Beware! SFCmarket 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.
SFCmarket is not a reliable broker – in fact, trading with it is just a waste of your time and money. Here is why:
SFCmarket regulation and safety of funds
SFCmarket is not regulated. It also never mentions where it even operates from, meaning that we have no clue who even should be regulating the broker.
This is quite unfortunate, because with how widespread scams are nowadays, brokers need to provide us with a license to ensure they are legitimate. And without one, SFCmarket can offer no guarantees – not even that it is not fraudulent, much less protections like the UK’s Negative Balance Policy, its guarantee funds and so on. Stick to licensed brokers if you want a safe and profitable trading experience!
SFCmarket trading software
SFCmarket provides access to a distribution of the renowned Metatrader 4 platform, which has claimed the title of industry standard with its powerful automated trading features. The broker also provides access to a web-based platform. However, its trading servers were down at the time of writing, which means that we only got as far as the login screen with each platform – here is the one for Metatrader 4
And here is the error we got from the web-based platform:
This means we cannot know what the spreads look like with SFCmarket – but we do know the leverage it offers, 1:400 is simply too much. Such amounts have been banned by most responsible regulators, and yet, unlicensed brokers like SFCmarket often have them available in a bid to attract more clients – so if you see such a high leverage beware – odds are, you are dealing with an unlicensed entity!
SFCmarket deposit and withdrawal methods and fees
SFCmarket accepts deposits via credit cards, wire transfers and the Skrill and Neteller e-wallets. As for a minimum deposit, this seems to be $100 – about ten times as much as brokers charge for a micro account nowadays – $10 at most.
Withdrawals, however, are not as clear-cut. We dare say that withdrawing any profits from SFCmarket is downright impossible – that is because of the broker’s restrictive bonus policy. Bonuses are bound with certain turnover requirements. Here is what they are:
You need to execute half the credited amount in standard lots – a lot is worth 100 000 units of base currency. And therefore, if you have been given as little as $20, you would need to achieve a turnover of over a million dollars – this is certainly obviously unfair! Failing to achieve that, you will lose all of your profits on any withdrawals, as the clause below states:
You will also suffer a fee of 50% of your money. This means that no one can withdraw any profits, but also that their deposit will be halved! There are also some vague subscription fees that SFCmarket says nothing about, except for what is found in the paragraph below:
We do not know anything else about them, but considering the broker’s unfair policy on bonuses, do not expect these fees to be anything short of audacious!
How does the scam work?
Unfortunately it seems evident that SFCmarket is a scam – and what’s more, the company follows a well-established pattern. Here is how things usually play out with brokers like SFCmarket:
First off, the would-be victim stumbles upon an ad, promising them a profitable trading opportunity or something to that effect. These ads lead to websites much like the one SFCmarket runs. From there, the visitor is prompted to make an account, giving their phone number in the process. This is crucial to the scammers, who will then use it to harass their “clients” for deposits. They are not only incredibly persistent, calling around the clock, but also quite skillful in manipulating people.
So, the victim continues to deposit more and more money, until they realize what’s going on and demand a withdrawal or stop pouring money with the scammers. At that point, these scammers usually just cut them off, however!
What to do when scammed?
If you recognize yourself in what we outlined above, you should take the following steps to ensure you limit further losses:
First off, recall what IDs, credit cards and so on the scammers had access to – and get new ones issued immediately. This will help you restore your privacy. Also, remove any desktop sharing software the scammers had you install on your PC, as they will certainly use it to snoop around it without your consent!
Once that is done, you might want to think about getting your money back – the best way to do so would be by contacting your bank and explaining your predicament to them. However, if you get a recovery agency reach out to you and demand an advance fee for its services, know you are dealing with another scheme, designed to prey on people who have been scammed already!
Finally, do not hesitate to leave a comment below with your experience of SFCmarket – if you do that, you will be helping us raise awareness of the scam, which is by far the best way to combat its spread!
