Trade Nation vs IC Trading

Trade Nation or IC Trading – which is better for UK traders 2025? Compare Trade Nation and IC Trading in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.

Trade Nation vs IC Trading Comparison Table 2025
Trade Nation IC Trading
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4.6
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4.2
Trade Nation is ranked #7 among CFD brokers. IC Trading is ranked #6 among CFD brokers.
Trade Nation is a leading FX and CFD broker regulated in the UK and Australia, among other places. The company provides competitively priced fixed and variable spreads on over 1,000 assets. Traders benefit from advanced platforms and comprehensive training materials. Additionally, the Signal Centre offers valuable trade ideas. IC Trading belongs to the reputable IC Markets group. Designed for dedicated traders, it offers highly competitive spreads, dependable order execution, and sophisticated trading tools. However, it operates from Mauritius, an offshore financial centre, allowing high leverage but within a less regulated environment.
67.3% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Pros
  • A variety of trading platforms and apps, such as MT4, make the brand suitable for experienced traders.
  • Trade Nation, a highly regarded and well-regulated broker, was formerly known as Core Spreads.
  • Access a comprehensive selection of investments through leveraged CFDs, enabling both long and short strategies.
  • The trading firm provides narrow spreads and a clear pricing structure.
  • Global traders can use accounts in various currencies.
  • Beginners benefit from a modest initial deposit.
  • IC Trading offers top-tier spreads, with some major currency pairs like EUR/USD featuring spreads as low as 0.0 pips, making it an excellent choice for traders.
  • The streamlined digital account setup allows traders to commence trading swiftly, eliminating lengthy paperwork. Testing shows the process takes mere minutes.
  • IC Trading provides exceptional flexibility, allowing traders to open as many as 10 live accounts and 20 demo accounts. This enables the management of distinct profiles for various activities, including manual and algorithmic trading.
  • Trading Central and Autochartist provide valuable technical analysis and actionable ideas. These tools are readily available within the account area or on the cTrader platform.
Cons
  • Reduced legal safeguards with an offshore entity.
  • Although IC Trading operates under the reputable IC Markets group, it is licensed by the FSC in Mauritius, a regulator known for its limited financial transparency and lack of robust safeguards.
  • Customer support was inadequate during testing, with multiple live chat attempts going unanswered and emails ignored. This raises significant concerns regarding their capacity to manage urgent trading issues.
  • The educational materials require significant enhancement unless accessed via the IC Markets website. This limitation is particularly disadvantageous for beginners seeking a thorough learning experience, especially when compared to industry leaders such as eToro.
  • Unlike IC Markets, IC Trading lacks support for social trading via the IC Social app or the ZuluTrade platform.
FCA Regulated
Yes No

List of FCA Regulated Brokers

Instruments
Forex, CFDs, Indices, Shares, Commodities, Futures, Bonds, Spread Betting, Cryptos (Bahamas Entity Only) CFDs, Forex, Stocks, Indices, Commodities, Bonds, Cryptos, Futures
Demo Account
Yes Yes
Minimum Deposit
$0 $200
Payment Methods
Minimum Trade
0.1 Lots 0.01 Lots
Regulator
FCA, ASIC, FSCA, SCB, FSA FSC
Mobile Apps
iOS & Android iOS & Android
Trading App
IC Trading offers robust apps for trading on multiple devices. Although there's no proprietary app, which could deter novice traders, mobile access is available through the trusted MetaTrader 4/5 and cTrader apps. These enable swift trade execution, advanced charting, and comprehensive market analysis on the go.
iOS App Rating
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4.5
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4.8
Android App Rating
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rating full
4.5
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4.6
Margin Trading
Yes Yes
MetaTrader 4
Yes Yes
MetaTrader 5
No Yes
cTrader
No Yes
AlgoTrader
No No
OmniTrader
No No
TradingView
No No
Autochartist
No Yes
eSignal
No No
Trading Central
No Yes
STP Account
Yes No
ECN Account
No Yes
DMA Account
No No
MAM Account
No No
PAMM Account
No No
LAMM Account
No No
Demat Account
No No
AI / Machine Learning
No No
Robo Advisor
No No
Negative Balance Protection
Yes No
Market Maker
Yes No
P2P Trading
No No
Spot Trading
Yes Yes
Auto Trading
Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader Expert Advisors (EAs) on MetaTrader, cBots on cTrader
Copy Trading
Yes No
Copy Trading Platform
Trade Nation Seychelles provides signals and copy trading, appealing to novices and those preferring a passive trading strategy. Capitalise on experienced traders' insights to engage in popular financial markets like forex, stocks, and commodities.
Social Trading
No No
Trade Signals
Yes
VPS Hosting
No Yes
Tournaments
No No
Demo Competitions
No No
Ethical Investing
No No
Custodial Account
No No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No No
Inactivity Fee
$0
Islamic Account
Yes Yes
Account Currencies
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • AUD
  • ZAR
  • SEK
  • NOK
  • DKK
  • USD
  • EUR
  • GBP
  • CAD
  • AUD
  • NZD
  • JPY
  • CHF
  • HKD
  • SGD
Commodities
  • Gold
  • Silver
  • Aluminium
  • Copper
  • Zinc
  • Oil
  • Oil
  • Cocoa
  • Coffee
  • Corn
  • Cotton
  • Orange Juice
  • Soybeans
  • Sugar
  • Wheat
  • Natural Gas
  • Gold
  • Silver
  • Platinum
  • Palladium
CFD
Trade leveraged CFDs on 1,000+ assets, benefiting from competitive spreads. Utilise the broker's integrated signals to decide optimal entry and exit points. IC Trading excels in CFD trading, offering more than 2,250 assets across popular markets such as forex, commodities, indices, stocks, and bonds. With advanced bridge technology and substantial liquidity, the broker ensures favourable conditions for traders seeking leveraged short-term opportunities.
Leverage
1:500 (entity dependent) 1:500
FTSE Spread
From 0.4 2.133
GBPUSD Spread<
From 0.6 0.23
Oil Spread
From 3.0 0.028
Stocks Spread
Variable Variable
Forex
Trade Nation provides more than 30 popular forex pairs with variable spreads. Traders can choose between a user-friendly proprietary platform and MetaTrader 4. Real-time forex market updates and insights are available through 'Smart News'. IC Trading offers exceptionally tight forex spreads on over 60 currency pairs, notably on major assets like EUR/USD. This makes it an excellent option for traders seeking competitive pricing and superior execution speeds. High-volume traders can also benefit from rebates of up to $2.50 per forex lot.
Assets
33 60+
GBPUSD Spread
Variable 0.2
EURUSD Spread
Variable 0.1
EURGBP Spread
Variable 0.3
Cryptocurrency
The broker’s Bahamas entity facilitates access to cryptocurrencies. Traders can utilise a vast array of indicators to customise their strategies, with transparent pricing and no hidden fees. You have the opportunity to trade over 20 leading cryptocurrencies with leverage up to 1:200, available every day of the week. Direct transactions of assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are not supported. The range of tokens is narrower compared to Eightcap, which received our 'Best Crypto Broker' accolade for its offering of more than 100 crypto derivatives.
Spread
Fixed Floating
Coins
  • BTC
  • ETH
  • LTC
  • BTC
  • ETH
  • DSH
  • LTC
  • BCH
  • XRP
  • EOS
  • EMC
  • NMC
  • PPC
  • DOT
  • XLM
  • LINK
  • DOGE
  • XTZ
  • UNI
  • ADA
  • BNB
  • AVAX
  • LUNA
  • MATIC
  • GLMR
  • KSM
Crypto Lending
No No
Crypto Mining
No No
Crypto Staking
No No
Auto Market Maker
No No
Trade Nation IC Trading
67.3% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
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