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For Professional Traders only

Experienced traders may be eligible for a Professional Trader account. Enjoy the benefits of having a dedicated Client Relationship Manager, preferential margins, and our Welcome Rebate which refunds your trading costs as cash.

Professional clients can incur losses that exceed deposits

A premium account experience

Access a range of exclusive features and benefits as a City Index Professional client, including lower margin requirements, monthly cash rebates and priority service.

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Improved margin rates

Trade over 13,500 global markets with lower margin requirements than City Index retail clients.
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Monthly cash rebates

Gain access to cash rebates every month based on monthly traded volume across FX and indices markets.
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Priority service

Enjoy priority service with a dedicated relationship manager.
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Credit facility

Apply for a credit facility when you start trading as a City Index Professional, subject to approval.

Call 0203 194 1801 to talk about opening a Professional trading account

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To qualify as a professional trader, you must meet two of the following three criteria:

A professional trading account gives you access to higher leverage and flexible margins but doesn’t feature all of the protections that come with a standard account – including negative balance protection.
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To have made an average of at least 10 significantly sized transactions per quarter for the last four quarters
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To currently have a financial portfolio in excess of €500,000 (including cash deposits)
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To have worked in a professional capacity in the financial sector for 1+ years – the role must have required knowledge of leveraged trading products
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Loss of FCA protections

Negative balance protection

Professional clients lose this protection which means they have an obligation to repay if their account falls into a negative balance.

Margin close out requirement

City Index have an obligation to our retail clients to close out their positions when they fall below 50% of their margin requirement, Professional clients lose this protection.

Sophisticated language

We may communicate with City Index Professional clients in more sophisticated language than we do for retail clients.

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Introducing Our New Interest Payment Scheme

City Index is now offering an Interest Payment Scheme, an opportunity to earn interest on your tradable account funds.

Here's how it works:

Eligibility:

Clients with an average of £20,000 or more in tradable funds throughout the month and maintain an active trading status* are eligible for this scheme.

Interest Rate:

We will apply an initial interest rate of 2.5% to the average tradable funds in your account(s) each calendar month.

Payment:

The accrued interest will be credited to your account based on the previous month's funds the following month.

For more information or to register your interest in joining the scheme, please get in touch with your relationship manager.

*An active client is defined as someone who regularly trades and holds open positions on their accounts.

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Min. Professional margin rates
Major indices
0.25%
Major FX
0.25%
Commodities
0.5%
Shares
3%
Crypto
5%

Professional margin rates
Access lower margin rates on thousands of global markets when you start trading as a City Index Professional.

Volume
FX* (Rebate per million)
Indices (Rebate per million)
Tier 1
£25 - £79.99m
£4
£2
Tier 2
£80 - £199.99m
£6
£6
Tier 3
£200 - £299.99m
£7.50
£7.50
Tier 4
£300m+
Contact**
Contact**

*Rebates will only be awarded on trades placed on Indices and FX markets. FX includes all forex and cryptocurrency markets available on our platform.
**Contact your relationship manager to discuss rebate options.

Monthly cash rebates

As a City Index trader, the more you trade with us, the more you can receive in monthly cash rebates. All rebates are calculated on a trade volume basis, starting from a minimum of £25m in notional traded volume per calendar month.

You can receive monthly rebates on FX and indices trades if you opt in, according to varying tiers based on your traded volume for that month per asset class. Once opted in, all rebates will be automatically calculated and paid into your City Index account at the beginning of the following month.

Award-winning provider

Best CFD Provider
ADVFN International Financial Awards 2024
ForexBrokers.com Best In Class
Overall 2023
Best Tailored Professional Trading Products
Professional Trader Awards 2022
Best Trading Platform
Online Money Awards 2022
Best Trading App
Professional Trader Awards 2021

Apply for a Professional Account

  1. Open an account
    Create a City Index trading account
  2. Log in
    Navigate to MyAccount
  3. Select Professional
    Download the application form
  4. Complete application
    Submit any supporting documentation
Apply now

Frequently asked questions

Can I receive interest on my tradeable funds?

Upon request, we may pay interest on Tradeable funds which average £20,000 or more over a calendar month.

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How can I find out if I am eligible to receive interest?

Interest will only be paid to clients with £20,000 or more in their tradeable funds throughout the calendar month, Clients must also have an active status which means they trade and manage their accounts regularly. Contact your relationship manager or Client Management for more details.

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What are the requirements of a professional trader?

To qualify as a professional trader, you must meet two of the following three criteria:

  • To have made an average of at least 10 significantly sized transactions per quarter for the last four quarters
  • To currently have a financial portfolio in excess of €500,000 (including cash deposits)
  • To have worked in a professional capacity in the financial sector for 1+ years – the role must have required knowledge of leveraged trading products

Before you consider trading professionally, we’d recommend ensuring that you have strong experience of the markets, a track record of success, enough time to dedicate to trading and a clear plan. A professional trading account gives you access to higher leverage and flexible margins but doesn’t feature all of the protections that come with a standard account – including negative balance protection.

Get started with your account.

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What are the features of a City Index professional account?

The features of a City Index professional account include margin rates from 0.25%, monthly cash rebates, market execution support, the opportunity to apply for interest-free credit facilities, a dedicated relationship manager and unique fee structures. However, Professional accounts do not feature all of the protections that come with a standard account – including negative balance protection. If you’re eligible, you can open your Pro account here.

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What if I am not eligible to become a professional trader?

If you’re not eligible to become a professional trader, you can still trade with a standard City Index account. You’ll get access to a huge range of tools to help you conquer the markets, including:


Don’t have an account yet? Open your trading account here.

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What does ‘financial instrument portfolio’ include?

Assets which qualify as your ‘financial instrument portfolio’ include:

  • Cash, such as a savings account
  • Stock portfolios, including stocks and shares ISAs
  • Trading accounts
  • Mutual funds
  • SIPPs (excluding non-financial instruments)

Non qualifying assets are:

  • Company pensions
  • Non-tradeable assets
  • Property
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