Beware! Fxtradewolf 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.
Fxtradewolf tries to pass itself off as a trusted and secure broker, licensed by a respected financial regulator. But this website is mostly a reminder that it’s important to always do careful fact checking before putting your money on the line. Fxtradewolf is not a real broker, but a fraudulent scheme designed to cheat inexperienced people out of their money.
FXTRADEWOLF REGULATION AND SAFETY OF FUNDS
The most important information about a financial services provider is its regulatory status. Licensed brokers provide detailed information about which company runs them, where it is based, which jurisdictions it is authorised in and which regulatory bodies oversee its activities.
According to the homepage of the website, Fxtradewolf is the trading name of Fxtrade Capital Markets Ltd, a company based in Malta and authorised by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA).
Such claims should not be taken on trust. A check of the MFSA database reveals not a licence but a warning that Fxtradewolf is a scam:
As further evidence of this, Fxtradewolf’s Privacy Policy refers to a different company, Fxtradewolf Pty Ltd , and the Terms and Conditions do not mention a legal entity name or specify a relevant jurisdiction at all.
The only thing we can be sure of with respect to Fxtradewolf is that it is not a licensed and regulated financial services provider.
If you have decided to invest in financial instruments, and especially if you are a novice trader, you should use the services of a licensed broker based in a jurisdiction with strong regulations. It is advisable to approach one of the licensed brokers that are truly regulated by institutions 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. When clients deposit money in their trading accounts, they are 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 and other EU countries are members of the Investor Compensation Fund, which may cover a maximum of EUR 20,000 per person in the event of broker insolvency. EU 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.
FXTRADEWOLF TRADING SOFTWARE
We do not find any information about the trading software on the Fxtradewolf website. Real brokers place particular emphasis on the technology options they provide to their clients.
After registering an account we get access to a web platform, which however proves to be a poor imitation. The platform only includes cryptocurrencies, doesn’t show the difference between the sell price and the buy price, and doesn’t even have an option to place pending orders.
But even if Fxtradewolf had a more convincing platform, that would not make this website credible. Fake brokers use trading software to mislead their victims that their money is really being invested. But this trade is entirely sham.
Legitimate brokers offer clients a wide selection of trading software, including desktop, mobile apps and web-based platforms. The most widely used platforms in the industry are 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.
FXTRADEWOLF TRADING CONDITIONS
When you visit the website of a legitimate broker you will find proposals for different types of trading accounts suitable for investors with different preferences, as well as detailed descriptions of trading parameters – minimum deposit, order execution method, tradable financial instruments, leverage, spread, swap, commissions, etc. Many licensed brokers allow you to start trading with a very low initial investment, often 50-100 USD or even less.
Such information is completely missing from the Fxtradewolf website. The Terms and Conditions themselves also give no clue as to what the trading parameters are. Various types of fees are mentioned, but their amount is not specified.
However, it does state that bonuses are offered. This is a further clue that the Fxtradewolf could not really be a regulated broker based in a European Union country. Regulated brokers are prohibited from using bonuses, promotions and prize games as a means of attracting customers.
FXTRADEWOLF DEPOSIT/WITHDRAW METHODS AND FEES
Fxtradewolf recommends that you make deposits with Bitcoin and doesn’t really give you any other choice.
Financial fraudsters prefer cryptocurrency transactions. The reason is that on the one hand it provides a level of anonymity to the fraudster, and on the other it deprives the defrauded of the ability to claim a refund.
While there are some legitimate brokers that accept digital currencies like Bitcoin, they do so alongside other transparent payment methods such as credit/debit card, bank transfer or popular e-wallets like PayPal, QIWI or Sofort.
According to the Terms and Conditions, if an account has received a bonus, it can only withdraw profits after it has met the minimum traded volume conditions. These requirements are extremely high – one standard lot of 100,000 currency units for every 5 USD bonus. Fraudsters routinely apply such tricks to block withdrawal requests.
HOW DOES THE SCAM WORK
There are many scammers lurking on the internet, luring people with promises of easy riches. These scammers arouse the curiosity of their potential victims through online ads, videos, comments and other content on social networks. Often the initial hook is get-rich-quick tips that link to websites and mobile apps of fake brokers or fake investment firms. After clicking on the ad or downloading the mobile app and having given their contact details, the victims are usually swiftly called by fraudsters presenting a concrete “investment proposal”.
These scammers are very aggressive and often even try to persuade the victims to allow them to take control of their computer remotely in order to make certain money transfers. The fraudsters also try to convince the victims to invest increasingly higher amounts of money. They also make promises of repayment in exchange for one last money transfer. This is a technique to collect even more money from their victims. When you try to withdraw your money, your request is blocked by hidden conditions and huge fees. Fraudsters can also simply disappear because they hide behind fake names and offshore companies.
WHAT TO DO WHEN SCAMMED
First of all, it is important that you do not try to recover your money by trusting people who claim to offer such a service for an upfront fee. These are also 100% scammers. If you used a credit or debit card for the transactions to the scammers, you could ask for a chargeback. But such a claim could be disputed if you provided the scammers with a copy of an ID or proof of address. Scammers usually get their victims to use cryptocurrencies that don’t allow refunds. In any case, it is advisable to inform the relevant financial authorities in your country and spread the word online to warn others not to fall into the same trap.
