Beware! Forex Gama is an offshore broker! Your investment may be at risk.
RECOMMENDED FOREX BROKERS
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Open trading accounts with at least two brokers.
Forex Gama is an offshore broker that claims to offer unbeatable trading conditions. At the same time, they criticize the European financial regulators for the customer protection measures implemented. They claim that the authorities make it impossible for the traders to make money, and Forex Gama rises in power to democratise the markets and beat the evil financial regulators. You can find other ridiculous statements they make in the full Forex Gama review.
Forex Gama REGULATION AND SAFETY OF FUNDS
Forex Gama is an offshore Forex broker that’s allegedly based in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and that’s a problem for the traders. The financial authority SVGFSA loosely regulates the island’s financial sector and doesn’t even control the brokers or issue FX licenses. An SVG Forex broker might disappear tomorrow, and the traders will be left with losses that might be impossible to recover as there isn’t a single customer protection measure in place.
But it might be a bigger problem that Forex Gama purposely mislead the traders by claiming to be SVG regulated. Such a statement is a nonsense and a blatant lie that aims to make Forex Gama look like a legit entity, which it’s not. They are illegally selling financial products and services on regulated markets without the proper authorisation. Your funds are not safe if you deposit with Forex Gama because it’s an unlicensed and unregulated broker which intentionally deceive the public.
Avoid anonymous and offshore Forex brokers and go for the transparent and regulated ones that hold CySEC(Cyprus) or FCA(UK) license. We recommend them because Europe created the safest financial environment for the traders’ deposits, and it’s assured that the genuine Forex brokers will handle your funds with the utmost care. What’s most important for the traders is the fact that the deposits made are protected by the deposit insurance funds established throughout Europe, such as ICF(under CySEC) and FSCS(under FCA). In Cyprus, you can claim up to 20 000 EUR per client, while in the UK the guarantees are of even up to 85 000 GBP per client. If trading with an offshore broker, you are entitled to nothing and if the broker disappears, consider your money lost!
Forex Gama TRADING SOFTWARE
Forex Gama offers MetaTrader5 accounts to the traders; MetaTrader4 is not available for trading. Metatrader is the most popular Forex platform in the world that’s beloved by the traders, and it’s no wonder that Forex Gama relies on it. Metatrader comes with sophisticated tools and features such as Expert Advisors, Algo Trading, Complex Indicators and even its own marketplace.
The EUR/USD spread is 1.3 pips, which is not the most competitive a Buy/Sell difference on the markets to be found. The spread is the price that the traders have to pay to open a position, and it has a direct impact on the profit potential. In comparison, the industry standard is 1 pip and below as there are way too many brokers that will offer spreads as low as 0.1 pips, so that’s another argument for us not to recommend Forex Gama.
The maximum leverage possible is 1:1000, which is a level that the traders should never use. It’s so risky that it might wipe out the account in seconds after the opening of the position, especially if the spread is as high as 1.3 pips. A few pips move in the opposite direction will trigger a margin call if you trade on 1:1000! The leverage is a powerful financial tool that allows the traders to multiply the size of the positions opened, but it hugely increases the risk. EU, UK and Australia (from 2021) forced a leverage cap on the market- 1:30 as a customer protection measure while Canada and the US agreed on 1:50. We do not recommend brokers offering higher ratios because they might as well be a scam, the risks aside.
Forex Gama DEPOSIT/WITHDRAW METHODS AND FEES
Forex Gama doesn’t have minimum initial deposit requirements, and the traders might fund their accounts with as much as they want, and that’s one of the very few positive aspects of their business. The funding methods available are said to be Credit/Debit cards, Wire Transfers, Skrill, Neteller, Perfect Money and Bitcoin.
There is also no minimum withdrawal requirements, which is in line with the rest of the industry. However, they fail to specify their withdrawal conditions, and as a result, we do not know the withdrawal request processing time and the fees that apply if any. It’s a disturbing sign whatsoever because a broker should always sort these things out beforehand. It may turn out that there are some hidden fees the traders are not informed about, so it’s yet another reason to stay away from this broker.
There is also no information about the dormant accounts or fees for inactivity, which is yet another disturbing sign. The brokers have to define the way they are handling the inactive accounts, and it’s a must! Most of the regulated brokers will charge an inactivity fee from 5 to 10 dollars a month.
Forex Gama offers bonuses of 100% on the deposit, and it’s a sign indicating that you should never trade with them. You will find out more about why it’s an unfair practice in the section below.
HOW DOES THE SCAM WORK
Anonymous offshore companies stand behind many scam schemes that aim to defraud the people. Jurisdictions such as the Marshall Islands, the Commonwealth of Dominica or St. Vincent and the Grenadines fail to adequately regulate their financial sectors and the three mentioned do not even issue Forex broker licenses. It makes it easy for scammers to quickly incorporate companies there and begin to unlawfully sell Forex products and services on regulated markets such as the Europen, American or Australian ones. Lack of regulation equals lack of customer protection and safety, so even if the broker is not ill-intentioned, the traders remain vulnerable. That’s why you should always avoid offshore brokers, regardless of the promises that they make.
The bonuses are not free money, but a leverage tool that increases the risks for the traders further. The sham brokers, however, will not explain this to the clients but will let them believe that they’ve hit the jackpot. Precisely the opposite is true though because the trading incentives entirely benefit the brokers, not the traders. Moreover, the scammers will not miss the chance to introduce additional provisions and requirements that are way too challenging to meet and often block the accounts, making it impossible for the traders to make a withdrawal. That gives the scammers excuses to delay or refuse withdrawals, making it easier for them to steal the client’s money. EU and UK prohibited the trading incentives as a customer protection measure, and we recommend that the traders should avoid brokers offering bonuses!
WHAT TO DO WHEN SCAMMED
No one is immune to scam, and anyone can fall into the trap. Scammers are always looking for new and different ways to scam consumers. What you need to do first, in case you got scammed, is to protect yourself from further risks. Contact your bank and explain to them your situation, they will give you necessary instructions to follow and will help you, if possible, recover your money.
Report what happened to you, file a complaint, contact the financial regulator, contact other government institutions related to trading and investing. Seek help actively!
It’s very important not to rush blindly trying to recover your funds because many scam recovery agencies and individuals are stalking, aiming to double scam the victims. They will ask for an advanced payment, but will do nothing to help you recover your losses!
Share online your experience; it’s important to protect others, as well. Be responsible!