CFD Providers in Australia have always been fiercely competitive in this rapidly growing market. Advertising budgets for some CFD providers run into the millions as they look to grab the largest share of the CFD market locally.
The market forCFD providers in Australia hasn’t all been smooth sailing though. For example during the 2008 Australian Market Meltdown CFD providers came under intense heat as margincalls hit all time highs. Short selling was to blame for driving the share price down on many wellknown companies, like ABC Learning centers and all eyes were firmly planted on Australia’s CFDproviders.
Despite many financial share brokers (Opes Prime) hitting hard times, the Australian CFD providers have weathered the storm and are forging ahead strongly.
So which CFD Provider is right for you?
Which CFD Provider is by far the most common question that is asked time and time again. If you ask 10 people you’ll get 10 different answers and they are all correct. The most critical thing you can do is identify the type of service your CFD trading plan will need to be successful trading CFDs. Once you identify the exact style of CFD trading you will be doing then the right CFD provider will appear.
To make life easier for you, we have built each CFD provider profile based on some critical services they should be providing you with. Here are questions you should be asking your current or future CFD provider.
What are the key things to look for when selecting a CFD provider?
|
CMC Markets |
IG Markets |
FP Markets |
Macquarie Prime |
GFT |
City Index |
|
|
Basics |
||||||
|
DMA or MM |
MM |
DMA |
DMA |
DMA |
MM |
MM |
|
ASX CFDs Offered |
500+ |
1,000 |
2,000 |
950 |
500 |
300 |
|
Pre Open Auction |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
||
|
Platform Used |
MarketMaker ® |
IG Pure Deal |
WebIress |
MQ Prime |
Dealbook® 360 |
City Index |
|
Account Opening $ |
$1,000 |
$0 |
$5,000 |
$5,000 |
$2,500 |
$100 |
|
Software Demo Trial |
14 days |
14 days |
14 days |
14 days |
20 days |
No |
|
Margin Rates |
3-50% |
5-50% |
5-100% |
5-80% |
5-50% |
5-100% |
|
Commission |
||||||
|
% |
0.09% |
0.10% |
0.10% |
0.12% |
0.10% |
0.08% |
|
Phone Orders |
0.10% |
0.10% |
0.10% |
0.10% |
0.10% |
|
|
Vol Discounts |
0.06-0.08% |
$8 or 0.1% |
Neg% |
0.07-0.1% |
0.07-0.10% |
|
|
Min Commission |
$7 |
$8 |
$10 |
$10 |
$10 |
$10 |
|
Financing |
||||||
|
Long CFDs |
RBA +2% |
RBA +2.5% |
RBA +3% |
RBA +2.5% |
LIBOR +3% |
RBA +2% |
|
Short CFDs |
RBA -2% |
RBA -2.5% |
RBA -3% |
RBA -2.5% |
LIBOR -3% |
RBA -2% |
|
Interest Paid |
RBA-2% >$US10K |
RBA -1% |
7.25% |
|||
|
Markets |
||||||
|
Int CFDs |
19 Int |
20 Int |
17 Int |
No |
12 Int |
14 Int |
|
CFD Indices |
20 |
29 |
No |
No |
35 |
17 |
|
Forex |
72 |
64 |
Yes |
No |
123 |
64 |
|
Commodities |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Futures |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
|
Options |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
No |
|
Warrants |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
No |
|
ASX Equities |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Shares as Collateral |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Fee’s |
||||||
|
ASX fee |
$38.50 |
$37.50 |
$38.50 |
$41.25 |
Free |
Free |
|
Platform fee |
Free |
Free |
$50 |
Free |
Free |
Free |
| OrderTypes | ||||||
|
GSL |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
GSL: Guaranteed Stop Loss Order
Note: CFD brokers change their offerings without warning, so we provide no guarantee as to the accuracy of the data above.