IC Markets Review 2026: Is It Safe for Traders in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa?

Who IC Markets suits, and who should look elsewhere

IC Markets may suit you if:

• you’re an experienced trader who wants cTrader or TradingView as well as MetaTrader;
• you prefer raw spreads plus a published commission per lot;
• you live in Kenya and want a broker whose Kenyan company is on the CMA register.

Look elsewhere if:

• you want a cent account to trade very small positions;
• you want a local payment method such as M-Pesa or naira bank transfer; IC’s funding page lists none;
• you live in South Africa and want an FSCA-authorised company; ic.com’s global regulation page doesn’t list one;
• you hold swap-free positions for more than a few days.

What this review is based on

We review IC the same way as any other broker: from regulator registers and the broker’s own published information.

We read ic.com’s regulation, account, swap-free, platform and funding pages directly on 8 November 2026, and checked the CMA and Seychelles FSA registers ourselves. The old address, icmarkets.com, now redirects to ic.com, and the global brand is IC or IC Markets Global. IC’s Australian site says the business was incorporated in Sydney in 2007, and ic.com mentions more than 19 years of experience. We haven’t tested IC on a live account. See how we review brokers.

Which IC company serves you

Whether IC is “safe” for you comes down mostly to which company holds your money and who regulates it. No broker makes trading itself safe: you can lose your deposit with any of them.

Company	Regulator	Licence	How sure we are
Raw Trading Ltd (trading as IC and IC Markets Global)	Financial Services Authority (FSA), Seychelles	SD018	Listed on the FSA’s register; the licence number is on ic.com
IC Markets (KE) Limited	Capital Markets Authority (CMA), Kenya	199	Listed on the CMA register, read directly

Kenya

IC Markets (KE) Limited is on the CMA’s register under licence 199 as a non-dealing online forex broker. The CMA announced a licence for IC’s Kenyan company in May 2024, as one of five new licences. Exness (162), HFM (155), FXTM (135) and XM (233) also have CMA-licensed Kenyan companies. We couldn’t confirm the leverage or payment methods IC offers Kenyan clients, so check them in your client area before you deposit. Our Kenya page explains the CMA’s rules.

Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana

ic.com’s global regulation page lists one company and one licence: Raw Trading Ltd, FSA Seychelles SD018. It lists no South African, Nigerian or Ghanaian authorisation. Raw Trading Ltd says it doesn’t serve residents of the USA, Canada, Iran, North Korea or countries where using its services would break local law. Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana aren’t named on that list.

So if you register from one of these countries through the global site, the client agreement will tell you which company you’re dealing with; check it at sign-up. See forex trading in Nigeria and forex trading in South Africa for the local rules.

Accounts and costs

IC’s account overview lists these accounts:

Account	Minimum deposit	Pricing	Maximum leverage
Standard	USD 0	Spreads from 0.8 pips	1:5000
Raw Spread (MetaTrader)	USD 0	Commission USD 3.50 per side per lot	1:5000
Raw Spread (cTrader)	USD 0	Commission USD 3 per USD 100,000 traded	1:1000
Raw Pro	USD 5,000	Commission USD 1.50 per side per lot	Not stated
Raw Pro+	USD 100,000	Commission USD 1 per side per lot; new, in early access	Not stated

“Per side” means you pay the commission when you open a trade and again when you close it. At USD 3.50 per side, a full trade of one standard lot costs USD 7 in commission, on top of the spread. The pip calculator helps you turn a spread into money for your position size.

IC has no cent account. If you want to trade very small positions while you learn, a cent account at another broker, or a demo account, may suit you better.

Leverage

IC lists up to 1:5000 on MetaTrader accounts and up to 1:1000 on cTrader Raw Spread. IC says leverage is dynamic and may change at any time. We couldn’t confirm the Kenyan limit.

Leverage magnifies losses as much as gains. At 1:5000, a tiny move against you can close your positions and empty your account. Read leverage and margin explained and use the margin calculator before you choose a setting.

Swap-free (Islamic) account

IC’s swap-free account page describes these terms:

• it’s for clients who can’t pay or earn interest for religious reasons;
• it’s available on Raw Spread and Standard accounts;
• IC may ask for documents;
• there’s no swap, but a flat holding fee per lot applies once a position has been open beyond its grace period of up to 5 days;
• on US oil, Brent oil and natural gas (XTIUSD, XBRUSD and XNGUSD), the holding fee applies from day 1.

If you hold positions for more than a few days, check the fee for the instruments you trade before you rely on the account. Our Islamic accounts guide lists what to ask. Scholars differ on forex and CFD trading, and whether a swap-free account meets your religious requirements is a question for a qualified scholar.

Platforms and copy trading

IC offers MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, TradingView, a web trader and the IC Mobile App. That’s the widest choice among the six brokers we compare. For copy trading, IC lists cTrader Copy, IC Social and ZuluTrade. If you copy another trader, their losses become yours, so treat it with the same caution as trading yourself.

Deposits, withdrawals and support

IC’s global funding page lists cards, PayPal, e-wallets, wire transfer and crypto, and IC states it charges no deposit or withdrawal fees. It lists no M-Pesa, Nigerian or other African local method. Your own bank or card provider may charge fees, and funding a dollar account from naira, shillings or rand adds an exchange rate to your costs. Test a small withdrawal before you deposit more.

IC says support is available 24/7. Its site is available in several languages, but the support languages aren’t stated.

How IC Markets compares with Exness

Exness is the broker we recommend. Both brokers have CMA-licensed Kenyan companies (IC 199, Exness 162) and a Seychelles-licensed global company (IC’s Raw Trading Ltd, SD018; Exness (SC) Ltd, SD025). IC is ahead on platforms, with cTrader and TradingView. Exness is ahead on local payments, with naira online bank transfer and M-Pesa on exness.ke according to its help centre, and on small positions, with a Standard Cent account. Exness also names a South African company (FSP 51024, from its own site, not yet checked by us on the register), while ic.com’s global page lists none. On swap-free, IC charges a holding fee after the grace days; Exness applies swap-free status to a published list of instruments. The forex broker comparison sets IC beside Exness, XM, HFM, FXTM and Octa, and the Exness review has the detail on Exness.

Before you open an IC account

1. Check which company your client agreement names, and look it up on the regulator’s register.
2. Compare the full cost of a trade: spread plus commission on both sides.
3. If you want swap-free, find the holding fee for the instruments you trade.
4. Practise on a demo, then make a small deposit and a small withdrawal before you add more.

How to choose a forex broker explains each check.