Expert24Trade review – 5 things you should know about Expert24trade.com

Beware! Expert24Trade is an offshore broker! Your investment may be at risk.

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Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Open trading accounts with at least two brokers.

Expert24Trade is Forex brokerage registered in Seychelles. It offers a wide range of trading options and provides a web-based trading platform. We could see a spread of 2 pips on EUR/USD and the required minimum deposit is $200.

Expert24Trade regulation & safety of funds

The company behind FinMax is registered in the Republic of Seychelles with the name Expert24Trade. Here is a screenshot:

We learn through the website that the brokerage is regulated by the Financial Services Authority of Seychelles. Here we remind readers that the financial regulator of Seychelles – the FSA – cannot compare with prestigious regulatory agencies in Europe, most importantly because it does not provide participation in a financial mechanism by which client’s losses may be recovered in case of bankruptcy or fraud. There is also no assurance for the segregation of accounts which exposes the clients to the possibility of commingling – combining the broker’s finances with that of the client. Furthermore, the agency requires a starting capital of the meager $50 000 while CySEC requires at least $730 000.

Putting all that aside, the lack of credible regulation inclines us to suspect that potential clients of the brokerage may be open to substantial risk.

Traders needn’t have to worry themselves with such risk if they choose to trade with a brokerage regulated and authorized by a prestigious regulatory agency. Such agencies are the FCA in the UK or CySec in Cyprus which have been leading names in Forex trading for some time now. Their regulatory framework is composed of a number of strict rules which prevent clients from falling victims to fraud. Such rules include the segregation of accounts which assures that commingling with the client’s money is not possible. Furthermore, a license by such a regulatory body entails participation in a financial mechanism by which clients may be compensated if they suffer losses due to fraud or bankruptcy. With the FCA the compensation is up to 85 000 pounds, where as with CySEC it is up to 20 000 euro per person.

Expert24Trade trading software

The brokerage does provide a web based trading platform and offers a test-drive as well, which isn’t something common with scammers, however,  the MetaTrader 4 trading platform is not provided which we always consider a huge disadvantage since it is the foremost trading terminal at the moment equipped with features such as almost a 100 market indicators, as well as customizable trading robots. It is also the preferred choice for more than 80 percent of the traders in Forex Through the demo account we were able to get a glimpse of the platform. On it we could see that the spread on EUR/USD stands at 2 pips which is quite high and disappointing. Furthermore, the platform itself appears to be quite fake and we highly doubt it is actually functional.

Expert24Trade deposit/withdrawal methods and fees

Potential clients of the brokerage may deposit or withdraw via the standard Visa and MasterCard, as well as bank transfer and e-wallets Neteller, Skrill and Bitcoin.

In the terms and conditions the brokerage openly states that the minimum funding amount via bank transfer is $5000 which is extremely high and unfavorable, as well as a deposit of $50. Furthermore, we read that there bonus withdrawal conditions. According to the brokerage the traders has to achieve a trading volume requirement of at least 20 times the bonus promotions before he is eligible for withdrawal. It is quite common for Forex brokerages to tie a bonus promotion with  trading volume requirement. If we had to guess – the trading volume requirement is absurdly high on purpose so that withdrawing is pretty much impossible.

This is why we remind readers of all the ways a trader may test the brokerage’s intentions. Firstly, traders are advised to always put up only the required minimum deposit, instead of risking a bigger amount with no certainty. Afterwards, they may also try to withdraw a small amount in order to check for any unexpected fees or delays. Such fees and delays are usually the signs of a scammer.

How does the scam work?

Besides judging the brokerage beforehand through the info given on its website, a valuable piece of information in the trading world would be precisely how a scam would go about. Here is a description of the typical three steps:

Through clicking an ad with promises for fast money, you will be redirected to a website such as Bitcoin Evolution or Crypto Cash where registration will require you to give your address, email and phone number. After sharing your personal information, you will being receiving calls from brokers, compelling you to invest with them and win big. After a few minutes hearing their pitches, you decide to deposit some $200-250. And just like that – the scammers take a fat commission from this initial deposit.

After they are done with you, senior scammers begin working you into putting even more money. They say it’s the only way to profit from trading even more. After making the mistake of investing even further, you’ll begin wanting to get out of this and withdraw what you have left.

Unfortunately, the con-artists have no such thing in mind. They will now begin persuading you to wait it out and not withdraw right now. The motive here is quite straightforward – traders have a limited time window for filing a chargeback with their bank and get their money back. The “recovery department” will simply want to mislead you into missing this crucial period and, along the way, losing any chance you might have of getting the money back.

What to do when scammed?

As was mentioned above, scamming is quite the common in the trading world and, sadly, even you might suffer from it. In such an unfortunate case there still may be some available options for you.

You may contact your bank or credit card provider and file a chargeback. The growth of scammers that are spawning everyday in forex trading has forced both financial services giants Visa and Mastercard to step up and take action. MasterCard has already increased the previous time period of six months for filing a chargeback to a year and a half, effectively bypassing the “recovery department” part of the scam.

If, however, you have provided the broker with your credit card number and CVV code, immediately cancel your credit card.

If you have given information regarding your online banking pass – you should switch it asap!

Beware of potential calls from self-described “recovery agencies”! They prey on scammed and vulnerable traders who are desperate to recover their losses. They will require an “up-front” payment to help you, but after paying them, no such help will be coming your way!