Overview
FP Markets has been active since 2005 and has — much like IC Trading — specialised in ECN pricing with tight raw spreads and fast order execution. The Australian broker today serves an international client base and stands out especially for algo traders and scalpers: five trading platforms, a free VPS with Equinix infrastructure, and no strategy restrictions whatsoever. Anyone who knows IC Trading as a benchmark will immediately recognise FP Markets — the positioning is almost identical, with a few distinctive touches on the platform side.
Regulation & Safety
FP Markets operates through multiple regulated entities: ASIC (Australia, First Prudential Markets Pty Ltd), CySEC (Cyprus/EU), FSCA (South Africa), and the FSA of the Seychelles. European traders generally end up with the CySEC entity — European deposit protection, but leverage capped at 1:30 for retail clients in accordance with ESMA rules.
The 1:500 leverage is accessible exclusively through the ASIC or Seychelles entity. ASIC is considerably more stringently regulated than a pure offshore licence and offers a solid level of protection; nevertheless, the principle holds: anyone using maximum leverage forfeits the EU regulatory framework. Client funds are held segregated, and negative balance protection caps downside exposure.
Costs
The Raw account delivers raw spreads from 0.0 pips with a commission of 3.00 USD per lot per side — equating to 6.00 USD round-trip, or effectively around 0.6 pips on EUR/USD under normal market conditions. That is competitive, though IC Trading is marginally cheaper via cTrader routing (3.00 USD vs. 3.50 USD MetaTrader).
The Standard account foregoes commission but calculates wider spreads from 1.0 pips — not an option for scalpers or EA portfolios. Both accounts start at a minimum deposit of 100 USD, keeping the entry barrier low.
Execution
FP Markets uses ECN pricing with direct access to Tier-1 liquidity providers. Trading servers are housed in Equinix data centres NY4 (New York) and LD4 (London) — the same hubs used by IC Trading and other top ECN brokers. In practice this means low latency, minimal slippage, and no dealing-desk intervention. Requotes are rare by design.
In practice, execution quality is at a level that comfortably covers latency-sensitive EAs and scalping strategies. A small deduction applies because FP Markets is marginally more expensive than IC Trading on MT4/MT5 routing (3.50 USD vs. 3.00 USD on IC cTrader) — a marginal difference that accumulates at high volumes.
EA & Algo Suitability
From an algo perspective, FP Markets is superbly positioned: EAs, scalping, and hedging are officially and unreservedly permitted. The free VPS runs on Equinix hardware in New York and London — co-located with the broker's own MT4/MT5 servers, ensuring maximum uptime and minimal connection latency for running EAs. For MT4/MT5 users the free threshold is 10 lots of monthly volume on the Raw account; cTrader users need 40 lots. Alternatively, the volume requirement is waived with a minimum deposit of 1,000 USD.
Particularly impressive: five platforms to choose from — MT4, MT5, cTrader (with a native API for custom algos), TradingView (on the Raw account), and IRESS for equity CFDs. This makes FP Markets one of the few brokers where both classic MT4 EAs and custom cAlgo strategies can run in a production environment.
Conditions, Deposits & Support
The minimum deposit is 100 USD — practical for getting started, though for a functioning multi-EA portfolio significantly more capital makes sense. Leverage reaches up to 1:500 depending on the entity.
Deposits and withdrawals cover credit cards, bank transfers, and popular e-wallets (including Skrill and Neteller); support is available 24/7 and staffed multilingually. Withdrawals are generally processed promptly. A slight deduction comes from the volume requirement for the free VPS: smaller accounts with sporadic trading must either pay for it separately or meet the 1,000 USD deposit threshold.
Verdict
FP Markets is a serious broker for algo and EA traders — comparable with IC Trading in virtually every relevant dimension: tight raw spreads, ECN execution on Equinix hardware, a free VPS, and no strategy restrictions. The slight cost edge IC Trading holds on MT accounts (3.00 USD vs. 3.50 USD) is offset by a broader platform offering (including TradingView on the Raw account and the cTrader API) and an equivalent regulatory structure. Anyone already evaluating IC Trading should put FP Markets through a parallel assessment — both brokers play in the same league.