IG Markets Cements CFD Leadership Status

MELBOURNE, Australia, Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- An independent survey of Australia's CFD market has named IG Markets as the number one choice for the highest number of active traders, with 29% of CFD traders using them as their main provider. This cements IG Markets' leadership status with the closest competitor some 9% behind.*

The number one ranking as main CFD provider comes at a time where market volatility has increased interest in forex, indices and Australian blue chip shares.

The fifth annual May 2010 CFD Report by Investment Trends Pty Limited, a specialist market research organisation in the wealth management sector, found that the number of CFD traders in Australia has grown significantly over the past 12 months. The report attributed the growth to a combination of new traders and a large number of dormant traders returning to the market. CFD trader numbers in Australia were 39,000 as at May 2010, up 22% from 32,000 in 2009, with an additional 25,000 investors indicating they intended to commence CFD trading within 12 months.

Current CFD traders cited the ability to short sell and leverage investments as the main role CFDs played in their investment strategies.

According to the survey, almost half of active traders (47%) preferred the Direct Market Access (DMA) model when CFD trading, pointing out transparency and genuine market pricing as the main reasons for their choice. The main driver behind those that preferred the Market Maker model was ease of use.

Current CFD traders indicated that low commissions and best platform features were the main service aspects they looked for when switching CFD providers. Whereas, for the more frequent CFD trader, 24-hour trading, tight spreads and platform reliability and were also given a higher weighting.

As the CFD industry is fiercely competitive, it is imperative that providers keep an edge: clients receive the greatest benefit of this constant need to innovate. Mr. Tamas Szabo, IG Markets' Chief Executive Officer, acknowledged that its range of trading and research tools, platform reliability and 24 hour service, along with a strong focus on transparency and client money protection, contributed to their number one ranking.

"We have focussed heavily in the last 12 months on giving traders all the tools they need to make informed decisions, whilst offering competitive spreads and maintaining a highly reliable trading platform.

"In terms of client recruitment, I think our stance on how we treat client funds has helped. When CFD trading with IG Markets, client funds, along with net running profits, are segregated into a regulated trust account at top tier Australian banks and are not used to meet our trading obligations or for IG Markets' own purposes, which is different to how other providers operate.

"The launch of spread cuts to 1 point on our Australia 200 index, and 1 pip on the popular AUD/USD currency pair also contributed to strong recruitment, with our internal figures showing the number of individual clients trading up over 30% year-on-year.

"New platform features we have implemented include our free Autochartist tool that automatically notifies clients of emerging trends. In addition, our team of in-house market analysts provide a comprehensive range of market reports featuring expert, up-to-date analysis from across the globe, added around the clock to our website. The results of this strategy are evident -- according to the survey we received the highest client satisfaction scores in the industry with respect to our CFD trading platform and in terms of range of research and trading tools. Furthermore, pleasing results have come from existing CFD traders; over a third of all traders who left a provider in the last 12 months, but are still trading, are now using IG Markets as their main CFD provider.

"We are thrilled to be viewed by so many traders as their first choice when looking for a CFD provider. The research from Investment Trends backs up the recent slew of awards IG Markets has won including Money magazine's Best CFD Provider 2010, 5 star ratings from CANSTAR CANNEX as an Outstanding Value CFD Provider, and The Bull website's Best CFD Provider 2010."

About IG Markets

IG Markets specialises in financial derivatives, principally Contracts for Difference (CFDs) on over 7,000 global share CFDs, along with indices, forex trading, commodities, options, binaries and more. IG Markets is part of the IG Group, a UK FTSE 250 member with over 75,000 active clients worldwide.

For further information please call 1800 601 799.

*29% of CFD traders choose IG Markets as their main provider vs. 20% for the next largest provider - Investment Trends May 2010 CFD Report.

Trading CFDs may not be suitable for everyone so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved. Please consider the IG Markets PDS available from IG Markets before entering into any transaction with us.

SOURCE IG Markets