MetaTrader & Its Alternatives: Where You Can Trade Crypto Too
MetaTrader is probably the most popular trading software for stock traders who have brokerage accounts with eToro, Swissquote, IG, Dukascopy Bank, ThinkMarkets, XTB, FXOpen, and other trading brokerages.
There are, however, many similar software providers, which traders can use to combine both crypto and non-crypto assets like forex, CFDs, securities, commodities, and traditional stocks, when trading. As you would expect, most brokerages offer crypto trading in the form of derivatives. So what's special with this list is that the software providers mentioned below support crypto trading or crypto derivative trading via brokerage accounts.
The Metatrader software allows traders to place and manage orders, as well as deposit and withdraw funds, in addition to offering the same functionalities supported on other similar software like technical analysis and charting tools, live price streaming, and historical information for cryptos and all other supported assets. Any interested trader can use these functionalities after connecting the accounts they have with brokerage firms such as eToro, AmeriTrade, AvaTrade, etc or exchanges to the Metatrader software itself.
AvaTradeGo
AvaTrade is a broker with which you can trade forex, commodities, stocks, cryptocurrencies, indices, and more. Besides allowing for the trading of their supported instruments on MetaTrader and other platforms, they also have the iOS and Android platform AvaTradeGo, on which customers can trade and monitor more than 250 instruments on-the-go. In terms of cryptocurrencies, AvaTrade offers support for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Gold, Stellar, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin and Ripple.
With AvaTradeGo, one is able to connect to global markets with live feeds and social trends. The trader can then monitor market trends with real-time data, monitor prices for cryptocurrency pairs and for other instruments, do technical analysis and charting to gain insight into trading, and access competitive spreads and swap rates.
eTrading
eTrading can be used to trade securities, forex, ETFs, Swiss DOTS, warrants, sand derivatives, sand stocks, as well as for cryptocurrencies through supported brokers.
eTrading offers crypto pairs like BTC/EUR, BCH/USD, ETH/EUR, ETH/USD, LTC/EUR, LTC/USD, XBT/EUR, XBT/USD, XRP/EUR, and XRP/USD. eTrading platform provides a series of tools that enables traders to search for securities that correspond to their criteria, and to do technical analysis, as well as get alerts.
Traders are able to use tools developed by Swissquote to discover securities trends in real time such as price trends (intraday and historical), technical indicator charts, securities comparisons, customizable page, and creation of workspaces. Data tools will allow traders to find positions of buyers and sellers in real time. Traders are also to access chart presenting the spread.
Traders are also able to create widgets, monitor their favorite securities, and receive the most recent financial news.
The platform currently works for the iOS and Android systems, as well as in-browser and on Smart TVs.
FXCM/Trading Station
Fxcm.com allows trading of forex, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies, as well as crude oil trading, currencies such as EUR and USD, gold trading and Bitcoin. With the platform, one is able to spread costs, as well as trade on leverages and margins. With regards to margin and leverage trading, one is able to get up to $20,000 leverage for equity trading, up to 400 in forex leverage, and up to 200 in CFD leverage.
For crypto traders, FXCM allows the trading of five crypto CFDs which are: Bitcoin (BTC/USD), Ethereum (ETH/USD), Litecoin (LTC/USD), Bitcoin Cash ABC (BCH/USD) and Ripple (XRP/USD). Traders are able to bet on these prices regardless of the direction they are headed.
Interestingly enough, there will be no crypto wallets on the platform because there will be no physical delivery of the coin as is the case with trading real crypto on most existing exchanges. After trading, profits and losses are credited or debited to the traders' account instantly. The leverage available for Bitcoin is 2x and therefore, will increase as their equity increases.
Although these securities, CFDs, and stocks can be traded on MetaTrader and NinjaTrader, FXM's proprietary platform is Trading Station which supports multiple order types, advanced charting applications and preloaded indicators. There is also an option for automated trading that features backtesting and optimization capabilities. Right now, it's available as a web or mobile device also.
Trading Station's "Micronized CFD contracts" allow you to place trades in fractions of an actual coin, which lowers the minimum margin required to enter a position.
JForex
JForex is the recommended and proprietary platform for Dukascopy Bank's clients and is used by traders for manual and/or automated trading for seven asset classes including crypto, forex, indexes, stocks, bonds, energy and metals. With Dukascopy, traders can trade over 500 trading instruments using JForex. With Dukascopy trading platforms such as JForex, customers get access to Swiss Forex Marketplace (SWFX).
JForex allows customers to monitor the market, manage their orders and positions and follow the evolution of their equity as trading progresses, as well as do leverage trading and the track performance of their trading exercises. Of course, apart from JForex, customers are able to use other platforms for trading securities, forex, and crypto, including MetaTrader.
All platforms support a variety of order types including Market, Limit, Stop, Take Profit, Stop Loss, Stop Limit, Trailing Stop, Place Bid/Offer, OCO, IFD, etc. Customers are also able to control the maximum slippage on order execution using the Slippage Control functionality. The platforms allow two trading modes: “Net Position” and "Hedging" mode, with the former displaying all orders for the same currency pair in one position while the latter mode allows traders to keep trading positions regardless of whether the price is increasing or decreasing (long or short trading positions) for the same trading instrument, with possibility to "Merge" them.
Dukascopy, through platforms such as JForex, provides crypto CFDs in addition to stocks and securities and therefore, users will not need to have a digital wallet since they will not actually own the cryptocurrencies that they trade in. These CFDs are also leveraged. That means that they can trade in both directions up and down, whether the price is going up or dropping. The markets currently offers ETH/USD and BTC/USD traded on a 24 hour basis without interruption. The leverage positions have overnight policy applied depending on the Trading Activity reflects the trader's tendency to trade intra-day more frequently than to keep positions overnight. To qualify for Premium rating for the Rollover Policy, the Trading Activity is 90%, Advanced 20%, and Regular 20%.
For crypto pairs on the market, the margin requirements vary depending on the particular cryptocurrency, with BTC/USD being 33% at a leverage of 3x, which is identical to ETH/USD. With JForex, a trader is able to follow positions directly from the charts using integrated technical analysis. JForex allows customers to do live accounts or try demo accounts.
The JForex Web 3 offers instant market access and is optimized to meet the needs of traders regardless of the trading conditions and technical limitations. A trader can customize the frequency of updates for quotes and market depth level depending on their PC and network parameters. It also provides all main functionality of order execution and position management. It also provides market research tools, instant communication and multilingual interface. JForex is also available for Apple iOS.
L2 Dealer
L2 Dealer can be used to trade stock, indices, forex, CFDs, bonds, options, interest rates, IPOs, and cryptocurrencies. With the IG trading broker, you get to trade Bitcoin CFDs, Ethereum CFDs, Ripple CFDs, and Litecoin CFDs. Traders are able to take long or short trading positions depending on the direction they think price is heading next. Regardless of if you expect prices to go up or down, things can work out. Besides, you can monitor your risks and limit losses using a range of tools on the platforms and thus, trade with confidence.
With the L2 Dealer tool, you are able to set your strategy based on your trading goals and preferences and decide which one is right for you in the long or short term. Once you customize your trade, you can then place your trade in a given size with defined close conditions. You can then monitor the open positions to close them as will to help limit your losses.
These CFDs are leveraged products and thus, you will need to place a small deposit in order to gain exposure to the full value of the trade.
L2 will display the best bid and offer the best price available for a given market plus further prices on either side of the order book. Once you place your order, the system instantaneously checks the margin to ensure the trader has sufficient funds that can cover the margin proposed in the trade involved. It is then granted.
LMAX
LMAX offers Forex/CFDs, Stocks, Derivatives (Futures/Options), ETFs and ETNs, all of which can be accessed through MetaTrade4, MultiCharts, Quantower, and MultiC, and the LMAX Mobile and Web Clients. The web platform enables non-stop access to all LMAX Forex and CFD markets, low latency, and anonymous trading. LMAX Mobile also enables access to all forex and CFD markets via iPhones or Blackberrys. Clients can view the latest price movements, manage positions and be confident that all information and transactions are secure. Respective markets can also be accessed via API Trading. Through these, a trader can access relevant charting and technical indicators and other analytical aspects.
The exchange offers a central limit order book with tight spreads, as well as access to liquidity from top tier banks and proprietary trading firms. Professional and institutional traders also get access to a regulated custody solution.
Accounts can be funded on the platform through GBP, EUR, USD, AUD, CHF, JPY, CAD, SEK, SGD, HUF and PLN and by wire transfer or credit card.
MetaTrader
The MetaTrader trading platform allows for live trading across various market categories and instruments including: forex, futures, CFDs and cryptocurrencies. If you want to trade crypto with using a broker account, then most of the well-known brokers such as eToro, Swissquote, IG, Dukascopy Bank, ThinkMarkets, XTB, and FXOpen are supported. In fact, Metatrader's quite possibly the most popular platform on this list with recognized brokers.
Currently, the main versions of it are MetaTRader 4 and 5, which can be downloaded from the official MetaQuotes website or from a broker partner's. You then merely login with your broker account details to connect your brokerage account to the service. In addition to streaming live data, one can also export historical data. MetaTrader works on Windows, Linux and mobile (iPhone, iPad, and Android) as well as through a web platform.
MetaTrader was developed in 2002 by MetaQuotes Software. MetaTrader4 bills itself as the most digital trading platform in the world and is especially popular for forex day traders. MT4 and MT5 also caters to both beginners and experienced traders.
Traders get online quotes, interactive charts, the ability to pick quotes and can even respond to price changes in real time. In order to connect and manage multiple accounts from a single account, traders can use the MultiTerminal.
MetaTrader comes with 23 analytical objects, plus 30 built-in technical indicators. In addition to accessing trading signals, traders can do "copy trading" where they can copy trades from other professional traders. For traders, a good platform also allows you to construct your signals from a number of factors. Metatrader facilitates this through TradingView or from professional provider networks and communities inside of supported broker or software systems.
When using the service, a trader can access a list of signals providers and then subscribe to any of them. Thus, as a novice or beginner trader, you can still capitalize on the experience of other successful day traders. Expert advisors are easy to find and new technical indicators from the built-in market are not hard to come by. For instance, the Market on MetaTrader4 contains more than 1,700 trading bots and 2100 indicators that can be launched automatically inside the software without leaving it.
MetaTrader also allows traders to develop, test and optimize algorithmic and high-frequency trading software through the in-built MetaTrader 4 Expert Advisor (EA) builder program. Once the trader writes an Expert Advisor (EA) using the builder, they can then attach them to a chart in order to profile any number of functions. This is done by clicking and dragging or double clicking on the item within the "navigator" window to add it to the chart.
Professional traders can add their own software or algorithms to the market library to sell or offer as free code libraries. When trading cryptocurrencies, you can select different chart time frames, magnify or zoom in on charts, and place a new order by right clicking on the chart window or selecting the "new order" button from the options above the chart. You can add Buy/Sell buttons on the chart by selecting "One Click Trading." The trader is then able to open trades at pre-determined sizes. "One Click Trading" is also supported on the MetaTrader 5 mobile applications
With MetaTrader, you can also use trendlines to identify areas of support and resistance, which are drawn by clicking and dragging the trendline across the applicable space in the interface. These trendlines can be moved to an alternative price level, changed into a different color and style or other property, and deleted. On the M5, one can complement the desktop-based platform with the mobile application to send pending orders, set protective and trailing Stop Losses, and set Take Profit levels.
A trader can also save chart groups which allows him or her to choose how charts and windows are arranged. They can save any number of profiles. This is done from the "Profiles" icon where a person will find a list of default profiles on a drop-down list and then be able to select "Save Profile As" to save any number of profiles.
A trader can also use the cross-hair mode to search for recent highs or lows in prices. The values of time and price are accessed through the cross-hair mode (accessed by clicking the Cross-hair icon in the toolbar). The mode can also be found by clicking the middle mouse button from where one can move the cross-hair over any part of any price bar to expose the time and price values.
Crypto traders who are using MetaTrader can also benefit from financial news and alerts in order to know if and when to expect price changes to better capitalize on price movements. They can also set up email alerts for certain events in the economic calendar. Customers can customize the streaming of data and information for notifications that are relevant to their particular product and market. These functions are also provided on the MetaTrader 4 portable mobile and tablet offerings.
OREX
Alongside TREX, Orex is ADSS's new generation forex, futures and securities trading proprietary platform that allows the trading of over 2200 CFDs on Windows, iOS and Android environments. It affords users trading information in real time, as well as in-depth technical analysis, search features, watchlists, product selector tools, historical trading and order information, and notifications, all of which aim to keep supported traders as much ahead of the competition as possible.
It also easily integrates with social media platforms since traders can sign up with their Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn or Twitter account and share trading information with friends and other traders.
With OREX and TREX, one is able to trade Bitcoin futures and trade on leverages with margins starting at 25%, flexible sizes starting with a CFD equivalent of one unit of Bitcoin, and the option to trend long or short. Bitcoin CFDs are quoted against the US dollar and Bitcoin futures are traded with ADSS as the broker on the OREX Mobile platform (iOS and Android devices), although a trader can also use the MT4 Plus platform and other platforms as well to do so. In all of these cases, information on these futures is available in real-time. One is able to start trading Bitcoin CFDs with a minimum of US$5,000 deposit. They can also trade Ethereum CFDs, Ripple CFDs, Litecoin CFDs and Bitcoin Cash CFDs.
OREX offers a wide range of data including allowing customers to launch/place Stop and Limit Orders on the Working Orders screens. They can also view Open Orders and historical trading information as well as do technical analysis. The desktop version of OREX, called Web Trader, offers simplified chart trading, trading functions on a single screen, customizable news and Twitter feeds, and the ability to filter news and Twitter feeds.
Power E*TRADE
Power E*Trader is the proprietary platform of E*Trader, which is a well-known broker for trading stocks, futures, options, ETFs, Mutual funds, bonds and CDs, pre-built portfolios and CFDs.
Originall, the E*Trade Web Platform brokerage was founded in 1982 with support for stocks, options, and futures, with intuitive and easy-to-use tools.
The Power E*Trade platform offers tools that can automatically populate charts with technical analysis patterns including intra-day and historical charting with 100+ studies, 30+ drawing tools, and many chart types alongside risk analysis tools. With it, traders are able to formulate trading strategies and take actions with the help of these tools.
Although E*Trader currently does not support the trading of cryptocurrencies alongside other stocks and forex, it was announced last month that the online stock brokerage will be launching cryptocurrency trading services starting with Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH), with more cryptocurrencies to be added in the future.
Although it was originally just a web platform, Power E*Trade is now also accessible via the iOS and Android mobile platforms and can be used by traders of all kinds. With it, customers are able to track market movements with streaming quotes, news, earnings, dividends, depth view, gains, and more.
ProRealTime
The ProRealTime platform allows not just charting and analysis but the trading of stocks, futures, indices, forex, CFDs, Commodities, Gold & Silver and cryptocurrencies. In addition to trading, there also are charting features, spreads and alerts, a dedicated community, and many other features including the ability to create novel trading strategies. All in all, ProRealTime facilitated the trading of 466,018 different products and saw 7,470,905 orders executed last year.
Traders can access 47 major forex pairs & cryptos for just $10.98/month, 120 pairs of forex, gold, silver & crypto as well as tick volume @ $59.78/month and other world indices at different prices.
The ProOrder automatic trading module allows traders to execute automatic buy and sell orders on the ProRealTime charting and trading software. With this feature, you can first simulate the execution of trading systems before you are able to use them. Additionally, the trading system allows customers to create and test their own trading systems or import or export them, thanks to the software's back-testing module. Through this feature, a customer can see the system's equity curve, position histograms, detailed reports and orders.
The platform is also accessible on mobile devices, however, the dedicated app relies on Java and therefore works best on Windows tablets and phones.
Interactive Brokers UK, IG and Interbank are some of the brokers that offer accounts for trading stocks, securities, CFDs, commodities and other assets on ProRealTime. With Interactive Brokers, you are able to trade the Cboe Bitcoin and CME Bitcoin Futures at leverages. With an IG broker account, you can trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple and Litecoin CFDs as well as other asset CFDs and securities on the ProRealTime software/application, and get access to over 100 indicators and other features.
Thinkorswim
TD AmeriTrade, a broker platform that allows customers to trade stocks, bonds & CFDs, options, non-proprietary mutual funds, forex, and 300+ commission-free ETFs through a proprietary platform known as Thinkorswim.
With this service, clients can open retirement accounts, standard accounts, specialty accounts, managed portfolios, and engage in margin trading where customers can trade securities by multiplying their buying power by two or by 50%.
On Thinkorswim, users get access to over 400 technical analysis/studies from support and resistance to candlestick and profile. Customers are also able to add visuals to their charts using a choice of 20 drawings including eight Fibonacci tools. What's more, users can even build their own algorithms and use options statistics to assess potential entrance and exit strategies. As if this wasn't enough, the platform also lets users track and compare volumes with past five-day averages and features social sentiment analysis tools with which you can gauge the value of certain stocks, as well as chat rooms that you can use to chat and share knowledge with other traders.
For those who are more used to a Bitmex-like service, Thinkorswim offers Bitcoin futures trading on margin. To get involved in Thinkorswim, traders need tier 2 spread option approval, the enablement of advanced features on their related accounts, special approval for futures trading, and a consistent account minimum of $25,000. Once these conditions are met, they can trade at margins of 5 times higher than the exchange margin requirements. Thinkorswim accounts can be funded through wire transfers as well as other well-known payment methods (cleared on the same business day for U.S. customers), ACH and Express Funding.
TD AmeriTrade is not currently offering cryptocurrency trading services but they recently launched a test environment that indicates they eventually plan to do so, last month. In the future, they will be offering Bitcoin and ETH trading from within Thinkorswim and/or other supported trading software once this testing is complete. Already, AmeriTrade's current custoemrs have spotted BTC and ETC to USD pairs on their accounts. This is being offered via a paper trading feature.
Last year, AmeriTrade announced that they will be investing in the ErisX cryptocurrency exchange to integrate it into the platform in order to start offering cryptocurrency trading to clients. The company then said it was planning to launch digital currency products designed to fulfill the needs of retail investors as well. The plan is apparently to offer customers cryptocurrency spot contracts as well as futures contracts on a single exchange. The company added that this could "open up additional cryptocurrency products on the future and spot side that our clients could potentially trade."
The platform is also accessible via a mobile environment.
Trade Interceptor
Trade Interceptor is available as a mobile, tablet and desktop application and can be used to trade forex, indices, commodities, metals and other products with brokers such as ThinkMarkets. For instance, ThinkMarkets, which is U.K. and Australia-regulated broker for cryptocurrency trading, allows the trading of 9 cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Dash, Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin Mini, NEO, Bitcoin Cash, and Ethereum Mini.
With the broker, traders can trade long or short positions with up to 32x leverage or margins. Remember, like is the case with most brokers with whom you can trade cryptocurrencies, you can also use other platforms besides the Trade Interceptor (MetaTrader for instance).
If you do choose Trade Interceptor, then you get access to crypto pairs quoted both in US Dollars and Euros, like is the case with MetaTrader. You're also able to split screens and even have quad screen views, which allow you to monitor four different markets on the screen at once like different crypto pairs against the USD. Furthermore, these screens can be in four different time-frames.
You also get features for technical analysis and over 80 drawing tools, from trendlines, arrows and Fibonacci, to Regressions, Elliot Waves and Harmonic patterns. The mobile version also supports over 80 indicators that allow one to analyze trends and find opportunities with the added ability to designated key indicators as favorites. Trade Interceptor also provides cloud-based alerts, triggers and notifications based on price action and indicator values, which allow you to react instantly to market events. These can be delivered to your devices even when you are offline.
Traders gets access to a TrendRisk Scanner that lets them identify highest risk/reward trading opportunities and recommended targets and stop levels according to TrendRisk Model's powerful risk management calculations.
Finally, the mobile version also allows for in-app deposits and withdraws.
XM
XM is a broker platform for trading forex, indices, stock, commodities, equity indices, precious metals, energies, shares and cryptocurrencies. The platform allows the trading of over 100 instruments. Currently, this includes five crypto pairs -- BCH/USD, BTC/USD, ETH/USD, LTC/USD, and XRP/USD. Crypto traders are offered spreads as low as 3.6 depending on the pair in question. The minimum and max trade will also vary from one pair to another. Even so, it is important to keep in mind that there is a Swap Value charge for long and short positions, which is 25 and 10 respectively.
The platform also allows for leverage up to 888 with negative balance protection and real-time risk exposure monitoring. The amount of margin one should maintain to cover risks will also determine how much leverage one has exposure to but the minimum margin required to open new trades is 100%. This is required unless the new trades result in your trading account being fully hedged.
There is also rollover interest that may be earned by those who have a buy position per day of rollover (in Japan and the US are 0.25% p.a. and 2.5% p.a.) while those with sell positions will pay rollover at the same rate for borrowed amount.
XStation
The XTB broker allows traders to trade in Bitcoin, Dash, Litecoin, Ethereum, Ripple and several cryptocurrencies, adding up to a total of 9 crypto coins and 16 crypto pairs. The related contracts can be traded on a 24-hr basis upon expiry and accessed via mobile apps.
Each of these have a similar margins or leverage of 50% applied on them. When trading crypto, the spread values apply differently depending on whether you are using the xStation platform or trading on MetaTrader.
