Could you elucidate a bit more about that "groups hedging between accounts, turning bonuses into withdrawable profits". What is the technique used for that? Are there any public information available on that matter?
Thanks
I don't want to write a how-to guide on how to get into a fight with a broker, but in simplest terms, imagine this:
You, me, FxMaster and iMusingKiMi all open accounts at a broker offering a 100% bonus. We all deposit $100, so have $200 in our accounts. Then we make a plan.
We wait for good opportunity for the market to make a big move - possibly the NFP release. You and I go long on the EURUSD with a big trade. FxMaster and iMusinKiMi go short - thus hedging the 4 of us. The news is bad for the US, so the price moves up hard and fast. FxMaster and iMusinKiMi get margin calls. You and I both made $200 in profits.
The next week, there's a central bank interest rate announcement and signals are very mixed about whether they'll increase the rate or not. You and I place trades in opposite directions. The announcement is a big surprise and I'm wiped out. Your balance goes to $800.
If you have managed to meet the minimum trading terms tied to the bonus (not likely, but this is a super-simple example), you could get either $700 or $800 out now (some bonuses can never be withdrawn, others can). This means that as a group, we've made $300-$400 profit with very little risk.
Brokers use bonuses to lure in traders. Even though what I described above is prohibited by the most common bonus terms, many traders either form groups or get non-trading friends and relatives to open accounts for them to try to get around the rules and get free money. Brokers aren't stupid and are watching for this sort of activity. Since so many people really do it, this places legitimate traders at risk of accidentally being identified as part of a cheating group, or of being falsely accused of cheating by a bad broker.
The best solution - skip bonuses unless you already have a firmly established relationship with the broker and trust the broker. Even then, if you have a dynamic IP and place a trade that hedges someone else who took a bonus who ever used the same IP, you could have problems.