Recommended broker
XMTrading is an offshore branch of the well-known XM Group and as such manages to offer excellent conditions to clients while still remaining a secure, regulated option. The affordable deposit prices and low commissions, the many bonuses and the possibility of high leverage would probably tempt many customers. The broker still manages to guarantee the safety of your funds because they are licensed and certain additional protections are not to be neglected. If you are just starting your trading journey and are wondering which broker to choose, XMTrading could be a more than decent choice. Read our review if you want to learn more.
XMTrading REGULATION AND SAFETY OF FUNDS
As mentioned, XMTrading is an offshore branch of the Cyprus-based XM Group. XM Group was originally founded in Cyprus in 2009 and is still operating there under the name Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd.
Since its inception, the company has also managed to obtain licenses by ASIC (Australia) and IFSC (Belize).
XMTrading’s parent company is more than well-regulated and as an established broker offers both reliable customer service and a high degree of transparency. XM Group has won multiple awards over the years including but not limited to Most Trusted Forex Broker — Global 2021, Best FX Broker for Europe, Best FX Service Provider 2021 and 2020, Best Market Research and Education Global 2019, Most Transparent Broker 2021, Most Reliable Broker 2021, Best Retail Forex Broker 2021, etc.
XMTrading specifically is regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority under the legal name Tradexfin Limited.
Additionally, the broker holds a license at another offshore location – Mauritius – as FinTrade Limited.
Working with an offshore broker might not sound like a great idea to someone who does not know a lot about trading and has only heard of offshore companies in relation to shady schemes. In reality, that is not the whole truth. While scammers do take advantage of looser regulations at locations like Vanuatu, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, etc. there are plenty of legitimate brokers that prefer to register offshore companies with the sole purpose of offering better terms to clients. This way, those brokers could remain competitive in a world where hundreds of brokers are competing for clients. The many restrictions that exist in sternly regulated countries like Cyprus, the UK, Australia, and the US prevent brokers from offering what many clients are looking for – attractive promotions and high leverage.
So you should definitely not trust each and every offshore broker but, as a branch of XM Group, XMTrading is a more than sound choice. They are actually answering to a financial authority that imposes restrictions – every broker on Seychelles should maintain a minimum capital of $50 000 to prove they are well-capitalized enough to navigate the financial markets and would be able to cover any unexpected costs. Furthermore, every broker regulated by the FSA should have a local office with two directors and two shareholders (the same person can act both as a shareholder and as a director). XMTrading promises negative balance protection – the size of your losses cannot exceed the money you have in your account. An additional perk of trading with this broker specifically is that they keep client deposits in segregated accounts which is not a requirement of the FSA but is a singular decision of the broker themselves. This means XMTrading would have very limited access to your money after you have deposited and would not be able to reinvest them if they for some reason ever wished to do so. So there is a certain level of security you can count on when trading with XMTrading – something we believe most traders would appreciate.
XMTrading TRADING SOFTWARE
XMTrading can offer you the choice between two platforms known to every trader – MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. These are currently the most popular platforms in the industry and it has been so since MT4’s creation 15 years ago. Many traders find it hard to give up the stability and functionality MT4 is offering – even if it would only mean switching to the newer version of the software, MT5, that simply has more charting tools and indicators to offer. In reality, it all comes down to what kind of trader you are and what personal preferences you have. Both platforms are impressive in their functionality and the number of tools for trading they offer – MetaQuotes, MT’s creators, have thought about everything you might ever need to trade successfully and incorporated it in their software. Expert Advisors that track the markets and trade in accordance with an algorithm have become trademark for MT. But you don’t have to rely on pre-programmed trading bots – you can create your own with the MQL4/MQL5 coding language (which you can also use for customizing your indicators). There is access to a vast trading community so you could share your bots and strategies with others or use theirs. And, of course, you could test those strategies in a demo account or through back-testing. Finally, you could purchase a VPS for a humble amount of money (around $15) – this is meant to keep your trading bots operating even when your computer is off. Find out what else MT4 and MT5 are capable of by yourself and check out XMTrading’s MT5 terminal in the meantime.
XMTrading TRADING CONDITIONS
It is pretty impossible to not be happy with the trading conditions XMTrading offers. With this broker you could trade in forex, commodities, indices, precious metals and energies. XMTrading has three account types – Micro, Standard and Zero. The minimum deposit for the Micro and Standard accounts is just $5 while to open a Zero account, the broker would ask for $100 which is still not a lot.
The Micro and Standard accounts are both free of commission and offer spreads of floating 1 pip. When trying out the Standard account, we got spreads of around 1.6 pips – slightly higher than promised but still more than decent. The leverage for both accounts could vary from 1:1 to 1:888 depending on your own settings and your equity. The more money you have in your account, the lower leverage the broker would allow. This is done to protect you – because high leverage could lead to huge profits and huge losses alike. That is why leverage is restricted by law to 1:30 for forex majors in Europe and Australia and to 1:50 in the US. As an offshore broker, XMTrading could allow you to go much higher but still has your safety in mind. That is why a setting of 1:888 is only allowed if you have between $5 and $20 000 in your account. The rates if you have anything more are as follows – up to 1:200 if you have between $20,001 and $100,000 and up to 1:100 if you have more than $100,001.
The situation is a bit different on a Zero account. The minimum deposit is indeed higher but the spreads are tighter – starting from 0 pips – which is no to be overlooked. Leverage could only go up to 1:500 if you have between $5 and $20 000 in your account – the rates are the same as for other account types if you have more money. Bonuses are not offered on that account and you should keep in mind that there is a commission – $5 per lot traded. So Zero accounts would probably be more cost-effective as the standard price of a pip per lot is $10 and we got spreads of around 1.6 pips – so around $16 per lot.
Keep in mind that if you open a Micro account, your lot size would be smaller than usual. Commonly, a lot equals 100 000 currency units while on a micro account, the number is lower. A lot in this case would be 1000 currency units.
XMTrading BONUSES AND PROMOTIONS
Something no European, Australian or US broker would be able to offer is bonuses – since they are banned in all of these locations. XMTrading on the other hand is completely free to legally offer a variety of promotions.
You can get a $30 bonus just for opening an account even without a deposit – the broker does, however, state this broker is non-withdrawable and is meant to help to introduce you to trading.
Another bonus you could not withdraw but is instead meant to increase your trading potential is a two-tier 50% + 20% bonus. Upon depositing $5 or more, you qualify for a 50% bonus of up to $500. An additional 20% bonus comes into play if you deposit more than $2000. All the profits made on account of the bonuses mentioned can freely be withdrawn at any time.
There is a withdrawable referral bonus – you get money for every person you refer to XM Filipino. The amount varies – $25 for the first 15 people, $30 for 16 to 30 friends, and $35 for every person after that.
Additionally, XMTrading offers exclusive bonuses a few times a year. Such bonuses mark certain calendar events and special occasions and are a part of the broker’s loyalty program.
XMTrading DEPOSIT/WITHDRAW METHODS AND FEES
There are a variety of payment methods available with XMTrading – Visa/MasterCard, bank transfer, Neteller, Skrill, and StickPay. The good thing about working with XMTrading is that they cover deposit and withdrawal fees so you would not have to worry about commissions imposed by the payment method provider.
The fees XMTrading has are pretty standard – like a rollover fee for keeping positions open overnight and a dormant account fee you would not have to worry about too soon. The account maintenance fee in such cases is $15 and comes after 12 whole months of inactivity. After that, the fee is $5 per month. Another fee the broker reserves the right to impose in some chargeback cases is a $150 research fee.
BOTTOM LINE
XMTrading is a decent choice if you are looking for a broker offering great terms while still managing to ensure the safety of your funds. The broker’s parent company, XM Group, would probably be well-known to many as an affordable broker that offers an array of great educational resources. Opening an account with XMTrading would be pretty low-cost and could lead to decent profits as you would have access to functional platforms, attractive promotions and higher leverage rates. Check out the broker’s website and see if they are the right choice for you – opening a demo account only takes a minute.
