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City Index Review – Top Findings in 2021
City Index Review 2021Overview
City Index is a trusted online trading and investment services provider, it’s recognized among industry experts for its wide selection of tradeable instruments, currently, it offers more than 12,000 markets, with brilliant research tools (better than the industry average), and low-cost forex trading services. City Index is a globally regulated broker, licensed and authorized by 3 international jurisdictions including 3 top-tier regulatory institutions. Its parent company StoneX Â Group Inc. is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange. In today’s review, we are going to bring all the features of City Index broker offerings, safety, platform and tools, research tools, and share all the important information about this broker, which will help a trader to choose the right broker.
City Index: Top Key Points
- Founded in 1983, has over 35 years of Market Experience. Licensed and authorized by multiple top-tier regulatory institutions(ASIC, FCA, MAS).
- 12000+ tradeable instruments, including 84 forex pairs, 21 global Indices, 25+ global Commodities, 25+ global Commodities, and 4500+ Global Shares.
- Forex trading cost is highly competitive, deposits and withdraws are free.
- Advanced proprietary trading platform and the user interface is extremely easy to use, suitable for both beginners and professionals.
City Index: Safety
City Index is regulated by two of the strictest regulatory jurisdictions including FCA, ASIC which is considered a low-risk broker. Publicly traded under its parent company StoneX Â Group Inc. listed on the NASDAQ Stock Exchange, which gives additional peace of mind. Unfortunately, two-factor authentication is only available for Singaporean clients, they should provide this useful security service to all customers. Currently serving more than 30,000 commercial and more than 125,000 retail clients across more than 130 countries all over the world. City Index was established in the UK back in 1983, serving clients for 35+ years, in this long period it survived various financial crises, We consider 3 decades of operation a solid track record. Currently, City Index is one of the leading brokerages in the Spread Betting, FX, and CFD trading industry.
Another benefit of FCA-regulated brokers is, they are also a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), under this scam up to £ 85,000 clients’ funds are protected, Vantage FX operates in Europe under CySEC regulation which is compliant with the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering Directive, where up to € 20,000 clients’ funds are protected under The Investor Compensation Fund (CIF). Vantage FX is not a publicly-traded company and does not operate a bank. On top of that Vantage FX provides negative balance protection and clients ‘money is kept in a segregated double A-rated Australian bank account. Never uses clients’ money for its own business activity due to regulations. In the last 12 years, they have achieved a good reputation from the traders.
City Index provides negative balance protection to the EU and AU retail clients only.
Client money, including cash, margin, and unrealized gains, are kept in distinct client money accounts at reputable banks and are clearly separated from City Indexs’ own funds. They don’t lodge retail client money towards margins with their hedging counterparties.
City Index broker is authorized by the following regulators:
- The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Ref No. 113942
- Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC)
- Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
Commissions and Fees at City Index
Fees in forex trading fees are generally of two types. One is a Trading fee and a Non-Trading fee.
- A trading fee is charged every time when you open a position. Training fees include spreads, commission fees, swaps, and currency conversion fees.
- Non-trading fees include deposit and withdrawal fees, and inactivity fees.
Trading Fees: City Index offers commission-free trading opportunities except for share CFDs, The only trading cost you have to pay is spread, and the commission fee is built into spreads with no hidden fees charges, fully transparent about commissions and fees. Forex trading cost is highly competitive at 0.50 pips minimum and 0.69 pips average for EUR/USD, compared to industry-leading brokers, on the other hand, stock CFD trading fees are slightly higher than the industry average. Many indices and commodities contain fixed spreads and forex and other has variable spreads. And there are no deposit or withdrawal fees.
The broker offering Forex(84), Indices, share CFDs, Metals, Bonds, Interest rates, commodities (25+), Forex options, and cryptocurrency trading. There is a different fee structure for each of them.
Although City Index is very transparent about the commission and spreads, it’s hard to find Option trading costs.
Non Trading Fees
Inactivity Fees: City Index broker charges inactivity of £12 monthly (or equivalent) if you do not trade on your account for more than 12 months. And when start trading again the inactivity fees charge will stop automatically, and you will not be charged until at least 12 months after your last trade.
Financing/overnight rates
If you hold a position overnight, there will be an financing/overnight fees applied. The financing/overnight fees will be charge each day you hold a position including weekend days. At City Index there is no financing/overnight charged on futures contracts. Financing rates are set at benchmark regional interest rate of +/- 2.5%. The financing rates we charge by territory are:
| Country | Financing on long positions | Financing on short positions |
| UK | SONIA +2.5% | SONIA -2.5% |
| US | SOFR +2.5% | SOFR -2.5% |
| EU | €STR +2.5% | €STR -2.5% |
| Australia | Deposit +2.5% | Deposit -2.5% |
| Other international | Contact Client Management | Contact Client Management |
Below are some of the main points described:
Forex Fees:
| FX Pair | Minimum spread | Typical spread | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| EUR/USD | 0.5 | 0.8 | 3.33% |
| AUD/USD | 0.5 | 0.9 | 5% |
| USD/JPY | 0.6 | 0.8 | 3.33% |
| GBP/USD | 0.9 | 1.8 | 3.33% |
| EUR/GBP | 0.9 | 1.7 | 3.33% |
Share Fees:
| Share | Spread each side (DFT) | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|
| Barclays | 0.10% | 20% |
| Rio Tinto | 0.10% | 20% |
| Deutsche Bank | 0.10% | 20% |
| Apple Inc | 4 cents | 20% |
| Amazon | 4 cents | 20% |
Indices Fees:
| Market name | Min. spread (fixed) | Min. spread hours (UK) | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK 100 | 1 point | 08:00 – 16:30 | 5% |
| Wall St | 2 points | 14:30 – 21:15 | 5% |
| Germany 30 | 1.2 points | 08:00 – 16:30 | 5% |
| Australia 200 | 1 point | 21:15 – 05:30 | 5% |
| France 40 | 1.3 points | 07:00 – 21:00 | 5% |
Commodities Fees:
| Market name | Spread | Spread pricing | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Crude Oil | 0.4 points (around market) | Around market spread | 10% |
| UK Crude Oil | 5 points | Fixed | 10% |
| Coffee | 0.9 points | Fixed | 10% |
| Sugar | 0.06 points | Fixed | 10% |
| Natural Gas | 18 points | Around market spread | 10% |
Metals Fees:
| Market name | Min. spread (around market spread) | Min. spread hours (UK) | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 0.3 points | 23:00 – 22:15 | 5% |
| Silver | 2.0 points | 23:00 – 22:15 | 10% |
| Copper | 40 points | 23:00 – 22:15 | 10% |
| Platinum | 0.83 points | 23:00 – 22:15 | 10% |
Bonds Fees:
| Market name | Min. spread (fixed) | Min. spread hours (UK) | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK Long Gilt | 0.03 points | 08:00 – 18:00 | 20% |
| Euro Bund | 0.03 points | 07:00 – 21:00 | 20% |
| US T-Bond | 0.02 points | 23:00 – 22:00 | 20% |
| US T-Note | 0.02 points | 23:00 – 22:00 | 20% |
Interest Rates:
| Market name | Min. spread (fixed) | Min. spread hours (UK) | Margin from* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short Sterling 3mnth | 0.02 points | 07:30 – 18:00 | 20% |
| Eurodollar | 0.02 points | 23:00 – 22:00 | 20% |
| Euribor 3mnth | 0.02 points | 01:00 – 21:00 | 20% |
City Index Review: Deposits and Withdrawals
City Index supports multiple deposit and withdrawal options including credit/Debit cards, Paypal, and Bank transfers. Unfortunately, there are no E-wallets options by City Index. (Netteller or Skrill). We guess it is because electronics wallets are so risky, there are so many complaints about e-wallets especially Skrill and Neteller, and also for making big transactions over e-wallet are more costly than bank transfers.
Our review team is happy to share that there are no fees for their deposits and withdrawals, but your card issuer may charge a fee for credit card deposits. Bank transfer can take several business days.
You can fund your account using the following:
- Debit card: Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, and Electron
- Credit card: Visa, MasterCard,
- PayPal
- Bank transfer
What are the minimum Deposit and Withdrawal amounts in City Index?
There is no minimum deposit amount, but the City Index team recommends that you deposit a minimum of £100 in order to cover margin and minimize risk, and the minimum withdrawal amount is £100, but you can with less than that if you have a lower balance.
PROS:
- No fees for deposits and withdraws
- Fast deposits with Credit Card, Debit Card, and Wire transfer.
CONS:
- E-wallet not supported
City Index Broker: Rebate Program
City Index Broker provides rebates (pricing discounts) to its active traders (trade high volume qualify as professionals under City Index rules, however, there are different eligibility rules.), You will be eligible for a rebate program, they give £4 if you trade more than £25M per month, and £7.5 per million for volumes above £300M per month. Once you reach these milestones you can contact your personal account manager and ask for the discount program.
back to menu ↑ back to menu ↑Platforms and Tools available at City Index
City Index offers an advanced proprietary desktop platform “Advanced Trader Pro” and HTML5 Web Trader platform which you can access directly from most modern browsers, also MetaTrader 4 platform, and iOS/Android mobile apps available. Proprietary platforms feature more tradeable instruments than the MetaTrader platform, so if you need more assets to diversity your portfolio and more additional indicators, we recommend you their proprietary platforms. The trading platform comes with robust trading tools, a lot of great research tools, and it is professionally made for all levels of traders. Its user interface is very neatly arranged which is very useful for both a beginner and an advanced trader.
Advanced Trader Pro(desktop): AT Pro is specially tailored for experienced traders with fully customizable workspaces. It features 139 technical indicators, 25 drawing tools, multiple charts layouts, deal through charts, multiple chart types, extensive drawing tools and compare different markets. Integrated market research tools like Reuters news, trading central to keep traders up to date. Also, some additional features like automated trading functions, backtest potential strategies using historical data, etc.
Please note: AT Pro is only available to professional traders. At City Index to qualify as Professional Trader you need to have a financial instrument portfolio, including cash deposits, exceeding €500,000.
Web Trader: City Index’s flagship web trading platform can be accessed from most modern browsers. They try to keep their web trader design modern and minimalist yet delivers advanced trading capabilities. Web trader comes with advanced charts with custom indicators and fully Customizable workspaces. You can switch between multiple personalised workspaces for ultimate flexibility and define stops & limits by points, P&L or price. Charting becomes very handy with 74 drawing tools and 65+ indicators that help to analyze the markets. And for the latest news and analysis there is a dedicated 360° market view page available.
Advanced Oder Panel
City Index supports multiple advanced order types:
- Market
- Limit
- Stop
- Trailing stop
- One-cancels-the-other (OCO)
There are also several advanced order terms available:
- Good ’til canceled (GTC)
- Good ’til end of the day (GTD)
- Good ’til time (GTT)
MetaTrader 4(third-party): City Index’s flagship proprietary platforms are no less than the MetaTrader platform, and proprietary platforms feature more products. We don’t think most of you need MetaTrader over proprietary platforms. Still, if you want to use the MetaTrader platform because you are familiar with the MetaTrader. With MetaTrader 4, you can have access to built-in indicators, expert advisors (EA), and trading signals from metaquotes. The platform also bundles with charting tools, drawing tools, many different time frames, chart types, technical indicators.Â
Demo Account: Yes, City Index broker features a Demo account but it’s limited to 12 weeks, in this period you can access all of the features and tools on the platform to feel the full potential of the broker. There would be £10,000 in virtual cash ready to trade.
Drawback: We didn’t see any two-step secure login option.
back to menu ↑ back to menu ↑Research Tools
City Index has impressive research tools to enhance traders’ trading experience. They keep updated with a combination of in-house and third-party high-quality content and market analysis articles and videos. City Index provides daily market updates through videos, webinars, and news sections full of fundamental and technical reports. You can access the third-party research tool directly from City Index’s flagship platforms. Highly credible third-party sources like Trading Central, where you will find global data related to Asian, American, and British stocks. And news headlines from Thomson Reuters contents are high-quality and contain so much useful information that helps a trader to take the next trading decision.
However, we noticed lack of fundamental data.
News: The news section is divided by expert analysis, major events, economic calendars, trading signals, and more. Traders can also take advantage of SMS alert for major events directly into their smartphones.
Indicators: City Indexs’ proprietary flagship web-trading platform offers 65+ technical indicators, and AT Pro downloadable platform offers 100+ customizable indicators that you can customize indicators colors, periods, and other specs.
back to menu ↑ back to menu ↑Educational Resources
City Index offers impressive educational resources although mostly for beginner traders. Resources contain a wide range of collections including written articles, platform tutorial videos, live webinars, video updates, educational PDFs and more.
Article Contents:Â They have already published so much written content in the Insights section about forex trading and related topics basics and beginner articles.
Video content: Platform tutorial videos like how-to-trade tutorials that are organized into six sections. They also have a YouTube channel where they upload technical analysis videos, also there is series called “The Day Ahead” which contains 6-10 minutes long videos explaining the coming week’s news and analysis from the firm’s in-house research team, alongside analysts from Trading Central..
You can improve your trading skills from City Indexs’ available options like:
- Demo account
- Platform tutorial videos
- Webinars
- Articles
- YouTube Contents
Mobile Trading
City Index offers its proprietary mobile trading app able to trade, modify, or close position directly from your phone. It gives access to full 12,000 betting and CFDs products. It synchronizes seamlessly from the WebTrader platform. The mobile app comes with multiple research tools, charting tools, drawing tools, educational content, and much more. Mobile sends real-time price alerts to stay ahead of every market move with live notifications, updates, and more.
Device syncing, Economic calendar, Personalised watchlists, get help from the customer support team 24/5 through live chat.
Synchronization: The WebTrader and mobile app are always synchronized. So, any changes happened on WebTrader that sync automatically with the mobile app. For example, if you create a watch list through a WebTrader, it will be synchronized with your mobile app, so you can trade directly from there.
Charting: Their mobile app featured 60+indicators including candlestick, spread, and Heikin-Ashi and multiple drawing tools. You can have a good charting experience using these indicators. You can save different chart layout settings as preset for setting up your chart quickly next time.
| Feature | City Index |
|---|---|
| Android & iOS App | Yes |
| Place, modify, and close trades | Yes |
| Watch List Syncing | Yes |
| Indicators | 60+ |
| Advanced Charting | Yes |
| Multiple Time Frames | Yes |
| Research Tools | Yes |
Our Verdict
Overall City Index has more than 3 decades of market experience publicly treaded in NASDAQ: SNEX. Offering lower-cost trading with over 12000 trading instruments, including 84 currency pairs make it way ahead of its competitors. Their web trader platform interface is extremely beginner-friendly ease of use.
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