Beware! Magnates Trade 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.
Magnates Trade tries very hard to convince us that it is a “fully regulated global broker” serving millions of traders. But this website is a glaring example of why we shouldn’t take everything we read online at face value.
The Magnates Trade website is full of contradictory information, which after fact checking also turns out to be false. Magnates Trade is not authorized to offer financial services and has already attracted the attention of regulators. At the time of writing this review Magnates Trade lacks basic functionality such as the ability to register an account, but the information available is sufficient to conclude that it is nothing more than a scam.
MAGNATES TRADE REGULATION AND SAFETY OF FUNDS
The website greets us with the claim that Magnates Trade is a brand of Primer Tech International Holding OÜ, a company based and regulated in the Netherlands. However, a check of the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM ) database shows that there is no licensed broker with that name.
The text of the Terms and Conditions offers us another version – there the owner company is called Primer International OÜ and is incorporated in Estonia. Again, checking with the relevant regulator, the Estonian Financial Supervision Authority (EFSA), shows that this is also not true.
Magnates Trade lacks authorization to offer brokerage services, which has been confirmed by the Italian regulator CONSOB, which has put the website on its blacklist of scammers:
When choosing a broker through which to invest in the financial markets, you should not only make sure that all the information required by law is available, but also that this information is true. Always check that the company is indeed on the records of the specified regulator and that the domain used is among those officially approved for the particular broker.
If you want to trade safely and enjoy guarantees and protections such as those promised by Magnates Trade, use a broker licensed and supervised by a regulatory institution such as Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
There are many advantages to working with such brokers because they must comply with all the requirements of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ЕSМА). They must maintain a minimum net capital of at least EUR 730 000, which guarantees that the company is financially stable and has a serious long-term approach.
Whenever clients deposit money in their trading accounts, it is kept segregated from the broker’s operating funds in separate bank accounts. Thus the clients’ money remains shielded in case of mishaps like a broker’s bankruptcy. All brokers licensed in Cyprus are members of the Investor Compensation Fund, which may cover a maximum of EUR 20,000 per person in the event of broker insolvency. Cypriot forex brokers are required to report their clients’ transactions on a regular basis. This requirement is designed to improve investor protection and promote market integrity and transparency.
MAGNATES TRADE TRADING SOFTWARE
Magnates Trade claims to offer one of the most widely used trading platforms in the industry, MetaTrader 4 (MT4). However, there are no download links for the software on the website, and the account registration menu leads to a “page not found” error.
There are more than enough licensed brokers offering clients the MT4 experience and/or the newer version of the software 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.
MAGNATES TRADE TRADING CONDITIONS
Magnates Trade claims to offer trading in all major asset classes, including cryptocurrencies. However, the website does not contain comprehensive information on trading conditions as one would expect from a legitimate broker.
Magnates Trade claims to offer two types of trading accounts, but does not specify basic parameters such as order execution type or minimum deposit. Very low spreads of 0.1 pip are listed, which usually come with additional commissions. Magnates Trade does not indicate whether there are commissions for trading and what their amount is.
The website also states that the accounts are “managed”. Many brokers offer managed accounts, but with scammers like Magnates Trade it’s just a way to fool you into thinking your money is really being invested. You can always go to a legitimate broker, most of which allow you to open a micro account with amounts of 100 USD or less.
Leverage of 1:33 and 1:100 is specified in the description of both account types. This in itself indicates that Magnates Trade could not be a broker operating in any European Union country. High leverage creates the opportunity for more significant profit, but correspondingly increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses.The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) and accordingly all EU regulators limit leverage to 1:30 for major currency pairs, 1:20 for non-major pairs, gold and major indices, 1:10 for other commodities and non-major indices, and 1:2 for cryptocurrencies.
Magnates Trade also allegedly offered bonuses, a practice banned for regulated brokers. The terms of the specific bonuses are not described. Fraudsters often tout bonuses and promotions, tying withdrawals to impossible conditions.
MAGNATES TRADE DEPOSIT/WITHDRAW METHODS AND FEES
Magnates Trade ‘s Terms and Conditions mention e-wallets and cryptocurrencies, but there is no information on what payment methods are used.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 and Neteller.
The minimum withdrawal amount is 100 USD. According to the Terms and Conditions, the withdrawal fees are listed on the website, but this is not correct.
HOW DOES THE SCAM WORK
The idea of passive income is increasingly attractive to more and more people. The Internet gives the impression that making money through investments in the financial markets is more accessible than ever to non-experts. But the online space is full of scammers who lure inexperienced wannabe traders through flashy advertisements and fake testimonials from satisfied clients. However, these fake brokers don’t really invest the money you give them – even though they very confidently assure you that you are generating great profits and should invest even more.
But when you try to withdraw some of your supposed winnings or deposit, it turns out to be impossible. Scammers will tell you that a sudden change in the market has wiped out all your money, or point you to vague clauses in the Terms and Conditions that require a huge minimum volume traded. The victim of such a scam may also be surprised with hidden fees and taxes amounting to tens of percentages of their funds.
Holding fraudsters accountable is difficult because they operate through offshore companies that are uncontrolled and unregulated. In addition, scammers require that you provide them with a copy of your ID and proof of address so that they can claim that all transactions were voluntary and agreed upon by both parties.
WHAT TO DO WHEN SCAMMED
First of all, you should know that there is another kind of scammers who prey on victims of fake brokers. They claim they can refund your money for an upfront fee. The most realistic option to get at least some of your money back is to request a chargeback, but this is only possible if you used a credit or debit card for the transactions. Scammers usually insist on using cryptocurrencies, direct bank transfers or shady online payment platforms where refunds are impossible.
