Beware! BTYEX 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.
If the BTYEX website is to be believed, this is “a leading FX brokerage dedicated to excellence” that provides “ultimate FX experience”. But if you believe such boasts without fact checking them you will probably end up scammed.
Careful inspection of this website does not provide us with any evidence that BTYEX is a legitimate financial services provider. In this review we will describe the many problems with BTYEX and recommend more credible forex brokers.
BTYEX Regulation and safety of funds
Guaranteed Funds | Segregated Accounts | Negative balance protection | |
BTYEX | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
UK regulated brokers | £85 000 | Yes | Yes |
EU regulated brokers | €20 000 | Yes | Yes |
AU regulated brokers | No | Yes | Yes |
US regulted brokers | Yes | Yes | No |
If a financial services provider is legitimate, you will find on its website clear and detailed information about the company that owns and operates it, where it is based, and what licences it has. Genuine brokers also provide access to a comprehensive set of legal documentation. The availability of such information does not guarantee that it is not false or misleading. But the absence of these elements is very indicative that in all likelihood you are dealing with scammers.
It is a complete mystery who is behind BTYEX. The website and legal documentation do not give a company name or contact address. The applicable jurisdiction is listed as the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), an offshore zone where there are no regulations in place for forex brokers.
As soon as you open the website of the local Financial Services Authority you see a warning that the institution does not licence forex and other types of brokers and does not supervise the activities of International Business Companies engaged in such activities.
In addition to this, the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) has put BTYEX in its warning list of fake financial service providers.
If you have decided to invest in financial instruments you have a choice of much more trustworthy options.
Depending on your location, it is advisable to choose a company that is regulated by an institution such as Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the US, Australian Securities and Exchanges Commission (ASIC), UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or some EU regulator like Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
Clients of these brokers receive protections such as negative balance protection and segregation of the client’s funds from the broker’s funds. In the EU and the UK, brokers must also participate in guarantee schemes that cover a certain amount of the trader’s investment if the broker becomes insolvent. These guarantees amount to up to 20 000 EUR in the EU and 85 000 GBP in the UK. However, the likelihood of such a bankruptcy is low because regulators also have significant net capital requirements that companies must maintain – EUR 730 000 in UK and Cyprus, AUD 1000 000 in Australia and at least 20 million USD in the United States.
BTYEX Trading software
Analytical tools | Auto trading | Custom indicators | Mobile apps | |
BTYEX platform | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |
MT4 | 30+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
MT5 | 50+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
cTrader | 40+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
After registering an account, we get access to a pretty basic web trading platform that doesn’t feature extensive customization options or advanced functionality.
We’ve seen the exact same platform being used by multiple fake brokers we’ve encountered. Scammers are using rigged trading software to fool their victims into believing that their money is really being invested and even turning a profit.
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.
BTYEX Trading instruments
Currency | Stocks | Indices | Crypto | Commodities | |
BTYEX | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
XM | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
FBS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
FXTM | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
BTYEX advertises trading in forex, indices, stocks, commodities and cryptocurrencies. But the descriptions of the trading account types lack specific and detailed information on trading parameters. Genuine forex brokers provide detailed information about the trading conditions.
BTYEX Spreads and cost of trading
BTYEX | XM | FBS | FXTM | |
Spread EURUSD | 1.1 | 0.6 | 1 | 1.1 |
Spread GBPUSD | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.4 |
Spread USDJPY | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.4 |
In the trading platform we see an acceptable spread of 1.1 pips for the benchmark currency pair EUR/USD. But as stated, we have no reason to believe that the BTYEX offers real trading. Legitimate brokers offer even more advantageous conditions to traders.
BTYEX Maximum leverage
Forex | Stocks | Crypto | Gold | Indices | |
BTYEX | 100:1 | 100:1 | 10:1 | 100:1 | 100:1 |
UK regulated brokers | 30:1 | 5:1 | ❌ | 10:1 | 10:1 |
EU regulated brokers | 30:1 | 5:1 | 2:1 | 10:1 | 10:1 |
AU regulated brokers | 30:1 | 5:1 | 2:1 | 10:1 | 10:1 |
US regulated brokers | 50:1 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
A high leverage of 1:100 is set in the trading platform. This is not a level that you see with regulated brokers. Trading with high leverage allows higher profits, but also increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses proportionally. All leading regulators limit leverage for retail traders. Higher levels of leverage are only offered to professional clients who trade entirely at their own risk.
If you are willing to take the risk of trading with high leverage and benefit from bonuses and promotions, the best option is to invest through an offshore division of an established brand.
BTYEX Deposit and withdrawal methods
Deposit time | Withdrawal time | Price | |
Crypto | 24 hours | 24 hours | Fee depends on crypto |
Typical of this type of financial fraud, BTYEX only uses one payment method – cryptocurrencies.
Scammers prefer cryptocurrencies because these transactions are not subject to refunds. 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, Neteller or Skrill.
BTYEX Minimum deposit
BTYEX | XM | FBS | FXTM | |
Minimum deposit | $5000 | $5 | $10 | $5 |
BTYEX requires a minimum deposit of 5,000 USD.
This is an absurdly high amount considering that many leading global brokers allow you to start trading with an amount as low as 5 USD.
BTYEX Withdrawal requirements
Trading volume | Fee/Tax on withdrawal | Minimum withdrawal | |
BTYEX | Bonus x25 | Not specified | Not specified |
UK regulated brokers | No | No | No |
EU regulated brokers | No | No | No |
AU regulated brokers | No | No | No |
US regulated brokers | No | No | No |
In the Terms and Conditions we see a typical scam clause. If the account has received a bonus it must trade an amount equal to 25 times the bonus plus the deposit before it can withdraw funds. Most financial regulators prohibit brokers from offering bonuses and promotions.