Beware! Silcom GT 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.
Silcom GT is a good reminder of why you should always do careful fact checking before you put your money on the line. This website purports to be a regulated forex broker, but this is not true. In this review we will show you how to tell the difference between scams and credible financial service providers.
Silcom GT Regulation and safety of funds
Guaranteed Funds | Segregated Accounts | Negative balance protection | |
Silcom GT | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
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 |
Legitimate forex brokers provide clear and detailed information about the legal entity that owns and operates them, where it is based, what licences it has and which regulators oversee its activities. Lack of such details or improper presentation of them are always a red flag that we are probably dealing with a scam.
Silcom GT does not disclose the name of the company behind the website. This in itself is proof that it is not a licensed broker.
The homepage of the website claims that Silcom GT is based and licensed in Cyprus.
Elsewhere it is claimed that Silcom GT holds licences from other jurisdictions such as South Africa, Australia and Belize.
However, the text of the Terms and Conditions lists the applicable jurisdiction as the offshore area Vanuatu.
A check of the databases of the relevant financial regulators in these jurisdictions shows that there is no licensed broker using the Silcom GT’s trade name and domain.
The website is available primarily in Russian. This has attracted the attention of the Bank of Russia, which has issued a warning that Silcom GT is not authorised.
Under no circumstances should you trust your money to such anonymous websites full of false and contradictory information. Instead, 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.
Silcom GT Trading software
Analytical tools | Auto trading | Custom indicators | Mobile apps | |
Silcom GT platform | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |
MT4 | 30+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
MT5 | 50+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
cTrader | 40+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
Silcom GT uses basic web-based trading software. Here’s how it looks:
While this platform has the basic functionality to place orders, it cannot compare to the capabilities provided by MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5). It is no coincidence that these platforms have established themselves as the industry standard. 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.
It should be noted that the presence of some kind of trading software is no guarantee that this is a genuine broker. Financial scammers often use rigged trading platforms to fool their victims that their money is actually being invested. However, this trading is entirely fictitious and the money goes directly into the scammers’ pockets.
Silcom GT Trading instruments
Currency | Stocks | Indices | Crypto | Commodities | |
Silcom GT | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
XM | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
FBS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
FXTM | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Silcom GT has no statutory authority to facilitate trading in financial instruments. Coupled with the bogus claims of regulation, we are convinced that the trading offered by this anonymous website is fictitious.
Silcom GT Spreads and cost of trading
Silcom GT | XM | FBS | FXTM | |
Spread EURUSD | 0.1 | 0.6 | 1 | 1.1 |
Spread GBPUSD | 0.1 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.4 |
Spread USDJPY | 0.1 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.4 |
Silcom GT promises low commissions but does not provide clear information on the cost of trading.
Silcom GT Maximum leverage
Forex | Stocks | Crypto | Gold | Indices | |
Silcom GT | 500:1 | 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 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
Silcom GT offers leverage up to 1:500, which is also proof that it is not a regulated broker.
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. In the EU, UK and Australia the maximum permitted level is 1:30 and in the US it is 1:50.
Regulated brokers offer higher leverage only to professional clients who must meet very high standards for capital and experience and forgo the guarantees enjoyed by retail traders.
If you don’t qualify as a professional trader but are willing to take the risk of high-leverage trading, the most viable option is to use the services of an offshore affiliate of an established brand.
Silcom GT Deposit and withdrawal methods
Deposit time | Withdrawal time | Price | |
Crypto | 24 hours | 24 hours | Fee depends on crypto |
Silcom GT only allows the deposit of funds with cryptocurrencies.
This is typical of financial scammers. Cryptocurrencies are their payment method of choice because on the one hand they allow the scammer a degree of anonymity, and on the other hand they do not allow the scammed to ask for 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, Neteller or Skrill.
Silcom GT Minimum deposit
Silcom GT | XM | FBS | FXTM | |
Minimum deposit | $150 | $5 | $10 | $5 |
Silcom GT specifies a minimum deposit of 150 USD, which is the industry standard. But this means that for the same amount you could open a trading account with an established and duly licensed forex broker. Some of the leading brands in the industry offer Micro and Cent accounts with a very low entry threshold that are suitable for novice investors.
Silcom GT Withdrawal requirements
Trading volume | Fee/Tax on withdrawal | Minimum withdrawal | |
Silcom GT | Not specified | 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 |
Silcom GT does not specify extraordinary conditions for withdrawal. But these types of scams always surprise you with hidden fees and other tricks that prevent you from withdrawing your money back.