I've recently tested feeds, and wanted to share my findings. Everything is compared to my current broker Interactive Brokers: CAX - VcapFX This feed aggregates all the main ECNs, has some prop-groups and hedge funds and a bank that wants to remain anonymous. Once you get away from EUR/USD and USD/JPY the spreads are wider than IB. Instead of 6-8 for GBP/JPY you're talking 8-10. But for the two biggest pairs, they're good. Size is at the same level as IB. NewEdge This is AAA-class access to the interbank market. They've got 60 banks quoting, as well as ECNs (I think) - and huge flow from some serious players. They said they plan to add EBS Prime in a couple of months. I was somewhat surprised that the spreads weren't tighter. It's almost as good as IB, about 90% of the way. Size on the inside market is pretty much the same as IB, sometimes better as the market is near a 25 Euro order. But, if your normal clip size is 10m+ I think this broker would be very good to work with. Pricing is good, and everything about them seemed very professional. For my needs they said they'd take my business even though I was on the low end, but they were kind enough to mention about 10 others that they felt could be a better fit for my backoffice needs. Now, that's classy. ADM Derivatives They've got a Currenex portal with about 9 banks quoting - I think the main ones. Spreads are definitely wider than IB - about 30% more or so. Size is fine - you can easily do 3-5m on the inside. However, their pricing is not in fractional pips, so I'm not sure if you or they receive the difference. This might be an explanation why they offered the lowest commission of the lot. Not tested: EBS Prime Reuters RTFX As I cannot really see anyone consistently improving upon the 60 banks offered by Newedge, I'm left wondering if there's really any point at looking at EBS Prime and Reuters' RTFX. It the choice spread a myth? Interactive Brokers This is the broker I've traded with for years, and I've assumed that something better was out there if you looked hard enough and had the right sized accounts. I'm now doubting that, and as long as you're doing 1-5m per trade they have the volume to accomodate you (and often they have 20m+ if you add another pip). Any feedback is welcome, and I hope this is helpful to anyone else.
http://www.fxedge.com/ They're only institutional, not retail. I indicated 700k-2m USD as equity. They did mention 2m as a minimum at a time, but they were willing to go lower with some volume. I'll also add that I haven't yet made up my mind, but that I might stick with Interactive Brokers after all. Not at all what I expected when I started to look around.
Heres a few more you can test, Rosenthal Collins Group ForexTrader MF Global Fx ATG Marketplex Capital Forex Hotspot FX
Since you are labeling this as mid-size accounts, look at HotspotFXi. They offer prime directly with them for minimun 100k to start. $20/1MM. Don't go thru an introbroker to get HS as your quoted rates are going to be about double this amt. Has some of the best market depth short of going tier 1 bank level. Not a bad deal. (Fimat is Newedge so if you trade on the FXi platform, you have access to its depth too.) Drawback vs IB or vCap, can't hedge futures vs spot
Its not always true that Hots is more expensive through another broker - i.e. Advantage Futures charge $18 without any volume requirements - and go down to $13. They offer access to most futures exchanges worldwide too.