Matthew,
I am surprized that C2 spread is 13 pips while simultaneously GFT spread is 3 pips!!!
Why?[LINKSYSTEM_40558153]
Each forex broker will have a different data feed and different pip spread. If you want a universal price that will display on all broker charts and/or have a large account, switch to currency futures instead. Also, another benefit is that you will not get mystery stop spikes that can be generated from the broker itself to run your stops.
not to mention that futures (in the USA) are SEGREGATED funds. If your forex broker goes down, you may lose some or all of your money. Ask Refco forex customers. Futures accounts are held at a separate bank - your account is not considered part of the broker’s company assets.
This fact is HUGE, in my opinion. While regs have gotten tougher, and financial requirements for forex dealers are getting more stringent, Refco was a big player. They weren’t a fly by night shop. When they went bankrupt, their forex customers got basically nothing (all accounts were wiped out), but their futures customers (I was one) got all their money back.
The exception again is Interactive Brokers. All funds in excess of the margin requirements, whether it is from futures accounts or forex cash accounts, is periodically swept to to the owner’s security account where it is insured by the SIPC and additional insurance by Lloyds.
BTW, as far as I know, simply having the funds of futures accounts in seggregated accounts does not necessarily fully protect you since the broker, if he gets in trouble, could still use the funds - whether legitimately or illegitemately - for his own purposes, for example, through a rogue trader and lose it all. Futures account are not covered by the SIPC.
SPIC has nothing to do with futures.
and the futures industry has many legs outside the broker to back the loss. from the FCM, to other deep-pocketed entities. To my knowledge, no one has ever had a futures account loss due to broker failure. That is not true for forex.
Although I will say, Interactive Brokers has a lot more going for it than many others. People complain, but their security procedures, their size, their popularity, their reputation, their conservative margining (unlike the $300 emini margins or 400x forex some brokers "offer"), etc.
Also, offering to hold your account in other currencies is something many people should consider. Imagine holding your account not in US dollars, but in Swiss Francs or other? A nice diversification of risk.
