BigBitMarket review – 5 things you should know about bigbitmarket.com

Beware! BigBitMarket 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.

BigBitMarket claims to be “a worldwide brand committed to your trading experience”. In fact, this is one of the many anonymous websites that pose as brokers, but are actually scam schemes. BigBitMarket does not at all offer the services it claims, and in no case should you trust it with your money.

BIGBITMARKET REGULATION AND SAFETY OF FUNDS

Legitimate brokers are required to provide clear and detailed information about where they are based, what licences they hold and what regulatory regimes they are subject to. However, no such information can be found on the BigBitMarket website.

A company named Big Bit Market LTD is listed as the legal entity behind BigBitMarket. The only contact information is an email and phone number in Australia.

This should suggest that this broker is based in Australia. But to operate there, a broker must be licensed by the Australian Securities and Exchanges Commission (ASIC). However, no broker with that name can be found on the regulator’s register.

It is only at the end of the Terms and Conditions that we find a statement that the BigBitMarket is in fact based in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG):

Because of the lack of regulatory oversight, this offshore zone is one of the favorite bases of operations for shady brokers. While this country has a financial regulator, unlike other offshore areas, it does not regulate the activities of forex and CFD brokers. Тhe Financial Services Authority (FSA) of St. Vincent and the Grenadines has repeatedly issued warnings on this issue, with the latest such warning dated 23 June 2021. It clearly states that the agency “does not issue any licenses to carry on the business of FOREX Trading or Brokerage or Binary Options Trading nor does the FSA “Regulate, Monitor, Supervise or License” International Business Companies which engage in such activities”.

BigBitMarket is not a regulated broker and tries to deceive that it is based in a leading financial center. This shows that we are dealing not just with an offshore broker but with fraudsters.

If you want to try your luck and skills in the financial markets, you can turn to one of the many companies that really work under the supervision of respected regulatory bodies like Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) or Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.

As their customer you will enjoy a number of guarantees including negative balance protection and guarantee for your funds if the broker goes bankrupt, which goes up to EUR 20,000 in EU and 85,000 GBP in the UK. Regulations in the UK and EU include some important measures designed to improve investor protection and promote market integrity and transparency, such as transaction reporting. Regulated brokers are also required to segregate their operational funds from the client’s money.

BIGBITMARKET TRADING SOFTWARE

BigBitMarket is using a simplified web platform, such as may be seen on websites imitating brokers. Here’s what it looks like:

While the platform has the basic features for placing orders, customizing charts and application of technical indicators, it lacks the more advanced functionality found in the most widely used trading platforms in the industry, MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5). These platforms have established themselves as industry standard because they offer a wide range of features, including a variety of options for customization, multiple account usage, designing and implementing custom scripts for automated trading and backtesting trade strategies.

BIGBITMARKET TRADING CONDITIONS

The BigBitMarket website describes five types of trading accounts, with minimum deposits between 250 USD and 250,000 USD. Again, it should be noted that it is far wiser to use the services of a licensed broker, many of which offer accounts for beginner traders with a minimum deposit of as little as 100 USD.

According to the description of the account types, the spread offered is 1.6 pips for the starter account and lower levels for the other accounts. However, extremely high levels of 7-8 pips can be seen on the web trading platform. In the industry, a spread above 2 pips is considered too high and disadvantageous to the trader.

The leverage level varies from 1:100 to 1:400 for different account types. Such levels cannot be seen with regulated brokers. High leverage creates the opportunity for more significant profit, but correspondingly increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses. All leading regulators therefore restrict leverage for retail traders. The FCA, like EU regulators, limits leverage to 1:30 for trading in major currency pairs and even lower levels for more volatile assets. The same rules currently apply to Australia. In the US, the maximum limit is slightly higher at 1:50.

The BigBitMarket also claims to offer bonuses, but nowhere is their nature and amount specified. Offering bonuses and promotions is also a practice prohibited to regulated brokers.

BIGBITMARKET DEPOSIT/WITHDRAW METHODS AND FEES

The FAQ section of the website states that the BigBitMarket accepts credit cards, wire transfer and e-wallets as payment methods. However, after registering an account and logging into the customer portal, it becomes clear that to make a deposit, you need to send a request to the customer support.

This is not standard practice at all. Legitimate brokers typically offer clients a wide choice of transparent payment methods, including bank transfer, credit/debit cards and established e-wallets such as PayPal, Skrill or Sofort.

According to information on the website, the minimum withdrawal amount is 100 USD with a credit card and the equivalent of 250 USD if cryptocurrencies are used. There is a withdrawal fee of 1%, but not less than 30 USD.

According to the BigBitMarket Bonus Policy, a customer can withdraw the bonus received if he meets a volume requirement of 50,000 times the bonus amount. If the customer requests to withdraw an amount equal to more than 20% of his account balance, the bonus and “any consequential profit” will be revoked.

At the same time in the “Withdrawal, Refund & Cancellation Policy” we find the wording that “all withdrawals and Refunds are subject to the Company’s Bonus Policy”. This should suggest that any attempt to withdraw funds from the account may be blocked by prohibitively high volume requirements. This is a trap routinely applied by scam websites.

HOW DOES THE SCAM WORK

Many people are looking for ways to make money passively, but do not have the necessary knowledge to invest in the financial markets themselves. This makes them a target for the many online scammers posing as brokers. If you come across some of them and give them your contacts, you will be contacted by skilled scam artists who will assure you that they can take on the incomprehensible aspects of investing for you. You will only be required to invest and take profits.

But when you try to collect even just a fraction of your money, it will turn out to be impossible. Your supposed profits will suddenly evaporate, or you’ll find that you have to meet impossible traded volume requirements first. Fraudsters often insert huge withdrawal fees into client agreements amounting to 10%, 20% or even more. You won’t be able to hold scammers accountable because they hide behind fake names and shell-companies offshore. Scammers also typically use non-refundable payment methods.

WHAT TO DO WHEN SCAMMED

First of all, you should be very careful not to fall straight into the clutches of other scammers. Another common scam is to promise money recoveries from fake brokers for an upfront fee.

If you used a credit or debit card for the transactions, you can charge a chargeback. Visa and MasterCard have a long period in which they allow such requests – 540 days. But keep in mind that fraudsters can dispute if you have provided them with a copy of your ID and proof of address. It would also be helpful if you alerted the authorities in your country and other people online to the activities of the scammers.