IG broker review: is it trustworthy or not?

IG Group is a company that is considered to be one of the largest CFD brokers in the industry. It seems to be a trusted company that has many customers from various countries. IG is prominent for being listed on a stock exchange. It is also regulated by some reputable authorities. But does this make the company trustworthy? Read our IG broker review to find out!

About IG

IG Group is operating since 1974 and is based in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are located in London. There also are offices in other cities: Melbourne, Zürich, Geneva, Dubai, and many others. In the picture below, it is possible to see all locations.

IG is regulated by a number of reputable authorities. These include the FCA and BaFin. Also, the IG Group is listed in the London stock exchange which is usually done only with legit companies. It is included in the FTSE 250 index. 

The service offers a comfortable trading platform with an enormous number of assets to work with. So what else does it have to offer? Let us move on a find out.

What can you trade with IG?

The broker offers more than 17,000 assets in eleven categories. Although IG specializes in CFDs and forex, it also works with stocks, ETFs, commodities, bonds, and cryptocurrencies. For comparison, there are only 95 forex pairs and over 10,000 stock CFDs. The difference is big and it shows what the broker prefers working with.

Fees at IG

The broker has fees that are lower than the average if we compare them with the general number in the industry. Here are some examples:

• For working with the S&P 500 CFD you have to pay an average spread of 0.6 pips
• For working with the EUR/USD currency pair, usually you will have to pay around 0.7 pips
• If you are inactive for 2 years, every month you will be charged $12
• If you work with the Europe 50 CFD, remember that the spreads usually are around 1.5 pips

As you can see, the fees at IG are built in the spreads. Nothing is paid for withdrawals or deposits, only the charges of the payment systems. However, you should keep in mind that if you stop trading, it is better to withdraw all your funds and close the account because of the inactivity fee.

Account types at IG

Several account types are provided by the company. Traders usually choose the CFD type, from where most users manage their portfolios. People from the United Kingdom can get a tax-free spread betting account that is quite good if used properly. There also are other less popular products that might be interesting to you.

Minimum deposit and payment methods

The company has a minimum deposit that starts at 250 pounds or its equivalent in other currencies. You can top-up your account or withdraw your earnings with these methods:

1. Bank cards
2. E-wallets (only deposits)
3. Bank transfers

The last method is the slowest: it takes several days for the funds to reach your account. Paying with a bank card or e-wallet is almost instant. The only fees you will have to pay are those of the payment methods.

If we speak of withdrawals, they will take a bit more time than deposits. For instance, ordering a payout to your debit card will take around 2-3 days to process the payment. It might take more or less time, it depends on many things.

Trading platforms

The company promotes the usage of its web platform called IG Live. By the way, it is also optimized for mobile devices. IG Live has a user-friendly interface that has no useless elements. Everything is quite informative and simple to use.

It is possible to fully integrate the ProRealTime software to automate the trading process. It really helps when you have a strategy that requires attention to the smallest details or when you cannot monitor the computer 24\7. It also has a huge number of instruments and tools that make the analysis very efficient. You can also use the MT4 platform is you like it more. Finally, for DMA trading it is possible to use the L2 Dealer software.

Customer reviews on IG

The bigger part of reviews about the IG broker are positive. This is a good sign which shows the trustability of the company. However, when you read the opinions in detail, you see that some people like certain things, and others, on the contrary, dislike them.

Here is what a user with the nickname Vontufty writes about the company.

He did not expect the customer support and platform to be so good. The support agents explained to him how to work with the service in detail and assisted him with his first trades. Also, Vontufty thinks that the fees are quite high but the quality covers that.

Another user, Jonny Smith, liked the service. He wrote that it took him a while to get the hang of the platform.

However, the user was very disappointed by the delay that appeared when he wanted to open his account. The company apologized and explained that it was due to the problems that appeared on the market. It is good to know that the company answers such reviews and 

tries resolving the issues.

Conclusion

IG is a trustworthy broker that has offices all around the globe and is regulated by several reputable authorities. The company provides over 17,000 products to work with 11 different categories. The fees are mostly built in the spreads, so you will not have to overpay for trading. There are a few account types, but traders mostly choose the CFD-specialized type. It has a comfortable web platform and also provides the MT4 software. The customer reviews show that this is a good broker that is trustworthy and cares about its customers.

What was your experience with IG?