How to use MT4 ECN Forex Trading

MT4 ECN Forex trading allows traders to take advantage of the MT4 trading platform in an ECN forex model. This enables traders to make use of their indicators, EA's, etc while being able to transact in the liquidity pool provided by the ECN Forex broker. Learn more and see a list of mt4 ecn brokers list.

The forex brokerage industry has evolved over the past 5 - 10 years. In fact it was only half a decade ago that we started seeing retail forex brokers arrive into the mainstream markets thus enabling the average individual trader with a plethora of services and providing them access to what was once an 'exclusive market'

The forex industry primarily started off to cater to the large institutional brokers and it wasn't possible for the average individual trader to trade OTC, or Over-The-Counter, which is not centralized made it possible for traders to access the forex markets easily.

The first generation of forex brokers are now refered as bucket shops, because the did just that. The first generation of brokers set up shop by creating their own markets. Thus the trader would in effect trade within the broker's market rather than trade on the real interbank markets (which is how ECN forex brokers work).

Over a period of time, forex has undergone changes that it is now possible for traders to trade with ECN forex brokers, who offer access to large liquidity pools. This model, also known as the ECN model wasn't quite available for individual traders until the last 3 - 4 years.

As ECN forex trading continues to gain mainstream recognition, one of the important element of focus has been the trading platform. Market maker or fixed spread brokers usually make use of the popular MT4 trading platform. Its popularity and mass appeal has made metatrader into one of the best known forex trading platforms and also managed to create an eco-system that included developing indicators, EA's, trade copiers and so on.

An ECN broker on the other hand usually made use of different forex trading platform that had a niche appeal. In order to cater to traders who are used to the Metatrader platform, we started seeing ecn forex brokers with mt4 platform being offered to traders. Of course, the way the mt4 ecn forex brokers work is a bit different to the way market makers use the mt4 platform. In ecn context, a technology known as the MT4 bridge technology is used which allows the good old mt4 platform to be connected to the liquidity pool thus allowing faster execution with no dealing desk. MT4 ecn forex brokers thus were able to access a large part of the market share which was hitherto enjoyed only by market makers.

Trading with an MT4 ecn forex broker offers traders the flexibility to trade on a platform that most, if not all traders are familiar with, and at the same time allows traders to transact in the interbank markets. This is great news for traders because they can now make use of their custom indicators, signals or even expert advisors which will help in assist their trading while on an ECN network.

To get a better idea of which ecn broker offers what, read the mt4 ecn brokers list for a complete list of ecn forex brokers that offer the MT4 trading platform in addition to their own ecn forex trading platforms. Bear in mind though that unlike small deposits that are required by regular market maker brokers, mt4 ecn brokers have a minimum requirement of $100 - $500 to start trading forex on their ecn network.