Best Broker for Extreme Scalper - When Spreads Matter

I more or less understand it, but I´m not clear if I can use it as an option on any platform,
say I just ask the FX broker, "I prefer to trade with FIX API"

A fool and his money are soon parted

There are free as well as open source FIX engines around.
Sure, ask your broker lol. Even if it were to offer FIX, it will also ask for 25k+ min deposit and/or many many many many million ccy traded per month... With other words: they charge an arm an a leg for it, simple.

well....
I just had a look on IC Markets... They offer FIX... BUUUUUUT they say to use FIX you have to trade $500 million per month

Regarding FIX, the simple answer is: if you don't know what it is, you don't need it

Oanda offers FIX for free (it used to charge $600 per month for it) for $2500 accounts (yes, $2.5k, no 0 missing).

Another option is FXCM with a $25k account and no required volume. Large amount, but better than $100k at Dukascopy or the huge volumes requested by LMAX.

Hello Adal & Rockit,
There seems to be some iconsistency between your positions; as I understand, either FIX-API is only for high volume trading and large equity or it is available for everybody with at least a couple of thousand $$
What is the truth of the matter???
Should be an advantage if the rich have it, and any advantage you can get in trading sure makes a difference.
Maybe what happens with FIX is the same as with ECN, all claim they offer it, but most really don´t.
Like the fabled Unicorn, everybody said it did exist, but nobody knew where it was.

A FOOL AND HIS MONEY SOON ARE PARTED

FIX is for professionals that write their own software or which use custom software developed by others.

It's also used by algorithms (EAs) that connect directly to the market and which don't need an MT4 to trade through.

It's usually not offered to everybody because to use FIX you need to know what you're doing. An amateur will consume valuable and expensive support time so it's not worth it to offer to usual retail.

Like I said, if you don't know what FIX is you probably don't need it.

That being said, scalping with MT4 is impossible - you have no tick chart for example, no DOM, many operations take many clicks. I have written my own software to scalp, and I do use among other things FIX.

Thanks Adal, your point makes sense.
I never really understood FIX, reminds me a bit of the ancient PASCAL language, so I probably never needed it.

FIX is used to execute via a program . it doesn't have to be high frequency at all.

Interbank traders don't have FIX they use platform GUI's like EBS Reuters Hotspot etc - however banks are now using their own algo's which are attached to FIX API liquidity providers.

Now to scalp or job you need a platform or platforms that is/are true ECN plus a broker who can give you access to the wholesale market using their prime broker.

You will need the ECN to have multiple users/price makers and takers - the idea is that they will be hitting your price. ie you become the price maker.

If you are trying to scalp any other way with limited LP's like a usual MT4 set up, forget it .

All scalper friendly brokers like FXCM, Armada Markets, Pepperstone and Dukascopy can give you FIX connection. You just need to ask. There is no point in scalping with micro lots. So large deposit shouldn't be an issue.

To FIX or not to FIX seems to be the question.
And what about API??
And ECN, STP, VPS, NDD, DMA, GUI, ETC, ETC .
Instead of trading currencies looks like trading acronyms.
Which reminds me of course that we really need a broker with ALTR.
However ALTR brokers are hard to find. They don´t advertise in FF and don´t solicit clients in the WEB.
You have to go to the financial district downtown offices and ask, beg, to become a client.
And they will answer like Carly Rae:
Give us your number,
We call you, maybe

What is ALTR?

They're likely paying $0.70 round turn to their LP

PEPPERSTONE has just slipped a market order by 200 (i.e. TWO HUNDRED) PIPS! Seriously. It was a devastating loss.

The 200 pips spike had never even showed up on their charts.

Pepperstone's official response: "This price was a lower tier offered by liquidity providers and as such is not represented on the chart - only top levels of liquidity is displayed."

How convenient...

It has not a strong regulation such as Fsa Asic,also they hn't client cabinet?

Armada Markets is too slow. Their execution times are around 1/2 second. This can mean higher slippage if some market action is underway.

What pair was this on? What time of day? Was this during major news release?

Regardless, this is insane. I never heard of such a thing. What was the resolution?

I was considering them. Thanks for the heads up.

Just had a short conversation with the customer support of ICMarkets regarding FIX API accounts...
The lady couldn't tell me what min deposit is but she said to me, that those accounts are made for high volume trader.
I asked her how many lots I have to trade per month and she answered....: 500.000 Lots
If I trade this amount of lots, Iam making myself a millionair in less than a month :nerd:

I also have join in Alpari, and also using liteforex broker as my place for making money online.

I had a conversation the other day with IC Markets and get now a 20% discount on my trade comission...
If anyone is interested to receive it as well, PM me!

Hi:
I think I can share somethings about FIX here. Several truths and myths.

1) It is true that most brokers ask for high deposit for using FIX.

2) It is true that there are few open resources you can use to code FIX.
*I built my own, which can tick-to-trade for multiple legs within 1ms. It is just an technical issue, which can be solved.

3) It is true that MT4 takes longer than FIX on receiving ticks and placing order.

4) BUT, if one expects FIX can reduce slippage A LOT, that is probably a myth.

---
The thing is, if the liquidity is provided by Tier-1 banks (where the majority of the liquidity of current market is from), no matter what system it is (DMA or ECN like Currenex etc), last look from the banks side is most likely involved.

The last look is not just "last look" as its literal meaning.
The most powerful benefit it can bring to banks is to hold the orders for few hundred ms (200-800 ms, it depends).

Currently, the new build MT4 server can achieve around 30 ms execution.
With the dedicated FIX, you can cut this down to less than 1 ms.
But they both seems little compared to the last look holding time (few hundreds ms).
So,
does FIX help? Yes.
does FIX help a lot? NO.
How much does FIX help? It depends.

With FIX, not just placing order can be approved a bit (still suffering from last look, which is a systematic feature.), it can also support more real time market stream. But again, it has its limited improvement when you consider the last look practice.

There are so places which may provide no last look, like LMAX, but there are still some concerns.
if you look around, you then can find some related information.)

Just want to remind one more thing.
Many brokers say no-requote / no last look, but most of time they mean there is no requote and last look on their side, but it DOESNT mean there is no requote and last look thing on the LPs side. Just be aware about that, and then ask brokers for more details.

Cheers, Wjack