CMC Markets Review 2024: What you need to know?

CMC Markets Overview

CMC has a long history of excellence in the contract for difference (CFD) broker industry. It offers more than 10,000 financial products to trade. CMC is regulated in multiple jurisdictions, most notably in the UK by the FCA, in Canada by IIROC, and in Australia by ASIC.

Client funds are held in trust in a segregated account, which helps eliminate fraud and the company using client’s funds for other purposes. The company offers 24-hour support. Since it has regional offices in multiple locations around the world, customer support is offered in a number of languages.

Offices are located in the UK, Australia, Austria, Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Singapore, Spain, and Sweden. CMS is a CFD broker, which means traders aren’t actually buying or shorting the underlying asset. Rather, they are making a bet with the broker about the underlying asset.

CFDs fluctuate in value along with the underlying asset. Spreads may be bigger in CFDs compared to the underlying asset, but you may be able to access more leverage. CMC charges a commission on shares trading, but only charges the spread on other assets.

In the UK, CFD trading is called spread betting. UK residents can open a spread betting account and trading gains aren’t taxable. Spread betting accounts are only for UK residents, and outside the UK, CFDs are subject to local tax regulations.

CMC Markets Trading Terms and Product Offerings

Trading terms or conditions refer to the spread, commissions, and margin offered on trading products.

Here are the trading terms for CMC Markets.

CMC Markets Commission Rates and Spreads

The spread is the difference between the bid and ask prices. CMC Markets is a CFD provider, meaning you’re not buying or selling the actual underlying asset. CMC Markets controls the spread you pay, and it’s generally much higher than what the actual underlying market would offer.

The spread is a cost, so the lower the spread the better. CMC Commissions are 0.1% of the total trade value of share/stock transactions in the UK and Europe. CMC commissions are 2 cents per share for US shares. There is a $10 or £9 minimum commission on each trade. Commissions are only shared on shares trades.

CMC Markets Margin and Leverage

Margin is the amount of capital you need to control a position. For shares it is 20%. That means you can buy $10,000 worth of stock with only $2,000. You only need 20% of the value of the position to open it and maintain it.  Another way to think of margin is as leverage, so for example, 20% is 5:1 leverage. A 3.3% margin, like in forex, is 30:1 leverage.

CMC Markets Holding Costs and Other Fees

Another difference between CFDs and the real underlying market is holding costs. CMC charges a fee for every day a position is held. The fee ranges between 0.0008% and 0.1% of the total position value. This is charged daily, and the amount charged varies by product.

To see the daily holding costs, visit the CFDs page, select an asset class, then scroll down to the “Costs” section. Two holding costs are listed: one for if you are holding a short position, and the other for if you are holding a long position. The margin and spread are also listed for that specific product.

If you want real-time share data, you will need to activate a market data subscription. These fees vary based on the data you need. These fees are refunded if you make more than 2 trades per month as a non-professional investor. If an account is dormant for more than a year, it is subject to a fee of £10 per month.

CMC Markets Product Offerings

CMC Markets has one of the widest product offers of any broker in the world.

• More than 330 forex pairs
• More than 80 global stock indices, including the FTSE 100, Dow Jones, Nasdaq 100, and German Dax
• 21 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Etherium, and Litecoin
• More than 100 commodities, including gold, silver, oil, and natural gas
• More than 10,000 shares from stock exchanges around the world
• More than 1,000 ETFs from stock exchanges around the world
• More than 50 interest rate/treasure products from the US and European countries.

There is no shortage of things to trade. Keep in mind that most great traders (not all) are specialists in a particular market. Most don’t trade everything; they pick a market and hone their skills.

CMC Markets Trading Platform Review

CMC offers a number of trading platforms suitable for different styles of trading.

Here is CMC’s in depth platform user guide.The CMC Next Generation trading platform is their flagship. It is intuitive and relatively easy to use and get started with. One of the key features that traders like is that you can place your entry, stop loss, and profit target all once.

The order entry tool shows you exactly the value of the position, the margin required for the position, as well as how much you will make or lose if the price hits the profit target or stop loss.

The Next Generation platform is also offered for mobile devices. MetaTrader 4 is a popular platform for forex and CFD commodity trading. Its user-friendly interface offers algorithmic trading capabilities. You can trade shares via the Next Generation platform, the Share Trading platform, or the Share Trading Pro platform.

The Share Trading platform offers research and portfolio tools, as well as more advanced features such as customizable charts and the ability to link features together for rapid ticker symbol changes. The linked modules update in realt-time to show you the information you need to make your trades.

CMC Markets Funding and Withdrawal Options

An array of funding and withdrawal options make it easy to put money into your trading account, as well as get it out.

CMC Markets UK offers funding and withdrawals via:

• Credit or debit card
• Bank transfer
• PayPal

Other jurisdictions offer bank wires if an electronic bank transfer isn’t available. PayPal and credit cards are not available for deposits and withdrawals in all jurisdictions. Outside the UK, you will likely be limited to electronic bank transfers or bank wires.

There is no fee for deposits, but your bank, PayPal, or credit card may charge a fee. CMC withdrawals typically take 1-2 business days to process. There is no fee for most withdrawals, but your credit card or PayPal may charge a fee. Fees for bank wire and bank transfer withdrawals range from $10 to £15.

CMC Markets Review of Security of Funds

CMC holds clients’ funds in trust. CMC can’t access client funds for its own purposes, which helps prevent fraud and keeps clients’ funds protected.

Segregating funds is an important safety feature that some brokers offer. It means that if the company is financially distressed they can’t dip into client funds. Your funds are held in a separate trust account.

If CMC were to enter bankruptcy, client funds would be distributed back to clients less any bankruptcy administration fees. Such fees could then be reimbursed by your local investor protection organization, if applicable.

For example, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) provides coverage for UK client losses (due to a broker’s insolvency) up to £85,000. Similar measures exist for clients outside the UK, if their country provides such protection.

CMC Markets Regulations Review

CMC Markets operates in many countries around the world. This makes it highly regulated, which is a desirable feature that increases trustworthiness to traders.

A regulated broker must apply to and be approved by a country’s regulating body. The broker must then abide by local laws and maintain financial health or risk having their license revoked or face charges.

Below you can find the jurisdictions where CMC Markets is regulated, and the governing body that regulates them. If you ever have issues with a broker, contact the broker first. If that doesn’t work, you can file a complaint with the regulatory organization.

• UK – Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• Canada – Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC)
• Australia – Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC)
• Germany – Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin)
• New Zealand – Financial Markets Authority (FMA)
• Singapore – Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)

CMC Markets is also a publicly traded company (CMCX), listed on the London Stock Exchange. This provides an added level of credibility, since companies listed on exchanges must file financial statements on time and maintain a certain level of financial health. If they don’t, they risk being delisted from the exchange.

CMC Markets Support Review

CMC Markets offers live support 24 hours per day during the week via email or phone. Use the CMC Contact Us page to locate your local head office. You’ll find the email and phone number listed.

Wait times for phone calls are typically several minutes, and email responses are typically received within 24 hours (during the week) for non-urgent matters. They also offer an extensive FAQ section providing insights on commonly asked questions.

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