I've been meaning to post about Easy2Trade's trading system, but it kept slipping my mind 🙁
I trialled the system a few weeks ago and had great fun.I subscribed to AIQ's FTSE futures so that I could get accurate charts to play with. It took a while to get used to things, but when I did, it was a hoot! Unlike other dealing companies, this company deals "direct to market"- you are your own MM.Their basic system showed a simplified Level 2 screen with a depth of 10 on each side.This helped in cross correlating what was going on with the charts. Further, I was able to place my orders right in the middle of the spread and watch it get filled as the market moved. Very exciting.I tried various order sizes from 1 to 100... single bets were filled in a flash I can't say exactly how quick, but a fraction af a second. Orders for 100 took varying amounts of time, depending what value I put on the order, relative to the dib/offer. Inside the spread, they took longer to fill. As I moved the order towards the "wrong side", they got filled immediately, as you would expect. When you consider what happens with other companies as they move the bid/offer as the futures move, or depending on their own profit/loss position at any given time ( we all know who they are 🙂 ), making it impossible to scalp,even on the dow, this was a most pleasurable experience. We all know it's almost impossible to scalp anything less than a 30 point move on the DOW,well, you would be able to do it with this platform, albeit the FTSE futs. They do plan to have in the new year, Dow Futs ( and others I believe).
For T2W regulars, we have negotiated a small discount on their fees, currently £4.00 per side.( non-discounted). The downside is that you will need deep,deep pockets to take advantage of this platform. There is no margin or leverage on these accounts, so to trade 1 FTSE, you would need at least £5,000 in your account. Trading 1 FTSE means you have an "effective spread" of 8 points, bringing it into line with spread betting, but without the movement in bid/offer relative to the "cash value" or "real chart value". I would think that you would need to trade at least 5 -10 units to minimise the effect of £8.00 per round trip. For the mathematically disadvantaged among us (hehe) playing 8 units means you have to get in and out at +1 to break even.+2 gives you £8 profit etc. A 20 point move will give you a net £152 profit. When they offer the DOW futs, the numbers may change. £8 round trip on the DOW would mean you need to make +12 points on a single unit "order".
In conclusion- great software, direct to market, and "relatively" easy to get it right, insofar as you aren't battling agaist "moving goalposts". You DO need a deep pocket though, so it's not for "the casual trader with limited funds". They offer a free trial of their software for 1/2 days. IF you want to trial it, make sure you have the charts for the FTSE Futs available to you, and ask for a "clear account" so you know your starting balance is zero- it's much easier to see how you have done. As a final note, their " pending orders and positions" are updateed immediately.None of this half hour lagging behind. So when you get in a tizz, you can immediately see you "net positions"
