konversi_timezone(28 Feb 2024 1:45, America/New_York, 'full date') Best ECN Brokers for UK Traders
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UK ECN brokers are not only trustworthy and reliable but also provide impressive trading conditions. Here are five of the best ECN brokers in the UK.

UK ECN brokers are widely known for their trustworthiness and reliability. They are well-regulated under the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), offer the best pricing, and comply with a proven investor compensation scheme. Some of them are even considered to be the best ECN brokers in the world.

Here are the five top UK ECN brokers:

  1. Exness: Providing zero spreads with various commission structures.
  2. Pepperstone: ECN trading beyond the MetaTrader platform on the Razor account.
  3. ThinkMarkets: Specialized in lightning-fast execution.
  4. FXOpen: Cheapest ECN account in terms of commission fees and minimum deposit.
  5. Tickmill: Providing ECN experience with zero stop and limit levels.

 

Characteristics of the Best ECN Brokers

ECN brokers are forex brokers that connect buy and sell orders through an electronic communication network (ECN). Using a sophisticated computerized trading system, they automatically match buy and sell orders in the currency exchange market.

This is where ECN brokers differ from market makers. Market-maker brokers usually operate as counterparties against their own clients's buy-and-sell orders. On the other hand, ECN brokers send orders to other parties and take on the role of middlemen in the market.

Since ECN brokers facilitate trades between market participants, they are forbidden to trade against their own clients. The circumstances allow traders to enjoy the following ECN characteristics:

  1. Lower bid and ask spreads because prices are real, unmarked-up market prices.
  2. Transparent bid and ask prices as seen through the available Depth of Markets (DoM).
  3. Zero requotes, because orders go to the market directly without any dealing desk.
  4. Flat commission rates that are relatively more transparent than the opaque and fluctuating marked-up spreads.

Additionally, there is one more special characteristic of the best ECN brokers that is unlike ordinary ECN: They should be properly regulated by reputable agencies.

Hundreds of forex brokers are in business all over the world. Many of them are not subject to any financial regulators, but they pretend to be ECN brokers. For UK traders, the only way to ensure that your forex broker provides legitimate ECN facilities is to trade with FCA-regulated brokers. They may expect favorable pricing and various advanced trading solutions from these brokers.

How good are they? Let's see more below.

 

1. Exness

Exness offers market execution through Zero and Raw Spread accounts. Both have a "starting from zero" spread policy but different fee structures.

Zero accounts charge fluctuating commission fees, starting at $0.05 per side per lot. Raw Spread accounts have a fixed commission of up to $3.50 per side per lot.

Here is everything you must know about Exness' ECN accounts:

  • Trading platforms: MT4 and MT5.
  • Commission: starting from $0.05 per side per lot (Zero), or up to $3.50 per side per lot (Raw Spread)
  • Spreads: starting from 0 pips
  • Minimum deposit: $200
  • Maximum leverage: 1:Unlimited
  • Account currencies: more than two dozen, including AUD, CAD, CHF, CNY, EUR, GBP, GHS, HKD, SGD, and USD.
  • Instruments: Forex, metals, cryptoсurrencies, energies, stocks, and indices
  • Stop Out Level: 0%

 

2. Pepperstone

Pepperstone provides two types of accounts: the Razor and Standard accounts. If you seek ECN benefits, you should go with the Razor account. Standard accounts charge zero commission but have significantly higher spreads.

The specific terms of Pepperstone's Razor accounts are as follows:

  • Trading platform: MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView
  • Commission: FX only, starting from 3 USD (per lot, per side).
  • Spreads: starting from 0 pips
  • Minimum deposits: $0 (it is advisable to deposit a minimum of $200).
  • Maximum leverage: 1:200 for retail clients, 1:500 for professional clients.
  • Account currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, CAD, CHF, JPY, NZD, SGD, HKD
  • Instruments: Forex, commodities, indices, cryptocurrencies, shares, and ETFs
  • Stop Out Level: 50% for retail, 20% for professionals

 

3. ThinkMarkets

ThinkMarkets offers three types of accounts: the Mini, the Standard, and the ThinkZero accounts. The latter is the one you should choose to get ECN advantages, particularly lightning-fast execution.

The specific terms of ThinkZero accounts are as follows:

  • Trading platforms: MT4 and MT5
  • Commission: $3.5 per side per lot
  • Spreads: starting from 0 pips
  • Minimum deposits: $500
  • Maximum leverage: 1:500
  • Account currencies: AUD, NZD, USD, EUR, GBP, SGD, CAD, and CHF
  • Instruments: Forex and metal
  • Stop Out Level: 50%

 

4. FXOpen

FXOpen offers one of the most affordable ECN accounts in the industry, as it only requires a $100 minimum deposit and charges super cheap commission fees. Additionally, non-UK traders can enjoy near-unlimited leverage via the TickTrader platform (UK traders have to comply with the FCA leverage limit of 1:30).

The specific terms of FXOpen's ECN accounts are as follows:

  • Trading platform: MT4, MT5, and TickTrader
  • Commission: starting from $1.5 per side per lot (varies according to trade volume)
  • Spreads: starting from 0 pips
  • Minimum deposits: $100
  • Maximum leverage: up to 1:1000 (1:1000 leverage is available on TickTrader only).
  • Account currencies: USD, AUD, CHF, EUR, GBP, JPY, SGD
  • Instruments: Forex, commodities, indices, cryptocurrencies, shares
  • Stop Out Level: 50%

 

5. Tickmill

Tickmill designed Pro accounts for experienced traders who seek top features and optimal trading conditions. There is also one unique perk: zero stop and limit levels. This suggests that Tickmill Pro account owners have an advantage over most ECN traders in that they can set stop and limit orders close to market prices.

Tickmill Pro accounts are not advertised as ECN accounts but offer a similarly exceptional market execution model with the following conditions:

  • Trading platform: MT4, MT5, Tickmill Mobile App
  • Commission: Starting from 2 USD (per lot, per side)
  • Spreads: starting from 0 pips
  • Minimum deposits: $100
  • Maximum leverage: 1:500 (non-UK accounts)
  • Account currencies: USD, EUR, GBP, ZAR
  • Instruments: Forex, commodities, indices, bonds, stocks CFDs, and cryptocurrencies
  • Stop Out Level: 30%

 

Comparison of the 5 Top UK ECN Brokers

Now that we have mentioned each UK broker with their ECN services, you can compare them more easily using the following table:

Aspects Exness Pepperstone ThinkMarkets FXOpen Tickmill
📃Licenses FCA (UK), CySEC (Cyprus), FSA (Seychelles), etc FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), SCB (Bahamas) FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), FSA (Seychelles) FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), CySEC (Cyprus), etc FCA (UK), CySEC, (Cyprus), DFSA (Dubai), etc
🇬🇧UK Office 107 Cheapside, London, EC2V 6DN 70 Gracechurch St
London EC3V 0HR
G07, 35 New Broad St, London EC2M 1NH 80 Coleman Street, London EC2R 5BJ 3rd Floor, 27 - 32 Old Jewry, London EC2R 8DQ
💲Account Currencies AUD, CAD, CHF, CNY, EUR, GBP, GHS, HKD, SGD, USD, etc AUD, USD, JPY, GBP, EUR, CAD, CHF, NZD, SGD and HKD AUD, NZD, USD, EUR, GBP, SGD, CAD and CHF USD, AUD, CHF, EUR, GBP, JPY, and SGD USD, EUR, GBP, ZAR
📞Customer Services 08001503223 +44 (800) 0465473 (UK toll free) +44 203 514 2374 +44 (0) 203 519 1224 Callback request via Tickmill website
💳Payment Bank transfer, VISA, Mastercard, JCB, Skrill, and Neteller Bank transfer, Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, and Union Pay Bank transfer, Visa, Mastercard, Neteller, Skrill, Crypto payments Bank transfer, MasterCard, Visa, Maestro, JCB, Neteller, Skrill, etc Bank transfer, Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill, Crypto payments, etc
💰Minimum Deposit $200 $0 $500 $100 $100
💸Commission Fees up to $3.50 per side per lot starting from $3 per side per lot $3.5 per side per lot starting from $1.5 per side per lot starting from $2 per side per lot
Maximum Leverage (UK) 1:30 1:30 1:30 1:30 1:30
Maximum Leverage (non-UK entities) 1:unlimited 1:200 (retail clients), 1:500 (professional clients) 1:500 1:1000 1:500

So, which one of the five would you choose? Each has distinguished features that may be hard to see in writing, but you can always try a demo to know which one suits you best in practice.