Beware! A-Com ECNс 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.
A-Com ECNс wants us to believe that it represents a regulated and established forex broker that we can trust with our money. But this website is actually part of a group of online scams. This group includes other fake brokers we have reviewed, such as Alacom Corporation. In this review, we’ll show you how to do fact checking to make sure you’re investing through a legitimate broker.
A-Com ECNс Regulation and safety of funds
Guaranteed Funds | Segregated Accounts | Negative balance protection | |
A-Com ECNс | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
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 |
The first thing to look for in a forex broker’s website is which legal entity runs it, where it is based and what regulatory oversight it is subject to. But the availability of such information does not guarantee that it is not false or misleading.
A-Com ECNc claims that behind this broker there is a company named A-Com ECNc ltd. Ltd, which is based in Cyprus and holds licenses from financial regulators not only in this jurisdiction, but also in the United Kingdom, Dubai and South Africa. The website even has links to the licenses from the websites of three of these regulatory institutions – Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and Dubai Financial Services Authority.
When you open the links you see perfectly credible looking licenses. When you click on any of the links on these websites you are taken to the actual websites of these institutions. But the A-Com ECNc ltd licenses themselves are on a different domain, which is a copy of the regulators’ websites. When you look up A-Com ECNc ltd in the records of these regulators, you find that such a company is not listed among the licensed financial services providers.
The text of the Terms and Conditions specifies the applicable jurisdiction as the offshore zone of Vanuatu.
The A-Com ECNс website is available primarily in Russian. We therefore checked the Bank of Russia’s register, where we found a warning to investors that Alacom Corporation is not licensed.
If you intend to invest in financial instruments, you should beware of the many fake brokers lurking online. Always check carefully whether the broker you choose really has the necessary licences. There are numerous benefits to working with a company that is truly authorised and supervised by a regulatory institution such as the FCA or CySEC.
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.
A-Com ECNс Trading software
Analytical tools | Auto trading | Custom indicators | Mobile apps | |
A-Com ECNс 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).
A-Com ECNс Trading instruments
Currency | Stocks | Indices | Crypto | Commodities | |
A-Com ECNс | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
XM | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
FP Markets | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Octa | x | x | x | x | x |
A-Com ECNс’s trading software includes forex, cryptocurrencies, commodities, stocks and indices. But this website has already been found to be misleading about being a licensed broker. We have no good reason to believe that this trading is real and not fictitious.
A-Com ECNс Spreads and cost of trading
A-Com ECNс | XM | FP Markets | Octa | |
Spread EURUSD | 0.1 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 0.9 |
Spread GBPUSD | 0.1 | 1.3 | 1.5 | x |
Spread USDJPY | 0.1 | 1.3 | 1.5 | x |
In the A-Com ECNс trading platform, we see a spread of just 0.1 pip. Such a spread implies that the broker charges some kind of commission. But nowhere on the website is the amount of the commission stated.
A-Com ECNс Maximum leverage
Forex | Stocks | Crypto | Gold | Indices | |
A-Com ECNс | 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 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
A-Com ECNс claims to offer leverage between 1:100 and 1:500 for different account types. This is also evidence that this website does not represent a licensed broker based in the EU or any other highly regulated jurisdiction.
High leverage creates the opportunity for more significant profit, but correspondingly increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses. All leading regulators therefore restrict leverage for retail traders. The FCA, like EU regulators, limits leverage to 1:30 for trading in major currency pairs and even lower levels for more volatile assets.
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.
A-Com ECNс Deposit and withdrawal methods
Deposit time | Withdrawal time | Price | |
Crypto | 24 hours | 24 hours | Fee depends on crypto |
A-Com ECNс 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.
If you’re interested in legitimate brokers that accept digital currency payments alongside conventional methods, check out this list.
A-Com ECNс Minimum deposit
A-Com ECNс | XM | FP Markets | Octa | |
Minimum deposit | $150 | $5 | $100 | $100 |
The minimum deposit required by this fake broker is 150 USD. For the same or much lower amount you could become a client of a leading global brand.
A-Com ECNс Withdrawal requirements
Trading volume | Fee/Tax on withdrawal | Minimum withdrawal | |
A-Com ECNс | 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 |
A-Com ECNс 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.