L2 Dealer

L2 Dealer is IG's direct market access platform. It is not a different interface onto the same trading arrangement — it is a different arrangement. Orders are placed into the underlying exchange order book rather than dealt against the broker's own prices.

What DMA changes

• Your order is visible in the book. You can post inside the spread and be filled by someone else's aggression, instead of always crossing a broker's quote.
• You see full Level II depth — every price level with its size — rather than a top-of-book quote.
• Pricing is commission plus real market spread, not a marked-up spread. For an active trader this is usually cheaper and always more transparent.
• The order types are the venue's own, including iceberg and auction participation, plus algorithmic orders for working large size.

The distinction matters for anyone who has argued with a broker about a fill: with DMA there is a market print to point at.

What it demands

Access is restricted, and reasonably so. IG applies eligibility criteria covering account size, trading experience and activity, and many clients are classified as professional for these purposes — which in the UK means giving up retail protections, including negative-balance protection, leverage caps and access to the Financial Ombudsman Service. That is a genuine trade, not a formality, and it should be weighed against what DMA actually gains you.

The platform itself expects competence. There is no hand-holding, the interface assumes familiarity with order books and market structure, and mistakes go straight to an exchange.

Who it is for

Active traders working equity and equity-derivative markets in size, where posting passively rather than crossing a spread materially changes the cost of trading, and where visible depth informs how an order is worked. For a retail forex trader placing a few positions a week, it offers nothing: spot FX has no central order book to access, and the retail platform is both cheaper and better protected.

Before applying

Establish the commission schedule, the data-feed costs, and precisely which protections you forfeit under professional classification. All three are answerable in writing before you commit.