Founded | 1999 |
Platform | MT4, NinjaTrader, Mirror Trader & ZuluTrade |
Minimum account size | $2,000 |
Minimum lot size | 0.01 |
Tradable assets | 50+ currency pairs |
Maximum margin | 1:200 |
Spread on EUR/USD | 0.2 pips |
Payment methods | Credit/Debit Card, Bank Wire & ACH |
Demo account | Yes |
Accepts US traders | Yes |
Regulated | NFA (US), FCA (UK), ACP (France) & ASIC (Australia) |
Support | Email, Phone, Fax & Live Chat |
Pros
- Accepts US traders
- Good range of platforms
Cons
- Company is no longer stable
- Minimum deposit is too steep
- Support is always queuing
- No welcome bonuses
FXCM was founded in 1999 and is authorised and regulated by National Futures Association in the US, the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK, the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel in France and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. The company however has incurred heavy losses from the unprecedented volatility in the Euro against the Swiss Franc with a negative client balance of $225 million.
Platform
FXCM offers the popular MetaTrade 4, NinjaTrader, Mirror Trader and ZuluTrade platforms which are all equipped with advanced charting packages allowing their clients make direct trades from the charts. Such feature is a good advantage for me as a trader which is why I am giving them a Platform score of 9/10.
Design
The platform design is very clean and organized. I never experienced any difficulties in using the interface because it’s easy to locate the menus and the commands on the screen. Even the process of placing the trades are well simplified so even new users are sure to have no problems in getting used to the platform. Such simplicity deserves a Design score of 4/5.
Minimum Deposit
The minimum deposit at FXCM is $2,000 which I find to be quite high if compared to the other brokers in the market today. I find it trivial as to why they necessitate such high initial deposits when other brokers allow much lower requirements and for this I am giving them a Minimum Deposit score of2/5.
Minimum Lot Size
The ability to trade using a low lot size gives me the opportunity to effectively control the risks. With FXCM I can use a minimum lot size of 0.01 and for this they deserve a Minimum Trade Score of 5/5.
Tradable Assets
FXCMhas over 50 currency pairs available on their platforms and this includes the exotic ones like the USD/ZAR, USD/SGD, USD/HKD, USD/TRY, EUR/TRY and SGD/JPY pairs. Such diversity of choices warrants a Tradable assets score of 4/5.
Payouts
They offer tight forex spreads with no markups and this means that the chances of making good profits are increase. The spread of 0.2 pips on the EUR/USD currency pair is a lot better than what other brokers can offer and for this I am giving this broker a Payouts score of 9/10.
Withdrawal Time
According to their website, the standard processing time around 2 days which is way faster than other brokers. During my actual tests, my withdrawals were indeed processed in 2 days and I was able to get my money back in less than a week. This is solid evidence that they can be trusted because they do fulfill their promise in returning the money of their clients and this is the reason why I am giving them a Withdrawal Time score of 10/10.
Deposit and Withdrawal Methods
Funding a FXCM account can be done using credit and debit cards, bank wire, paper cheque, ACH and UnionPay. All of these payment methods are very basic and don’t require any complicated steps in transferring funds.This warrants FXCM a Deposit and Withdrawal Methods score of 4/5.
Customer Support
I tried contacting them over the phone but their lines are always busy so I used the live chat feature thinking that I can get a better chance of getting in touch with their support team but it’s actually much worse as I have to wait for more than an hour just to get an agent online.
The busy lines and the 1 hour waiting time on the live chat are totally unacceptable which is why I am giving them a score of 3/15 for Support.
Quoting Accuracy
It is important to trade with a broker that has a good quoting software. With FXCM, I seldom experience requotes because it has a very fast trade execution. And even if there are delays, it’s not that frequent even when the markets are highly volatile.This broker deserves a perfect Quote Accuracy Score of 9/10.
Reputation
The unprecedented volatility in the Euro against the Swiss Franc has caused FXCM to incur heavy losses with a negative client balance causing the company to acquire financing from Leucadia National Corp to meet regulatory capital requirements. This has caused an alarm for existing and prospective clients since the company has become unstable and for this they deserve a Reputation score of 7/20.
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Conclusion 6.6/10FXCM used to have a very satisfactory rating based on grading system but because of the latest developments, we are forced to revise our scores to provide you with this updated review. Due to this current situation, we have come into a conclusion that this broker is no longer stable and trading with them entails a high risk. We highly recommend that you sign-up with much more stable brands such as eToro, Plus500 or AvaTrade as alternatives so you can continue with your trading activities. |