How to select a forex broker
Most recently, I wrote about how to avoid getting scammed while buying forex products. Finding a good forex broker is even more important.
I currently have active accounts with several brokers. I won’t name those brokerages in this article. Actually, I won’t mention any other brokerage names in this article. My purpose in writing this article is to help you select the forex broker that is right for YOU, not to tell you which broker you should chose.
If you’ve have already picked a forex broker that you are completely happy with, then you’re done. If you are having trouble deciding which broker to trade forex with, please read on.
From my perspective, choosing a forex broker is a personal decision. First, you need to make a list of what you want from a broker. Some things you will absolutely require, others will be things you want, but can live without.
There are so many factors to consider. There is no way I can list them all, but here are some of the major ones:
What country is the forex broker regulated in? Is the broker regulated at all? Some aren’t. Some will claim to be “self-regulated.” That means they are unregulated, but they aren’t honest enough to admit it. There are a few unregulated brokers that aren’t too badly rated. The problem with this is how do you know they won’t go bad later? Regulation doesn’t guarantee that a broker is a good broker, but at least gives you some recourse if things go terribly wrong. Also, remember that some countries have better regulations than others.
Does the broker allow clients from your country? Not all brokers allow traders from all countries. There was one well-rated brokerage in the UK that I really wanted to open an account with, but they aren’t legally allowed to have accounts from residents of the USA.
What country is the brokerage located in? Many brokerages are multinational. Just because they are regulated in one country doesn’t mean their primary offices are there. Since I live in the USA (most of the time – “Ni hao!” to all my friends in Guangdong Province), I prefer a forex brokerage that is both based in and regulated in the United States. This saves me the effort of getting my passport out of the safe if something strange happens and I feel an overwhelming need to pay them a visit to express my annoyance in person. Don’t trust the brokerage if it claims to be regulated, check them out yourself on the regulator’s website to be sure. There are a lot of “Swiss Brokers” that are about as Swiss as the Swiss cheese that I buy at the grocery store (which is made in Wisconsin).
Can you use a downloaded trading platform, or do you need a web-based trading platform? If you trade from home or have administrator access on your work PC (and your boss doesn’t mind), then you can install a trading platform like MetaTrader. If you can’t install software where you will be trading from, then look for a broker with a web-based forex trading platform. If you plan to trade with automated EAs, you’ll need a broker that has MetaTrader. There are other platforms that allow autotrading, but there aren’t nearly as many products available to work on them.
Does the broker permit your trading style? This is very important if you plan to newstrade or scalp. Some brokers might suspend you. Others will cancel your winning trades (but neveryour losing trades). Certain extremely unethical brokers will decide that your trading style has caused them “damages” and will confiscate as much of your account as they feel like.
How low can you go? Some brokerages allow you to open an account for $1. Some brokerages allow you to trade nanolots (1 cent per pip of xxxUSD pairs) or even lower. On the other end of the cost spectrum, there is one very well-rated brokerage which requires $50,000 to open an account. If you want to live test EAs or other trading systems, nanolots are a good way to do it without risking a lot of money. If you have plenty of money to trade with and are just looking at changing to a better forex broker, this won’t be that big of an issue for you.
Do they offer swap-free (Islamic) accounts? Followers of the Islamic faith are forbidden to charge or pay interest. People who want to hedge a trade with a negative swap pair also would like to avoid paying interest. Whether for religious or hedging reasons, be careful – many “swap free” accounts have a daily fee that can cost significantly more than you would pay for swap interest.
For typical accounts, how are the swap rates? It’s normal to charge a little more on negative swap than what a trader gets paid for positive swap, but some brokers use this as another way to squeeze even more money from hard working traders. Some brokers charge negative swap both ways on some or even all pairs. If you rarely leave trades open for very long and can avoid the time that swap is charged, this won’t affect you. For those who trade specifically to collect interest, this could be one of the most important factors in picking a broker.
How can you move money in and out of your account? Some brokerages only do wire transfers and charge some pretty high fees for the privilege. If you plan to move several thousand dollars every time, this isn’t too bad. If you want to withdraw $50 or $100 at a time, then a $25 or more wire transfer fee really cuts into profits. Look for a brokerage with ways to fund and withdraw that are acceptable to you. Don’t wait until you’ve made some money and then find out that it’s difficult and expensive to get your profits. When you first fund your account, put a little extra in and test the withdrawal process with the extra money just to be sure you can get money back out. Personally, I like a brokerage that has free withdrawals by check. Sure, it takes a few days longer, but I don’t have to pay any fees.
What currency pairs does the broker have available? Some only have a few, other have a huge range of choices. If you only want to trade the major pairs, this shouldn’t be a problem for you. If you like trading anything that moves, look at brokers with broader offerings. Some brokers even offer non-forex products on the same trading platform. Keep in mind that some brokerages have fewer pairs on their demo accounts than on their live accounts. Some also have fewer pairs on mini accounts than on regular accounts. If this information isn’t listed on their website, you’ll need to contact them to ask.
I’m sure there are at least a dozen things I left out. As you can see, some of these features will be very important to you, and others you won’t care about at all. Everyone’s list will be a little different.
Break your list into 2 pieces. First, the list of things you MUST have. Any broker that doesn’t meet these requirements is one you will not consider at all. Take everything on your second list and put it in order of priority for you.
Now comes the hard part. There are broker comparison tables out there, but finding one with all of the features you want listed will be hard, if not impossible. The other way to approach this is to call up FPA’s broker reviews, sorted by rating. Start with brokerages that are 4 or 5 star rated with a reasonable number of reviews. Skim through the reviews and make sure there are no significant problems getting money out of the account. Then check the broker’s website, make sure they can open an account for someone from your country. If so, then see if they meet the absolute requirements of your first list.
Depending on your list, you may find no 4 or 5 star brokers that meet your absolute requirements (when I picked my primary broker, I didn’t). If so, go through the 3 star brokerages. Your goal should be to find several brokerages that meet not only your absolute requirements, but also many or all of the desirable features second half of your list.
This is so important I’m going to repeat myself. Exclude any brokerage with complaints about significant problems getting money out of accounts. Why work hard trading forex to make your fortune if you can never withdraw any profits? By significant problems, I don’t mean that one person whined about a single withdrawal taking a few days longer than expected. I mean people who seriously tried to withdraw money, made many attempts, and it took much longer than it should, or (worse yet) they never got the money. If you have some strange urge to send your money away with absolutely no chance of ever getting any of it back, mail it to me and I promise never send it back to you.
Unless your standards are very low, you probably have a short list of brokerages now. Reread the reviews and examine the websites of each of your candidates to make sure there isn’t anything about any of them that you can’t live with. Then rank them by how well they meet the requirements of your second list.
Now comes the time to open demo accounts for the best 2-4 brokers on your list. Demos don’t perform exactly like live accounts, but will let you get familiar with the trading platform(s) your candidate brokers offer. Unless a brokerage will let you open an account with less than $10, I would personally avoid any brokerage that says to skip demo trading and go straight to live trading. A legitimate forex brokerage should give you a chance to learn how to use their trading platform without risking real money if you accidentally press the wrong button.
Check the website of each of your candidate brokerages to see how informative it is. See how many different ways there are to contact support and try them all. Ask all sorts of questions and see how quick and complete the responses are. Make sure to get all possible information about how to add money to your account and how to withdraw your money. Be aware, some brokers do require more information to process withdrawals than deposits. Have a scanned copy and photocopies of your ID ready to send to the brokerage if these will be needed either to open the live account or to withdraw your money from it.
Now it’s time to open a real account.
Pick the one broker from your candidate list that you are the most comfortable with. Deposit a little more than their absolute minimum to open an account. Place a few trades of the smallest amount they permit over a day or two.
Can you remember what you need to do next? That’s right! Try to withdraw a small amount of money and see if this is easy or not. If they give you significant problems, close the account, withdraw all of you money, and move on to the next broker on your list.
Assuming the brokerage has passed all the tests you have given to them so far, trade small quantities with them at first. Treat the new brokerage the same way you would treat a new trading system and use the most cautious levels of risk management at first. If all goes well, scale up until you are
trading as you normally would. Watch out for large slippage, excessive spreads, frequent requotes, and all the other stupid broker tricks that somehow end up making traders lose a few extra pips here and there. If you encounter too many problems like this and the support staff at the brokerage can’t fix them, then close the account and try the next broker on your list.
Remember, good brokerages can go bad. Well-regulated brokerages can go out of business with little or no warning. Never let your guard down. Double-check all of your account statements. Keep an eye on the reviews for your brokerage. If you see complaints about withdrawal problems, try withdrawing some of your money to see if it’s a real problem or just an impatient person who likes to complain. If your brokerage is regulated, check the regulator’s website at least once a month to see if there are any new issues.
There is no single perfect forex broker for everyone. If everyone followed a broker selection system like this, then the worst brokerages would quickly go out of business, and the rest would soon realize that they need to work very hard to earn and keep the respect and business of forex traders.
I look forward to seeing what features others consider to be important when selecting a forex broker.
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Pharaoh
We don't understand how he does it, but Pharaoh has an uncanny ability to spot scams faster than anyone else we've seen. He claims to have known a number of companies were HYIP scams just by their domain names and that each time an examination of the website proved him right. He's also famous inside Forex Peace Army for warning about Ponzi schemes, even ones run by large and well established companies. He's been in a number of threads trying to warn people away from active Ponzi schemes. In spite of the efforts of shills and those gullible enough to believe in free money to discredit his words, he keeps up the warnings. In each case, the company ended up either disappearing with all client money or being shut down by the authorities.
In addition to investigating scams, Pharaoh has written a number of articles on a wide rage of trading topics, including forex broker selection, risk management, and how to select a good account manager. He's also covered other items of interest to traders, such as protecting wealth and purchasing precious metals.
Pharaoh claims to be a business consultant, but says he makes most of his income by running a globe-spanning hamster smuggling operation. If we are to believe him, he's currently working on a network of hamster tunnels under southern Europe.
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Pharoah, can you educate us briefly on which countries have the best regulatory requirements?
I have actually spent the last month researching Fx brokerages for my own account and for others' I intend to trade with POA. Even with my roughly 35 separate criteria (!) you have pointed out a couple of things I hadn't thought of.
A few other points I am considering include:
1. Is the firm a Market Maker or an ECN?
(I don't think I can bring myself to work with a market maker)
2. If it's a market maker, how do their spreads compare with other brokerages and/or the interbank market?
3. Does their platform allow the trader to place limit orders INSIDE THE SPREAD? (This one is extremely important to me, even though I'm not a scalper. Restrictions that place limit orders far away from the spread, cut into the trader's profitability to an unacceptable degree!)
4. What is their margin call point; and how do they determine what will be liquidated when it is reached? (Of course, that won't happen to ME. :)
5. Another important one for many people is: Do they accept IRA accounts?
I'd say these are the major additional issues the average retail trader would want to know. Generally, if the trader has an account of at least $20,000, they are going to qualify to use brokers that offer better terms. Some of the brokers with better terms require $25,000. Others $50,000. Others $100,000. If a person is trading with $100,000, they can pretty much call the shots, and should not be going through a broker that accepts smaller accounts because the terms won't be as generous.
I hope this additional information is helpful. I can tell you that, because I will be managing others' accounts of varying sizes, I have spent MANY hours performing this due diligence. MB Trading is among my 5 top domestic (U.S.) picks; but there are others that have a slightly different set of advantages and acceptable disadvantages. When I'm finished with my research, I expect to offer my findings out as an Introducing Broker (...that is, until I no longer have to work my second and third jobs! Then I will post the information on the FPA website. But by that time, the array will have changed so much, I'm sure I'll have to do the research all over again to be current!)
In the meantime, I hope this info will be helpful to people.
Best wishes and happy trading!
As far as which countries have the best regulations, I read somewhere that Canada actually insures the balance in your account against the broker going out of business (but not against losing trades). I think if the Swiss get through their current regulatory fiasco, they will probably be pretty good. I'm not sure about the rest of Europe.
NFA in the US and FSA in the UK are ok. At least they provide you with some method to complain if your regulated broker starts doing strange things. Maybe one of our UK based traders can give some more info on comparing the NFA and the FSA.
Some of the countries in Central America and the Caribbean have regulations that are worth about as much as the paper they are printed on. Others may actually have solid regulations (no, I don't know which ones in that region are good and bad). If you are thinking of opening a forex account anywhere that used to be a port of call for the pirates of the Caribbean, check the regulatory agency carefully to make sure they really have some sort of enforcement authority and have actually used this authority at some point. Otherwise, you may find your broker has run up the Jolly Roger and seized all your pips.
:D
As far as which countries have the best regulations, I read somewhere that Canada actually insures the balance in your account against the broker going out of business (but not against l..
Thanks for this info, please i really need an advice here, i use North Finance in Cyprus, and now FXPro has bought them and it means all their accounts have to be transfered to FXPro, i live in USA and i need a reliable Broker that i can start with as little as $100 with, can you please give me some reliable list, if you do not want to make it look like advertising any, you can help me send me a private message
Thanks alot.
Ummmm... without knowing ALL of your absolute requirements as well as having a prioritized list of additional features you want in a brokerage, I couldn't even begin to select one for you. A broker that works for my requirements may be totally wrong for you.
Until a "perfect" brokerage emerges, don't believe anyone who says "I know what brokerage is just right for you" without knowing what you need in a brokerage. Even if we could select the current "best brokerage" in existence, it won't be the right brokerage for all traders.
NFA in the US and FSA in the UK are ok. At least they provide you with some method to complain if your regulated broker starts doing strange things. Maybe one of our UK based traders can give some more info on comparing the NFA and the FSA.
Pharaoh's contribution on the vexatious issue of genuine and fair dealing brokers is quite timely. Am also aware of Felix's first shot on this issue but was not comfortable with an endorse that was not global in its operations but is rather discriminatory in its clientèle for geographic reasons.
As for brokers being regulated, let me quote my text reply earlier today when a friend asked:"As for regulation, once you are based outside EUROPE/USA, trading becomes a gamble. And if you are based in Africa, then it becomes a double jeopardy". This is so because in the event of a dispute, mere letter writing and telephone calls will not solve your problem. What with VISA restrictions etc.
I implore Pharaoh to do further research on this issue as to provide us with options as variety is the spice of life. Hopefully, competition may then force MBT out of its slumber as to make them more proactive.
9ja
Following simple risk management strategies can keep you from quickly getting into trouble no matter what margin you have available. Just determine the maximum amount of money you can risk losing and the stoploss you need. This will let you calculate the maximum number of lots (or mini, micro, or nano lots) you can use for any one trade.
Read this if you need more info on risk management:
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/r/forex-articles/655/how-to-manage-risk-while-forex-trading
dear Mr pharaoh,
I need you to send me a 4-broker list,that will meet my short absolute requirement and they are:
1. Regulated both(government and private).
2. Operate a micro acc. size
3. Minimum opening acc. fee of $500.00
4. Metatrader platform.
5. Low bank-wire charges.
6. Accept clients from my country(Nigeria).
7. And must be from England.
TO avoid any form of advertisement,you can get across to me by private message.
your speedy response will be highly appreciated.thanks
You have a reasonable set of requirements, so should be able to find a broker that meets them by following the method laid out on the first page of this thread.
I can save you some time. Start with the requirements that will eliminate the most brokers. Many brokers around the world use MetaTrader, so don't use that first. I'd suggest starting with brokers in the UK, then see if they accept clients from your country. That should give you a smaller list to work from for checking the other requirements.
Can you explain why some brokers are set up for trading using the Metatrader platform and others don't use it? I have heard that if a broker uses it then they are most likely a dealing desk or "bucket shop" and they tend to take the opposite side of your trade. I don't like the implications of that. I have checked out so-called "ECN" brokers like MB Trading and Hotspot. They seem to get mostly good reviews but they don't use Metatrader platform so that seems to rule out the use of the EAs that I would like to trade with which run on MT4. Is there any way around this problem?
I'm open to any ideas you can suggest, or any thoughts on this situation, since it is one of the main issues I have left to deal with in my selection of a broker.
Thanks in advance for your help.
------- PistolDave
The good news is that there are reports of major improvements in connections to liquidity. Several MT4 brokers now claim success with STP and others are claiming to be about to have full ECN abilities. I haven't personally evaluated these claims, so don't want to name the brokers involved.
Can you name a brokers that you think that are good and they using Metatrader ?
I think the second absolute requirement any trader should have is "A broker that accepts traders from my country." Number 1 would be "A broker that does not steal from clients. This is not just a problem for our friends in Nigeria. There are brokers that don't accept accounts from the USA. There are brokers that don't accept accounts from Canada.
You don't have to filter the list of brokers in the same order as your absolute requirements. Pick whichever requirement will eliminate the most brokers and use that to reduce the total number of brokerages you have to look at first. Doing it this way will save you a lot of work.
For you, your list would look like this:
Absolute requirements:
1. Broker that does not steal from clients.
2. Accepts accounts from my country.
3. Uses MetaTrader.
4.
etc.
Secondary requirements:
1.
2.
3.
etc.
Once you have your requirements, using my method will still take some work. I spent about a week before finally picking a broker. I'm now considering opening accounts with a couple of other brokers to do side-by-side comparisons of live accounts.
Thanks for posting this wonderful article.
Give man a fish, you feed him once, teach him how to fish, you feed him for life.
With so many scams out there, it is hard to tell real thing from the fakes.
谢谢你秘传的”火眼金睛“。:)
Anyhow, I just wanted to say that the few threads I have read here have all been enormously helpful and it is so appreciated to get closer to the truth about trading on forex or any trading. I look forward to studying alot here and cant wait till i can make that first trade with confidence.
Respect
Friend the option that you have described is very good. But why to open a live account one can also go for several demo account with different brokers and can also test them. Then what is the need of a mini live account.
Murpheytrader mentioned already having demo accounts, but still had doubts about the brokerages. Definitely try demo account first, but be aware that live trading can be quite a bit different than demo trading. Also, demo trading never gives you a chance to test the most important feature of a brokerage - the ability to withdraw your money.
> Murpheytrader mentioned already having demo accounts, but still had doubts about the brokerages. Definitely try demo account first, but be aware that live trading can be quite a bit different than de..
TRUE DAT!!!! Withdrawaling funds is the "defacto" measure of the true intentions of any Broker. Even if you dont win any trades-do a test withdrawal of some amount of original deposit. Do this BEFORE depositing large sums of cash.
If it's not too much of a hassle, could you recommend some brokers to me with the following requirements?
1. easy to withdraw
2. based in and regulated in USA
3. accepts accounts in USA
4. operates micro-account
5. doesn't try to play the charts against me
I'd really appreciate it, thanks in advance!
Ah, to avoid advertising, could you send them to me by PM.
> Pharaoh,
If it's not too much of a hassle, could you recommend some brokers to me with the following requirements?
1. easy to withdraw
2. based in and regulated in USA
3. accepts accounts in USA
4. ..
Its #5 that causes the most problems.
I use MBT though I dont think they offer "micro" accounts- They do offer "mini" type accounts. They will soon have an MT4 platform(I hope) as well. Only $400. to test drive their company and withdraws are by chk(never more than 7 days from request to hand).Good luck.
Been cross-checking their charts with the one from investorguide.com which seems to be pretty impartial. Either they're ok people or my account's so small they don't think it's worth their time to mess with.
what do you think of the technical analysis and suggestions they give? worth my while or worked against me?
Loved your comments;did you become an introducing broker?
I'm still searching for the right one.
happy trading.......nina
dear Mr pharaoh,
I need you to send me a 4-broker list,that will meet my short absolute requirement and they are:
1. Regulated both(government and private).
2. Operate a micro acc. size
3. Minimum opening acc. fee of $500.00
4. Metatrader platform.
5. Low bank-wire charges.
6. Accept clients from my country(qatar).
7. And must be from England.
TO avoid any form of advertisement,you can get across to me by private message. Your speedy response will be highly appreciated.thanks
You have your requirements. Next, start looking at brokers.
> dear Mr pharaoh,
I need you to send me a 4-broker list,that will meet my short absolute requirement and they are:
1. Regulated both(government and private).
2. Operate a micro acc. size
3...
Instead of limiting your search based on your 7 requirments,use these parameters to narrow(not eliminate all) your list of Brokers. Then START SMALL(this is to test the worth of whatever broker you choose).When you hand over your money to strangers,you have NO control over that money accept to trade with it. It is up to your broker to surrender it(withdrawal or close account) and its their decision ONLY. Good Broker=no problems Bad brokers=problems.Its that simple.And,since Forex is UNREGULATED, always suspect your broker 1st if any problems occur.I use FXPro and MBT and would never trust any of them.(though nothing evil to report as yet) I never leave more than 1000. bucks in either account (this way their demise wont be mine) and withdrawal profits as soon as realized.
Hi there Pharaoh, my name is Blake and today I just started to learn about forex. I just bought an EA. I am the biggest noob at this game. I am an honest hard working American who thought, "why can't I get into forex too?" Well I decided to buy this EA and was well on my way until the dreaded Brokers came up. With all kinds of mixed reviews all over the internet, I was devastated but I would not give up. So I saw Forex Peace Army, and joined and saw your posts. I guess I wish I could have a mentor on this subject. I know you are probably hard at work dealing with all kinds of requests daily, and that someone like me is just another nobody. I want to become a forex trader but just need guidance on the subject. I know I should just use demo accounts on different brokers, but I am scared to give out my info to some brokers. I only have $500 to get started with and just need some guidance to get me off the ground. I hope you can help me with all of this and point me in the right direction. You can get back to me. Thanks for taking the time to read this and God bless.
This is another reason to check out the broker carefully before giving them one cent of your cash. You are not only trusting them to give your money back, but also to keep your private information secure.
Bag7447,
Unfortunately, my wives and concubines demand so much of my time that I don't have any spare time for a protege.
that was a really helping tips for all those who had a hard time on selecting an effective forex broker. keep it up! thanks!
For some reason I still do better with real paper reading, I know I have to change. While I was previewing books one I liked had a:
"Broker-Dealer Due Diligence Checklist"
it was table 7.1 in Michael Archer's, "Getting Started in Currency Trading"
Pharaoh covered alot of the same stuff but this was in a one page fill in the blank to eval format.
:p
I've played with a few other platforms, and they vary a lot. Some have NO charting at all, just current prices and a way to place and manage orders. Others have very good charting. Since I don't have a lot of experience using any of these, I can't really comment about which ones are superior or inferior.
Most brokers that offer non-MT4 platforms also offer free tutorials about how their platforms work. If you think one looks interesting, get a demo account and play with the platform to see if you like it.
exceptions, like what in particular? do all brokers charge same limit of commissions?
alright. so brokers who normally charge commissions, are they way better than those who doesn't have charges?
There are no hard and fast rules to be sure which brokers do and don't give the best deals. That's why you have to decide what features are most important to you and select your broker accordingly.
i see. learning this stuff is a bit confusing you know... but it's fun though..would it be possible to trade without dealing with any brokers?
There is another way to do it. Physically buy and sell currencies. You can do this at most international airports and many large banks, but the spreads are vicious. Another approach is to ask friend returning from vacations in other countries if they have any money left to change back to local currency.
This is briefly mentioned in my article about Wealth Protection - look for the part about what's in my emergency cash supply.
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/r/general-articles/663/wealth-protection-traders
There is another way to do it. Physically buy and sell currencies. You can do this at most international airports and many ..
:eek:oh: okay. dealing with brokers is like a big hesitation with newbies since we have read a lot of issues about scam. i have read an article that indicates top 30 brokers. you have any idea what's their basis? does those brokers on the top list give commissions?
Many of these are pretty easy to spot. If the broker description sounds more like a sales pitch than the experience of a real trader, then it's just someone trying to get you to sign up through the site. Then the person who set it up gets either a cut of your initial deposit and/or a cut of the spread every time you trade.
Many of these are pretty easy to spot. If the broker ..
oh, okay. are they not in one function?
This is very true comment. You must try to go with a broker that is been around for some years (at least 3 minimum), and importantly that come from a recognised regulated country. In Us there is many good brokers (but you can not hedge) in UK also so many brokers (many known US brokers open here because they moved from USA because of no hedging rule) Switzerland also have a few reputated brokers. Try keep away from Cyprus brokers, I think there is still not as regulated, even if member of EU and MIFId. FXPulp is same owner as of Crown Forex...how the regulator there allow them to open again when CF customer still waiting for return of money from company in FINMA liquidation?
thanks for writing that post. helps a lot.
When I found that there were some peculiarities of the forex broker I had chosen to trade with I downloaded other platforms and ran them side by side.
If a company claims to have a live feed why is the data different to other companies data feeds? If they were all live they would be exactly the same.
I used one forex broker as my main trading account and two others as my backups.
My main forex turned out to have different 'live' feeds than the other two.
The only way to test this is to pick your platform, then try and find a 30 day trial of a high end truly live service (mostly forex trading at brokers registered as Swiss bank). If there is a discrepancy, then ditch the one that you are looking at.
Another thing to look out for is to see how different it is to place trades with a live account and a demo account, and how different the platform displays the signals.
The scam is apparent when the two different accounts on the same service show different signals or one account shows a lapse in displaying the signal whereas the other one seems to be more 'real time'. Usually the demo account seems to be easier to use and displays more 'real-time' looking signals than the live account.
The greatest giveaway though is the disclaimer where it states that you will be trading against the company. This means that your order does not buy a position in the forex market but a position against the company you have the platform with and is all done in-house via a computer account. So its like going into a casino.
Truly live systems where you will be trading in the actual forex market and not against the company you have an account with will have lower leverage level ratios (definately not the 200:1, 400:1, ratios touted elsewhere) usually less than 100:1 and they will charge a per trade fee.
Hi Pharaoh
Thankyou for sharing your knowledge.
I have a problem with Broker Review / Rating sites including FPA
I have been trading with a broker LatitudeFX NZ who has a 5 star rating on FPA, however I have endured virtually every trick in the book, excessive freezing, slippage, micro market movements S/L hunting etc etc
I concur, as you stated, review / ratings should only be 1 part of a investigative stratergy
Cheers Luckie
It's also a good idea to complain to the broker's tech support in a case like this. Sometimes MT4 needs a couple little tweaks to get a better connection to some servers. Get some speed test info on your internet connection first so that they can't try to blame it on a slow connection if you really have a fast one. Whether they fix it or not, leave a review so others in your situation will know about what's happening and if it can be fixed or not.
Remember - when trying a new broker, always start with a small amount of money. Even if you are happy with a broker, watch them carefully, get screenshots of your account statement, etc, etc. If issue arise, complain loudly. If issues aren't resolved in a timely fashion, take your money elsewhere. There's no reason to be loyal to a broker that isn't loyal to you.
Great tips...its really Very difficult but not impossible...so its have a lot of process....thanks for sharing...
You won't get rich overnight starting small, but it will be good to go live with an amount you can afford to lose. Also, if things go well, you can always grow the account over time.
Thanks this helped a lot. I wish I had seen this information before I got burned by investtechfx.
What's the use of a broker who gives leverages to your heart's desire, fantastic low spreads and lighting speed trade execution, but than turns out to be a "Deposit Only" broker???
That's the main reason I would dearly love to see FPA members (with rank of above Sargent) posting a list of brokers who are trustworthy. Newbies can use the brokers list as reference to go about selecting which one is best suited for their specific need/requirements.
I am interested in opening an account with one broker. After doing quite a bit of googling and reading, I am under the impression that they still seem rather decent, albeit there have been reported issues regarding withdrawals. The thing is, it is really hard for me to even separate fact from fiction. There are complaints, but there are good reviews too.
To be honest, I'm a total noob. I'm probably not going to trade a lot yet, and until I've finished reading Babypips, I'm not even going to risk real money. But I cannot deny the allure of forex trading, so it'd be great if you could shed some light on my doubts.
p.s. I was hoping this little education forum had something like Babypips education section. Is there anything of that sort here? Personally, I believe it would help a lot of you could perhaps give us a very brief history of your foray into forex. The books you read, the sites you frequent, the stuff that worked, the stuff that didn't, et cetera. Yes, pardon the spoon-feeding neediness, but I am certain forum members would appreciate such a gesture. There's no need to be super detailed, but just a brief recap.
Thank you
Quite educative and refreshing article, but can you be forthcoming with the first 10 best brokers based on your experience and research source.
Psssst... any offers from brokers wanting my good reviews and recommendations to be posted here at the FPA?? ;)
Hi Pharaoh,
I would like to joint to this question. Also can you suggest how to choose the trading platform. What one should be looking for? Do you think some are better in a sense that would give better analytical tools or any other advantages. I also read your article on choosing broker. Well yes choosing a broker is personal thing. However there must be minimum criteria for a broker to meet to be called a good broker. Apart of what you mention initially. Say execution speed re-pricing. I also heard some brokers had a part of their platforms a say program that sees what the trader position is and move the quotes 2-4 pips against him/her. Do you think that is really happening?
Thank you
Thanks for your article, infact i now realized all the brokers are the same, they all scam in my own opinion. I take this opportunity to copy and paste a paragraph in your article.
"Does the broker permit your trading style? This is very important if you plan to newstrade or scalp. Some brokers might suspend you. Others will cancel your winning trades (but never your losing trades). Certain extremely unethical brokers will decide that your trading style has caused them "damages" and will confiscate as much of your account as they feel like."
My broker has never requote my winning trades, but always gives me a requote whenever i'm loosing. There was a time i made more than $200 in a trade and i want to exit the trade, but i got requotes till i lost all my profits and was making a loss before i was let out of the trade. This again happened to me today where i lost $582. Actually, i closed at this loss, but before it closed, i already have a gain of $54 which i saw before it closed, but never got a requote for that, but if it is further loss, i will get a requote.
I have made several complaints to them, but no good answer was given, its always internet problem and they are not responsible for internet connection or that the point i want to exit is on queue and probably it timed out, so i got a requote. Their Compliance Dept even supports them in my own view because they will come back and tell me same story.
I remembered a time i reported them to their regulatory body, the body told me to go back to them so that the broker can carry out an investigation, of course, the broker will always favor themselves, i'm not there in the course of investigation.
I just wonder what can be done to these brokers in order to bring them to book and give traders good justice. I dont know which broker to turn to now. This is very sad.
What platform you use to trade is more of a personal preference. If it's easy for you to open positions, close positions, and understand what's going on, then the platform is suitable. I know some people who use some platforms that make no sense to me, but as long as they understand it, that's what matters.
Personal circumstances can also influence it - it you need to check your positions at work or from other places where you can't install software and don't have internet on your mobile phone, you may find that a broker with a web-based trading platform is more suitable than a platform that needs to be downloaded and installed.
The good news is that the vast majority of brokers provide free demos, so you can try out a few different ones to see what you like.
Some brokers do have built in cheating software that will slip or requote you a few pips. If it's only 1 pip or so, this can be hard to detect. Naturally, it won't happen very much on demo. This is why you shouldn't place very much money with a broker at first. For any new broker you decide to open a live account with, only put in the absolute minimum amount they'll accept, or just a few percent more (the extra is to test their withdrawal system). If anything doesn't seem right, contact their support. If that doesn't fix it, close your account.
Andy,
Good analysis. Please repost it here:
Are there any brokers anyone likes?
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/community/threads/so-are-there-any-brokers-anyone-likes.11411/
Tayo,
Make sure you do have a good connection first. Brokers always use this as an excuse, but sometimes there really is a connection problem from the trader's end.
If your connection is fast and stable, it's time to close your account. Make sure to leave a review here at the FPA to let people know about the problems.
The best way to deal with bad brokers is to let everyone know about them. Some of the worst brokers in the world have been forced to close up shop once the word got out and their supply of victims finally dried up. Sometimes it takes time, but here's proof that it can happen:
Three Scam Brokerages Gone
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/community/threads/three-scam-brokerages-gone-forexgen-sigmaforex-velocityforex.10782/
This is what the FPA was created for, to save traders from throwing their money away with the worst forex companies. The hard part is that there are so many bad companies out there.
amazing insights , mostly i feel companies offer bonus they create trouble or which are not regulated else the company should have no reason to not perform well.
I know some people who use some platforms that make no sense to me, but as long as they understand it, that's what matters.
...
The good news is that the vast majority of brokers provide ..
Thanks a lot for this info and your eye opening words!!
You're right, there are platforms that make no sense but if you know the problem you can handle it.
I tried the demo of my broker first and still keep using it. Until now it works very fine for me and I get smooth returns at the end of the month.
Who else uses Buru from IBFX?
The point about the pips, how can I monitor it, is there a way or signs to respect?
Good trading days to all!
In any case, thank you kindly for the great thread!
Hi Pharaoh...
I am new here and actually i want to open a live account (very small account, say usd300.00). I have read all the comments here and i was very confuse which broker to use.
as an experienced trader like you, would you mind to tell us which broker you use currently? i am sure that you are skillful enough to choose a right broker. Most of us here perhaps will follow suit.
regards,
Jaylomkoh
The other problem is that a good broker can turn bad with very little warning. Just because a broker has no complaints today doesn't mean that they might not turn into a "Deposit Only" broker tomorrow. No matter what broker you use, you should check the reviews and keep an eye out for complaints in the Scam Alerts folder. At the first hint of trouble, test the withdrawal system. Even if it works, consider significantly reducing the amount of money in your account if there is any sign of growing complaints.
I need to open ECN account.
How can i select the broker firm.
I have test several brokers demo account.
If Anyone have experience with them please comment.
Checking out a demo with a broker and asking a lot of questions to their support staff is a good step.
Reading the FPA's reviews and checking to see if anyone has any major complaints is also a good idea.
You need to research carefully before placing any significant amount of money with a broker. You can do this yourself, following the advice I gave in the first post in this thread, or you can pay a professional service to run a due diligence check for you. If you want to be really thorough, do both.
Waiting your reply
P.S. I'm not searching for banks because am already working in a bank
Once you have narrowed down your list of forex broker candidates sufficiently, remember that part of checking out a broker is to test their email and live chat responsiveness. At that point, email a list of questions and ask the same list on live chat (and phone too, if you want to be thorough). The answers should be provided within a reasonable amount of time and be consistent. Just to be 100% sure that they do provide forex brokerage services to Lebanon, you can add that question to your list.
The first and the foremost for me - a broker should be regulated.
Then goes the minimum deposit and the leverage.
Then withdrawal process - it should be fast and without any fuss.
Then the customer service - I'd like to have an 24/7 opportunity to communicate with someone who can help me in solving technical problems.
And the last is the presence of various bonuses and programs.
The first and the foremost for me - a broker should be regulated.
Then goes the minimum deposit and the leverage.
Then withdrawal process - it should be fast and wi..
You can add one more thing.... If someone is providing white label solution then you can trust the broker
So you think that a bucketshop wouldn't be happy to offer WL services so that it could grab even more money?
I've also see brand new brokers with freshly registered websites offering whitelabel programs.
Overall, I don't see offering WL to be a plus or a minus when I'm decided if a broker is trustworthy.
I don't consider WL offering as a sighn of a good broker. "If someone is providing white label solution then you can trust the broker" - sorry, but the string of logic here seems to be broken. If a broker offers WL it just means that it wants to expand it's presence.
Debate on the validity of Pharaoh's method of broker selection is permissible here. Being rude and pressing for a recommendation isn't.
For people wanting to share good broker experiences, please use the reviews and also this thread...
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/community/threads/so-are-there-any-brokers-anyone-likes.11411/
For people wanting a broker recommendation, go here...
Company Comparisons and Competitions
https://www.forexpeacearmy.com/community/forums/forex-company-comparisons.127/
Start a new thread. Give as much information about what you need as possible.
The FPA is a very diverse organization. There is no one broker in the world that can meet the needs of every trader here. This is why Pharaoh wrote about a method to find a broker to meet each traders specific needs instead of recommending a single broker for everyone.
Cheers fx avatar
Ron
Can you please post your questionnaire here?
I have the same post as Sub-zero. Or if you do not want to share the exact same questions, you could please enlighten us about they were about. It seems quite an inteligent strategy...
yeah, it makes sense and it's true. every one should decide according to their needs and the situation of the brokers.
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