RECOMMENDED FOREX BROKERS
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Open trading accounts with at least two brokers.
DiscountFX is a Cyprus forex and CFD broker, licensed and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), which, along with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is one of three most popular regulators in the industry – a CySEC license means that DiscountFX is a trusted broker.
The list of trading instruments with DiscountFX range form currency pairs and commodities like oil and natural gas, to precious metals, stocks and indices.
The maximum leverage DiscountFX offers to retail clients is in line with the guidelines of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), according which brokers can not offer leverage that exceeds 30:1.
If you can prove that you are a professional trader however, you might be offered a much higher leverage of up to 200:1
DiscountFX regulation & safety of funds
DiscountFX is one of the brand names of the Cyprus based company GBE Brokers Ltd, which also operates GBE Brokers. The broker has offices in Limassol, Cyprus and Hamburg, Germany, and as we already noted it is licensed and authorized by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
The rules adopted by CySEC are shared with most other regulators throughout Europe – brokers are obliged to keep their clients funds in a segregated, from the broker’s own, trust account, to provide traders with a negative balance protection, to maintain at all times no less than 750 000 EUR in operational capital, to file regular reports, to allow external audits, and even to insure the trading capital by participation in a client compensation scheme.
For example, if by any chance your broker files for bankruptcy, your funds will be guaranteed for up to 20 000 EUR.
And besides, a CySEC license authorizes brokers to offer their services in any EU member state after going through a formal process of passportization.
DiscountFX trading conditions
As for the trading conditions there were some discrepancies between what DiscountFX tells us in their presentation and what we actually saw on their trading platform, when we opened a demo account.
There is just one account type and spreads are advertised to start virtually from zero pips with a trading commission of just 2 USD per standard lot traded, round trip. And that actually sounds too good to be true, as 2 USD per standard lot, round trip, add just 0,2 pips to the actual spread.
On the other hand with a demo account the benchmark EURUSD spread appeared to float over 1 pip and that is more or less what we would have expected.
Bear in mind that spreads starting below 1,5 pips are generally considered good.
DiscountFX trading platforms
DiscountFX offers MetaTrader4 – no doubt the most widely used trading platform on the market. MT4 is a highly reliable platform that has been around for over 15 years.
MetaTrader4 is even equipped with a proprietary programming tool – the MQL4 object- oriented programming language for trading strategy development, with which you can easily modify the numerous market indicators and trading robots, designed to help you run algorithmic trading sessions.
And we should mention as well the fine set of advanced charting tools – not surprisingly MT4 remains the most popular trading platform, preferred by beginner and professional traders alike.
DiscountFX deposit/withdrawal methods and fees
DiscountFX accepts payments with probably of the best know e-wallet on the European market – Skrill, as well as with major credit or debit cards like VISA, MasterCard and American Express and bank wire.
The minimum deposit requirement – 500 USD – is somewhat higher for our taste, as usually brokers require no more than 250 USD as an initial deposit.
