City Index Review: Unveiling the Truth
This City Index review explores the platform’s offerings, fees, and overall trading experience. City Index is a well-established broker, particularly prominent in the UK market, offering a variety of investment opportunities.
City Index Offerings and Investments
Like many brokers in the U.K., City Index provides spread betting across its available markets. This offers tax efficiencies for U.K. residents that are not typically available with CFD trading. City Index also extends its offerings to include forex options and forwards.
Here’s a summary of the investment products available to City Index clients:
- Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs): Yes
- Total Tradeable Symbols: 13500
- Total Forex Pairs: 84
- U.S. Stock Trading (Non CFD): No
- Int’l Stock Trading (Non CFD): No
- Social Trading / Copy Trading: Yes
- Cryptocurrency (Physical): No
- Cryptocurrency (CFD): Yes (Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker’s U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents, except to Professional clients.)
Regarding City Index cryptocurrency trading, it’s available via CFDs, not through direct ownership of the underlying asset like Bitcoin. It’s crucial to note that retail traders in the UK cannot access crypto CFDs.
City Index Fees and Commissions
The pricing structure at City Index for CFDs, forex, and spread betting products is generally in line with industry averages. For optimal pricing, it’s recommended to use City Index’s proprietary platforms or MetaTrader.
Account Types and Discounts
- Premium Trader account: Active traders depositing over £10,000 may qualify for this account, which offers exclusive pricing, events, content, and dedicated customer service.
- CFD account: City Index reported an average spread of 1.1 pips on the EUR/USD (as of August 2021). This places its all-in cost slightly above the industry average for this pair.
City Index also provides active trader rebates and discounts. For U.K.-based professional traders, rebates begin at £4 per million for monthly volumes exceeding £25 million, potentially reaching £7.5 per million for volumes above £300 million. In Australia, rebates range from AUD $4.5 per million to AUD $14.5 per million across different tiers.
Key fee details:
- Minimum Initial Deposit: £100.00
- Average Spread EUR/USD – Standard (July 2022): 1.0
- All-in Cost EUR/USD – Active (July 2022): 1.0
- Active Trader or VIP Discounts: Yes
- Execution: Agency Broker: No
- Execution: Market Maker: Yes
City Index Mobile Trading Apps
The City Index mobile app is recognized for its clean design and versatility, competing with offerings from industry leaders like IG and Saxo Bank. This City Index review finds its mobile platform to be a significant strength.
App Features and Usability
City Index offers its own proprietary mobile app in addition to the widely used MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform. The proprietary app provides a smooth user experience for tasks such as setting alerts, depositing funds, accessing news, and executing trades. The MT4 mobile app is also available for City Index investments.
Charting on the City Index app is powered by TradingView, featuring over 80 indicators and various drawing tools for comprehensive technical analysis. Integrated Trading Central modules, including Technical Insights, Featured Ideas, and Analyst Views, enhance the trading tools available. The platform also supports complex order types like trailing stop-loss orders and OCOs (one-cancels-the-other).
Note: As of September 2022, MetaTrader 4 & MetaTrader 5 were removed from Apple’s App Store. iOS users with these apps installed may lose access if they delete them. Android users are not affected, and both MT4 and MT5 remain available on the Google Play store.
City Index Other Trading Platforms
Beyond mobile, City Index provides a robust proprietary Web Trader platform. This platform delivers a rich trading experience and grants access to the full range of City Index offerings. It includes excellent trading tools and advanced features, catering to various trading strategies.
Verdict
In conclusion, this City Index review highlights its strong position in the UK market, particularly for spread betting and CFD trading. While City Index fees for some instruments are slightly above average, the platform compensates with a comprehensive range of City Index investments, powerful trading tools, and user-friendly mobile and web platforms. The availability of diverse City Index offerings, including forex and social trading, makes it a compelling choice for many traders, especially those in the UK looking for tax-efficient spread betting options.
