Beware! MGS Finance 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.
The website of MGS Finance, or MGS Financial, greets us with the claim that it is one of the biggest online brokers in the world. That’s an odd boast for a brand we’d never heard of. A close inspection shows that this is not a leading forex broker – in fact, MGS Finance is not a legitimate financial services provider at all. In this review we will show you the clues that this website is a scam, and point you to more deserving and trustworthy investment intermediaries.
MGS Finance Regulation and safety of funds
Guaranteed Funds | Segregated Accounts | Negative balance protection | |
MGS Finance | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
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 |
When you visit the website of a legitimate broker you can expect to find clear and detailed information about the company that owns and operates it, where it is based and what regulatory regimes it is subject to. Licensed financial services providers are also required to provide a comprehensive set of legal documentation.
The website claims that this broker is based in Australia, but gives no company name or regulatory license details.
The Terms and Conditions state that the company behind this website is called MGS Financial Ltd. The Terms and Conditions in question do not meet the standards for such binding documentation and contain no specific information beyond the company name.
In Australia there is a registered company with a similar name, MGS Financial Pty Limited. However, this company has a different address and is not a forex broker but is engaged in management consulting services. We found no evidence that MGS Finance’s website is affiliated with this legal entity.
Financial authorities in another country in the region, New Zealand, have issued a warning to investors that MGS Finance is not licensed and is defrauding its customers.
Before investing your money in financial instruments, it is imperative to make sure you do so through a licensed intermediary and not one of the many scammers lurking online. You should only trust legitimate brokers operating in one of the established financial centres like the UK, EU, USA or Australia. There, the activities of brokers are controlled by powerful regulatory bodies such as UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in US or Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Clients of these brokers receive protections such as negative balance protection and segregation of the client’s funds from the broker’s funds.
MGS Finance Trading software
Analytical tools | Auto trading | Custom indicators | Mobile apps | |
MGS Finance platform | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | ❌ |
MT4 | 30+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
MT5 | 50+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
cTrader | 40+ indicators | ✅ | ✅ | Android and iOS |
MGS Finance has a basic web trading platform. Here is how it looks like:
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.
MGS Finance Trading instruments
Currency | Stocks | Indices | Crypto | Commodities | |
MGS Finance | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
XM | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
FP Markets | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Octa | x | x | x | x | x |
MGS Finance theoretically offers trading in forex, stocks, commodities, indices and cryptocurrencies. But we have no reason to trust that this scam website offers real trading.
MGS Finance Spreads and cost of trading
MGS Finance | XM | FP Markets | Octa | |
Spread EURUSD | 0.7 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 0.9 |
Spread GBPUSD | 0.7 | 1.3 | 1.5 | x |
Spread USDJPY | 0.7 | 1.3 | 1.5 | x |
Genuine forex brokers provide detailed information about the trading conditions. Legitimate companies also offer different account types to suit clients with different experience, capital and investment intentions. MGS Finance offers no such information. In the trading platform we see a fairly low spread of 0.7 pips, but we do not know if this shady broker charges additional commissions.
MGS Finance Maximum leverage
Forex | Stocks | Crypto | Gold | Indices | |
MGS Finance | 400:1 | 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 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
MGS Finance demo accounts have a leverage of 1:400. This level significantly exceeds that allowed by financial regulations in Australia. High leverage creates the opportunity for more significant profit, but correspondingly increases the risk of sudden and excessive losses. . In the EU, UK and Australia the maximum permitted level is 1:30.
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.
MGS Finance Deposit and withdrawal methods
Deposit time | Withdrawal time | Price | |
Bank wire | 2-5 business days | 2-5 business days | $25+ |
Crypto | 24 hours | 24 hours | Fee depends on crypto |
MGS Finance’s deposit menu only gives a choice between cryptocurrency and bank transfer. The website does not provide information on a bank account to deposit to. Obtaining this information requires contacting the people behind the website via their Telegram channel.
Scammers prefer cryptocurrencies because these transactions are not subject to refunds. 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 or Neteller.
MGS Finance Minimum deposit
MGS Finance | XM | FP Markets | Octa | |
Minimum deposit | $100 | $5 | $100 | $100 |
MGS Finance specifies a minimum deposit of 100 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.
MGS Finance Withdrawal requirements
Trading volume | Fee/Tax on withdrawal | Minimum withdrawal | |
MGS Finance | 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 |
Since MGS Finance does not provide proper legal documentation, it is unclear what traps the fraudsters may have set. Typically, fake brokers make withdrawing money impossible through huge fees and impossible-to-fulfil traded volume conditions.