dollar. While in a cross such as GBP CAD, the pound versus the Canadian dollar, the spread is 3.20 pips.

The rule of thumb for FX trading is that the less liquid the contract, then the wider the spread will be.

The 67 pairs and crosses offered include many minor and exotic pairings. Some peers such as CMC have a fuller offering and you can probably find narrower spreads elsewhere particularly if you are an active FX trader. That said the range of instruments and the pricing is probably good enough to attract and retain those who trade less frequently and who like the restrained qualities of the Markets.com trading platform. And if you are an FX bug and need a Meta-quotes fix then Markets.com also offers access to the MT4 and MT5 trading platforms.

Markets.com Spread Betting

Spread Betting is a type of financial speculation under which clients can bet on the performance of the markets and do so on instruments such as equity indices, commodities, stocks and shares, ETFs and bonds.

As the name implies the Spread Betting provider or bookmaker makes a two-way bid-offer spread in the prices of these instruments and their client’s wager on whether the prices of those instruments will rise or fall from those levels, over a set period. As these are bets, any profits that are realised by UK individuals via Spread Betting are free from tax under current legislation.

Clients typically Spread Bet on a pounds per point basis, for example, betting ten pounds per point on the rise and or fall of the FTSE 100 equity index.

If you back an instrument and it rises in value above your entry price you accrue a running profit equivalent to the bet size * the price change whilst if the price moves against you then you incur a running loss. These profits or losses are crystallised as and when the bet is closed or expires.

Major stock indices and commodity markets are among the most popular markets to Bet on. Individual stocks, shares and ETFs are also actively dealt in by Spread Betting customers. The latter allowing them to jump into specific sectors or market themes via a single bet.

Markets.com uses the same trading platform and range instruments as it does for CFD trading however CFD and Spread Betting accounts are separated for administrative purposes.

As with CFD trading, Markets.com’s Spread Betting offer is broadly competitive and has a reasonable product range, but we think that people trade and bet through Markets.com because they like their unfussy uncluttered approach to trading.

Markets.com Trading Platform

The MarketsX platform is the in house trading platform of Markets.com though they also offer MT4 and MT5 for those who prefer to use the Metaquotes trading environment.

MarketsX is a simple to use and approachable platform which has, what I would describe, as a softened interface with muted tones and shades in the display. Which is no doubt designed to create an air of calm that's often missing from the markets.

Navigating around the platform is accomplished using a series of icons and menus. There is also a search bar at the top of the page which you can use to find instruments you are interested in trading and for each instrument, you can view quotes, charts, key statistics and profile data.

You can trade in indices, stocks, ETFs, commodities and bonds as well as what Markets.com calls blends. Just over a dozen pre-constructed portfolios that aim to track the performance of leading hedge fund managers and market themes.

You can also benefit from insights provided by the platforms built-in tools, that provide access to indicators and analysis, blogger sentiment and opinion and analysts consensus recommendations this is something that the platform does better than many of its peers.

Don’t overlook the charting package (which comes courtesy of Trading View) either, which allows you to compare multiple instruments and indicators on the same plot a feature that’s normally only associated with subscription software, if you are a technical trader then you likely to be impressed.

MarketsX may not initially appear to have some of the bells and whistles of more complex trading platforms but looks can be deceptive. For a casual or infrequent trader, it’s probably a good bet and one on which to learn the ropes, but the deceptive simplicity of the platform belies a surprising level of sophistication and that may well end up persuading you to stay for the longer term.

Markets.com Options Trading

You cannot trade options with Markets.com - see here for a list of options trading platforms

Markets.com Demo Account

Yes, they do offer a demo account that allows you to get hands-on with the trading platform and product range, without risking any real cash. Something, we suggest that you do, because in that way you will soon get a sense if Markets.com is for you.

Setting up a demo account is easy just follow the online instruction and answer a few questions and along the way you will be doing a lot of the leg work involved in setting up a real account should you wish to upgrade in due course.

The demo account simulates the live trading experience allowing you to execute (open and close) trades, place pending orders, draw charts, manage and monitor open positions and account balances.

You can also access product information and statistics and move between groups of related instruments, as well as accessing trading signals and analysis using built-in tools and content.

There were no obvious limitations to the demo account itself while we were using it and we were genuinely impressed with it.

Markets.com Education & Analysis

Markets.com offers a range of analytical and educational tools via what it calls its knowledge centre. There are articles and webinars that cover a wide range of topics for example a guide on how to start investing sits adjacent to one on the thematic use of ETFs in trading.

The educational material is made available for free, as is access to trading news, other topical items and analysts insights

You will need to register for webinars and you can access a calendar of events via the trading platform or the website, and there are plenty of sessions to choose from, with topics such as the psychology of trading, how to use Fibonacci retracements and sessions on trading ideas.

The breadth of coverage means that its content is suitable for both beginners and more experienced traders and each group will likely find something of use and interest that resonates with them.

The webinar schedule and regular analytical contributions mean that Markets.com’s educational offering can compete alongside that of its larger peers, with a far larger headcount and bigger resources.

Markets.com Professional Account

Markets.com offers eligible traders the opportunity to open or elect upto a professional account in which you enjoy enhanced trading conditions compared to retail traders.

To qualify as a professional trader you will need to meet certain criteria around experience, market knowledge, trading activity and liquid net worth.

Markets.com looks for traders with a portfolio worth at least €500,000, and for clients who have had at least one year of experience within the financial services industry in a professional position.

Finally, you should be able to demonstrate that you have traded in the relevant markets in significant size, an average of 10 times per quarter, over the previous four quarters.

If you are eligible, then as a professional trader you won’t be subject to the FCA/ESMA margin restrictions but you will also lose some client protections and Markets.com can treat you as an expert in their communications with you.

Markets.com Alternatives

Markets.com competes against larger businesses such as CMC Markets and IG Group but alos other midsize players like City index, ETX capital and Spreadex and like some of its mid-size competitors it has tried to establish a niche for itself by offering a more personal service and focusing on market events such as US Quarterly earnings seasons. It’s never easy to differentiate in a largely commoditised marketplace but Markets.com certainly looks to be trying.

Markets.com Versus CMC Markets

These days CMC markets is a much bigger organisation than Markets.com, residing as it does in the FTSE 250 index. CMC is becoming more of a technology-oriented business that offers solutions to retail and professional traders but also to institutional customers and JV partners as well these are areas that Markets.com itself does not address although business within the Finalto group, of which its part, do offer B2B services. Where the two firms do compete head-on CMC has a wider coverage particular in equity CFDs and FX.

Although as we have often said most traders rarely deal in more than a handful of familiar names at any one time so having hundreds or even thousands of extra markets to trade may not be that beneficial.

Markets.com may actually be cheaper than CMC Markets in some instances for example Markets.com charge a flat fee of $10.00 per Equity CFD trade whereas that’s the minimum ticket charge at CMC markets.

CMC is happy to take traders from novice and newbie through to more experienced traders though it probably has a preference for the latter. Markets.com is not aiming at a specific client demographic but more a sensibility amongs traders who are looking for an alternative way to trade outside of or away from the bigger providers.

Markets.com Versus IG

The most obvious difference between Markets.com and IG Group is one of scale, IG is capitalised more than three times more than Markets.com’s current ultimate parent Playtech
IG has a far wider product range and offers additional services over and above those found at Markets.com. If you are an active trader then you may be able to benefit from tighter pricing at IG in markets such as equity CFDs when compared to Markets.com who charge a flat rate rather than on activity.

However, if you like the way that Markets.com do things then you are probably going to move your business to save a small amount of commission. Markets.com is aimed at traders looking for a change and something a bit different from their broker whereas IG is more of a numbers game as a margin trading proposition.