L2 Dealer
L2 Dealer is our direct market access (DMA) platform. On L2 Dealer, you’ll be able to trade share or forex CFDs, or deal shares outright, straight through the order books of international exchanges.
Call 0800 195 3100 or email newaccounts.uk@ig.com to talk about opening an account.
Why trade on L2 Dealer?
View the full order book
See every single bid and offer that’s been made in a market.
Compare market sentiment
Assess whether other market participants are currently bullish or bearish before taking your position.
Time your entry
Use volume metrics to assess an underlying market’s liquidity.
Choose your order type
Deal with sophisticated order types which vary according to the exchange you’re trading on.
Benefit from anonymity
Take a position anonymously and slice large orders into tranches to hide your full size, especially if it could affect market prices.
Enter auctions
Increase your chances of getting the best prices by entering auctions.
Is L2 Dealer right for me?
Our L2 platform is for people who are looking to interact directly with the order books of major exchanges. As a result, you’ll miss out on our best execution, but you will benefit from a range of other metrics that experienced traders and investors find useful, which are mentioned in the section above.
This means that L2 Dealer is not recommended for beginner traders or investors. If you’re new to the markets, consider trying our award-winning desktop trading platform or mobile app instead.
What can you trade on L2 Dealer?
You can trade share or forex CFDs on L2 Dealer, or you can invest in shares directly.
DMA for shares
DMA for shares means you can take a position on shares with no dealer intervention. You’ll benefit from direct pricing and order book visibility.
You’ll be able to see a market’s full depth from a range of providers and trading venues –including the London Stock Exchange.
To take a position on shares with DMA, you can either:
DMA for forex
DMA for forex lets professional traders speculate on key currency pairs with CFDs. Our forex DMA offering is called Forex Direct, and while it’s available on the L2 Dealer platform, it’s not suitable for – or available to – all of our L2 clients.
With Forex Direct, you’ll be connecting to the liquidity pools of major banks and liquidity providers – executing your FX trades directly into their order books in our name.
FX DMA is only available to professional clients.
L2 Dealer: our exclusive DMA platform
L2 Dealer is our DMA platform – enabling you to trade CFDs on shares or forex, or invest in shares outright, directly through exchange order books.
What are Level 1 and Level 2 data?
Level 1 data will give you pricing directly from an exchange.
Level 2 data gives you everything you get with Level 1, plus you get to see the exchange order book – so you can gauge current market sentiment.
Get exclusive access with L2 Dealer
L2 Dealer gives you exclusive access to both Level 1 and Level 2 pricing.
So, you’ll be able to get pricing data directly from an exchange, while also being able to interact directly with the order book.
This has a range of benefits, like letting you view underlying market liquidity, enter auctions, and giving you access to sophisticated order types.
L2 Dealer features
- Never miss a beat with in-platform news and analysis
- Keep on top of market movements with customisable alerts
Get newsfeeds from Reuters, real-time charts, and market commentaries from within the L2 Dealer platform.
This means you won’t need to have your eyes on multiple things at once – with L2 Dealer, it’s all in one place.
Get newsfeeds from Reuters, real-time charts, and market commentaries from within the L2 Dealer platform.
This means you won’t need to have your eyes on multiple things at once – with L2 Dealer, it’s all in one place.
Set alerts to notify you when your pre-determined market conditions are met.
Our alerts can be set to monitor bid and ask levels, net price change and percentage price change.
Set alerts to notify you when your pre-determined market conditions are met.
Our alerts can be set to monitor bid and ask levels, net price change and percentage price change.
Open an account to access L2 Dealer
*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.
Open an account to access L2 Dealer
Fast execution on a huge range of markets
Enjoy flexible access to 15,000+ global markets, with reliable execution
Deal seamlessly, wherever you are
Trade on the move with our natively designed, award-winning trading app
Feel secure with a trusted provider
With 50 years of experience, we’re proud to offer a truly market-leading service
*Demo accounts are only available for spread betting and CFD trading.
Open an account to access L2 Dealer
Open an account to access L2 Dealer
Fast execution on a huge range of markets
Enjoy flexible access to 15,000+ global markets, with reliable execution
Deal seamlessly, wherever you are
Trade on the move with our natively designed, award-winning trading app
Feel secure with a trusted provider
With 50 years of experience, we’re proud to offer a truly market-leading service
How to get started with L2 Dealer
L2 Dealer is for experienced traders. If that’s you, here’s how to get started:
- Shares
- Forex
- Learn more about DMA
- Decide whether you want to trade share CFDs or invest in shares directly
- Open a trading account or share dealing account
- Fill in the form below to get your L2 Dealer download link
If you already have an account, log in here.
- Learn more about DMA
- Available for professional clients only
- Fill in the form below to get your live L2 Dealer download link
If you already have an account, log in here.
- Shares
- Forex
You’ll need a live account to trade or invest in shares. To upgrade simply:
- Open a trading account (to trade share CFDs) or a share dealing account (to invest in shares directly)
- Fill in the form below to get your L2 Dealer download link
If you already have an account, log in here.
You’ll need a live account to trade forex. To upgrade simply:
- Open a trading account
- Fill in the form below to get your L2 Dealer download link
- This account type is available for professional clients only
If you already have an account, log in here.
- Shares
- Forex
- Learn more about DMA
- Fill in the form below
- Get your L2 Dealer download link by filling in the form below
- Log in to trade or invest in shares on L2 Dealer
If you haven’t got an account, you can open one here.
Download and install L2 Dealer using the link below.
Once you have installed the application, you can log in with your usual details.
Please note you will be unable to log into the platform unless you have registered for L2 access.
If you haven’t used L2 dealer before, we recommend reading the platform guide, as L2 offers a range of useful features that it’s well worth knowing about.
- Learn more about DMA
- Fill in the form below
- Get your L2 dealer download link by filling in the form below
- This account type is available for professional clients only
If you haven’t got an account, you can open one here.
Download and install L2 Dealer using the link below.
Once you have installed the application, you can log in with your usual details.
Please note you will be unable to log into the platform unless you have registered for L2 access.
If you haven’t used L2 dealer before, we recommend reading the platform guide, as L2 offers a range of useful features that it’s well worth knowing about.
How does DMA work?
DMA works by giving you direct access to our L2 order book, which shows the full depth of a market. You’ll be able to see and interact with an exchange’s order book – so you’ll get direct pricing and the ability to see what other market participants are up to.
You can access DMA on shares with us by trading share CFDs or investing in the shares directly through share dealing. For forex, you’ll need to check if you qualify for a professional account, because our Forex Direct offering on L2 Dealer is only available to pro traders.
What is Level 1 and Level 2 market access?
Level 1 and Level 2 market access are what you get when you use our L2 Dealer platform. Level 1 enables you to get pricing directly from an exchange – cutting out the middleman. You’ll also benefit from smart order routing (SOR), which sources the best possible price for you from multiple exchanges.
Level 2 market access gives you everything Level 1 does, plus you get to see and interact directly with the exchange order book – so you can determine whether the market sentiment for a particular share or forex pair is currently bullish or bearish. And, you’ll be able to gauge underlying liquidity and volume metrics – maximising the chances that you’ll be able to find someone to fill the other side of your position.
FAQs
What are the technical requirements for L2 Dealer?
L2 Dealer requires the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 installed on your computer.
When you install L2 Dealer the program will automatically check for this, and prompt you to install the .NET framework if required.
If you would prefer to install the .NET framework independently, it can be downloaded from Microsoft here.
What markets can I trade on L2 Dealer?
With us, you’ll be able to trade share CFDs or invest in shares directly on L2 Dealer. Professional clients can also trade forex on L2 Dealer.
What are the ways to trade on L2 Dealer?
You can trade on L2 Dealer by speculating with CFDs. This is available for shares and forex, but our forex offering on L2 Dealer is only available to pro traders. If trading with CFDs isn’t for you, you can also invest in shares outright on L2 Dealer.
What is DMA trading?
DMA stands for direct market access, and it lets experienced traders interact directly with the order book of an exchange. With us, this can be for either shares or forex. With shares, you’ll be trading CFDs or investing directly. For forex, you’ll need to qualify for a pro account – and you’ll be trading with CFDs.
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Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Professional clients trading spread bets and CFDs can lose more than they deposit.
Options and futures are complex instruments which come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. They’re not suitable for most investors. Before you invest, you should consider whether you understand how options and futures work, the risks of trading these instruments and whether you can afford to lose more than your original investment.
Trading stocks and shares ‘on margin’ within a US options and futures account – meaning that you only finance part of the cost of acquiring a position in a security – carries additional risks over buying securities on a fully funded basis and may result in losses exceeding your original investment. Trading on margin will also result in additional costs to you as the investor and any securities purchased using margin may be held as collateral by the lender, restricting both your rights as shareholder, and your ability to use the securities until the margin trade is closed. You should familiarise yourself with these risks before trading on margin.
The value of shares, ETFs and other ETPs bought through a share dealing account, a US options and futures account, a stocks and shares ISA or a SIPP can fall as well as rise, which could mean getting back less than you originally put in. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Some ETPs carry additional risks depending on how they’re structured, investors should ensure they familiarise themselves with the differences before investing.
Share dealing and IG Smart Portfolio accounts provided by IG Trading and Investments Ltd, CFD accounts and US options and futures accounts are provided by IG Markets Ltd, spread betting provided by IG Index Ltd.
IG is a trading name of IG Trading and Investments Ltd (a company registered in England and Wales under number 11628764), IG Markets Ltd (a company registered in England and Wales under number 04008957) and IG Index Ltd (a company registered in England and Wales under number 01190902). Registered address at Cannon Bridge House, 25 Dowgate Hill, London EC4R 2YA. IG Markets Ltd (Register number 195355), IG Trading and Investments Ltd (Register Number 944492) and IG Index Ltd (Register number 114059) are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
The information on this site isn’t directed at residents of the United States, Belgium or any particular country outside the UK and isn’t intended for distribution to, or use by, any person in any country or jurisdiction where such distribution or use would be contrary to local law or regulation.