Alpari vs Lightspeed Financial - BrokerCue
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Broker Comparison

Alpari vs Lightspeed Financial

Compare Alpari and Lightspeed Financial side by side: fees, regulation, platforms.

Alpari

Alpari

Forex traders wanting ECN accounts

Alpari is a forex and CFD broker founded in 1998, offering MetaTrader 4 and 5, four account types including Eโ€ฆ

VS
Lightspeed Financial

Lightspeed Financial

High-volume active and professional traders

Lightspeed Financial is a US broker targeting active and professional traders with volume-tiered commissions โ€ฆ

Head-to-head comparison

Alpari vs Lightspeed Financial
Feature Alpari Lightspeed Financial
Minimum deposit - -
Stock trading fee - Per-share: from $0.001 (over 15 million shares/month) to standard rate (under 250,000 shares/month); per-trade: from $2.00 (over 10,000 trades/month) to $3.99 (over 250 trades/month); $0.25 minimum per order on Web and Mobile
Regulators MISA FINRA, NFA, SIPC
Best for Forex traders wanting ECN accounts High-volume active and professional traders
Markets & account
Stocks
ETFs
-
Forex
-
CFDs
-
Crypto
-
Options
-
Futures
-
Margin
Demo Account
Multi Currency
-

Pros & cons

Alpari

Alpari

Pros

  • Operating since 1998 with over 1 million clients
  • Four account types including commission-free Standard and ECN options
  • Pro ECN spreads from 0.0 pips
  • MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 support
  • PAMM copy-trading with minimum investment from $50
  • Demo account available with no restrictions
  • High leverage available (varies by account and instrument)
  • Multiple deposit and withdrawal methods including crypto

Cons

  • Regulated only by MISA, an offshore regulator - no Tier-1 license (FCA, ASIC, CySEC)
  • No compensation scheme beyond the Financial Commission's 20,000 EUR limit
  • $10 monthly inactivity fee after 3 months of dormancy
  • Deposit fees of up to 2.5% on some card methods
  • Limited educational resources compared to larger brokers
  • Alpari UK went into administration in 2015 - the current entity is a separate continuation of the brand
  • Standard account EUR/USD average spread around 1.7 pips is relatively wide
Lightspeed Financial

Lightspeed Financial

Pros

  • Volume-tiered stock commissions as low as $0.001 per share
  • Options commissions as low as $0.20 per contract for high-volume traders
  • Multiple professional platforms including Lightspeed Trader Pro, Sterling Trader Pro, and Eze EMS
  • Futures trading available via CQG integration
  • FINRA and NFA member with SIPC protection
  • 10-day demo account available to test platforms
  • ACH deposits and withdrawals are free

Cons

  • $25,000 account minimum for flagship desktop platforms
  • $25 monthly minimum fee for accounts under $15,000
  • Lightspeed Trader Pro software fee of up to $130 per month
  • No fractional shares, no crypto, no forex
  • High minimum balances make the platform inaccessible to casual investors
  • Platform complexity presents a steep learning curve for less experienced traders
  • Margin rates of 11.00% at lower debit balances are above some competitors
Alpari

Alpari

Alpari is a forex and CFD broker founded in 1998, offering MetaTrader 4 and 5, four account types including ECN, PAMM copy trading, and 750+ instruments.

Your capital is at risk. Other fees apply.

Lightspeed Financial

Lightspeed Financial

Lightspeed Financial is a US broker targeting active and professional traders with volume-tiered commissions on stocks, ETFs, options, and futures via multiple professional-grade platforms.

Your capital is at risk. Other fees apply.

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