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FXCM Review

Minimum Deposit: $50 VISIT BROKER

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

Forex Capital Markets (FXCM) is a well-known online brokerage that provides forex, CFDs, and spread betting services. The broker was established in 1999 with the goal of providing access to financial markets through new tools and excellent trading conditions.

Investing Brokers

March 7, 2023

Forex Capital Markets Limited (“FXCM LTD”) is the brand name of the FXCM group of companies or FXCM Group. The FXCM Group’s companies are regulated in several jurisdictions, including FCA, ASIC, and FSCA. FXCM was founded in 1999 and headquartered in London, UK.

FXCM offers a nice product portfolio covering various asset classes, including forex, commodities, stocks, indices, cryptocurrencies, and baskets of different instruments. FXCM offers CFD trading and Spread Betting (UK only) in one place. In addition, the broker offers tight spreads and commission-free trading. Moreover, the broker accepts both individuals and as well as institutions as clients.

FXCM offers multiple account types and trading platforms, including MT4, Trading Station, Ninja Trader, TradingView, and Speciality platforms, with top-of-the-line liquidity. Moreover, the broker offers useful trading tools such as AI and VPS hosting.

FXCM has a ton of educational and research resources, including market data, news, analysis, trading signals, and guides. You can also practice trading on a free demo account which can be a good way to see if the broker meets your needs whilst familiarising yourself with the platforms.

FXCM falls under top-tier government regulatory authorities such as FCA, ASIC, and FSCA. In addition to minimal trading costs, the broker offers multiple sophisticated trading platforms. FXCM also offers copy trading and social trading with useful premium addons like VPS service. Multiple payment methods are available, and deposits are processed free of cost. On top of that, FXCM provides high-quality educational and research resources.

On the other hand, FXCM is not a public company. Thus its financial information is not available. Moreover, the broker does not provide banking services. A minimum deposit of $50 is required to get started with the broker. There is a withdrawal fee for wire transfers. Lastly, the broker has trading instruments from a limited number of asset classes when compared to industry leaders such as IG.

FXCM has a comparatively limited product portfolio. The broker offers securities to trade via CFD trading or Spread Betting from various asset classes, including forex, commodities, indices, shares, cryptocurrencies, and baskets (ETFs). However, the broker does not offer options and government-yield bonds. If you are interested in those asset classes, you might want to consider AvaTrade instead.

FXCM Instruments Summary

Commission and Spread Fees

FXCM offers decent spreads starting from 0.2 pips on EURUSD on the standard account with zero commission fees. These are not the lowest spreads that you will find but that is because the commission is included as a spread mark-up. However, you can get spreads from just 0.0 pips on the raw spread account but that does incur a very competitive $5 round trip commission fee on top. Overall, I think it is fair to say that the costs are quite low, although you can get $4 per round trip and 0.0 pip spreads from FXTRADING.com.

Deposit and Withdrawal Fees

FXCM does not charge any deposit fee. But there is a hefty $40 withdrawal fee for withdrawing via wire transfers.

Inactivity Fees

FXCM charges an inactivity fee of $50 after 12 consecutive months of account dormancy. If you plan on taking a break from trading and would rather avoid this charge, then you might want to take a look at Swissquote instead.

FXCM’s platforms include its own Trading Station, MetaTrader 4 (MT4), TradingView, and NinjaTrader 8, all of which offer algorithmic trading. FXCM also provides ZuluTrade for social copy trading and Trader Workstation for stocks, both powered by Interactive Brokers. In addition, the broker useful tools such as VPS, hosting for its clients who want to automate their trading 24/7.

Trading Station

For professional traders, the Trading Station platform offers up a world of potential prospects with bespoke indicators, strategy optimization, strategy backtesting, and powerful charting. Some of the most successful traders employ automated systems to remove the human factor from trading. Automated strategies may be introduced to Trading Station Desktop with a few mouse clicks. Because of the breadth and scope of FXCM’s trading pool, you get access to significant market data. Trading Station’s distinctive Real Volume indicators, which are pre-loaded on Trading Station, provide you with unrivalled access and strategy support based on real market sentiment. The Speculative Sentiment Index (SSI) is a patented contrarian indicator that is meant to assist you in trading trending markets. The index ratio indicates whether traders are net-long or net short a certain currency pair and to what extent. The Trading Station Mobile platform enables retail traders to access the FX market fast and simply. Trades can be placed and maintained on the move because of their simple, user-friendly interface, which was built from the bottom up to work flawlessly on mobile devices.

The following are the key elements of the Trading Station:

MetaTrader 4

This is the one of the best trading platforms when it comes to CFDs and user-friendliness. It is packed with an abundance of tools for analysing the charts. You will find the platform is easy to navigate, with everything you need for manual and automated trading at your fingertips. There are thousands of additional tools and apps that provide new functionality to the platform which you can find in the marketplace directly from within the platform. FXCM does not impose any restrictions on traders’ usage of the MT4. It is accessible as a downloaded Windows desktop programme as well as a mobile trading app for iOS and Android smartphones.

Here are some of the MT4 trading platform’s features.

Ninja Trader

You can open an account with NinjaTrader and benefit from FXCM’s extensive network of forex liquidity providers, which includes worldwide banks, financial institutions, prime brokers, and other market makers. The NinjaTrader is an industry leader with powerful analytics, charting, and automation tools with full FX capability.

Here are some of the cool features of Ninja Trader:

ZuluTrade

This is only available to clients in the United Kingdom. ZuluTrade is one of the top social trading platforms, but not quite on par with the industry leading eToro. Clients that are interested are sent to the ZuluTrade portal, where they may select from a variety of signal sources and automatically duplicate their trades. Just keep in mind that there is no guarantee on how good or bad these signals will perform. Past performance is by no means a guarantee of what will happen in the future.

TradingView

TradingView is a social network for Forex, Futures, and Stock market traders and investors. You may use TradingView every day and conduct your demo and live trading with FXCM since it includes live quotes, stock charts, and expert trading suggestions. I think this is one of the best charting platforms out there and is ideal for anyone who like to get down to the nitty gritty of market analysis. You can get access to TradingView through a few other select brokers including Oanda.

API Trading

An application programming interface (API) is a collection of definitions, protocols, and tools used in the development of application software. In general, it is a set of precisely specified communication protocols between diverse software components. FXCM provides four FREE APIs, each of which connects directly to FXCM’s trading server: a REST API, a FIX API, a Java API, and a ForexConnect API. They have a solid API offering, as do FXPIG if that is something that you are looking for.

REST (Representational State Transfer) API: REST (Representational State Transfer) API is a web-based API that uses a WebSocket connection and is designed with algorithmic trading in mind. Developers and investors may construct bespoke trading apps, connect them to the platform, backtest strategies, and build trading robots. Calls may be made in any language that understands a basic HTTP protocol.

FXCM uses the new OAuth 2.0 protocol for token authentication. This enables more secure application access and is readily integrated with online apps, mobile devices, and desktop platforms.

The API has streaming capabilities and will push data in JSON format thanks to the use of the socket.io package. Your application will have access to real-time streaming market data, will be able to get historical prices, will be able to subscribe to real-time updates to trading tables, and will be able to conduct live trades.

The broker provides a Python wrapper that integrates seamlessly with Jupyter Notebook. In addition, FXCM also gives real-world examples of how to use FXCM data to develop and test strategies on popular platforms such as BT Analysis, QSTrader, Zipline, and QuantConnect.

FIX API: A FIX Protocol standard built for real-time, specialised institutional interfaces that can provide up to 250 price updates per second (not available on other APIs). It’s the quickest and most popular option. At FXCM, you will have access to the entire spectrum of trading order types. A $5,000 minimum balance in an FXCM Trading Station account is required.

JAVA API: Java API, a FIX API wrapper SDK, gives customers a fully functional programmable API into the FXCM trading platform. It has live streaming pricing as well as historical prices for live trading. It is scalable, lightweight, and resilient, and it works with any Java-compliant operating system.

FOREXCONNECT API: The ForexConnect API provides the same capabilities as the robust FXCM Trading Station. This covers all order types, streaming live prices, managing your positions, obtaining historical instrument rates, receiving account reports, and more. ForexConnect is FREE and supports C++, C#, Java, VB, VBA, and it is compatible with.Net, Linux, iOS, and Android, and it supports C++, C#, Java, VB, VBA.

Capitalise AI

FXCM and Capitalise bring you AI trading. This one-of-a-kind relationship and platform enables you to execute code-free strategy automation just by inputting your concept. Enhance your trading with simple, intuitive, and code-free automation. Capitalise.ai monitors real-time market data, technical indicators, and macroeconomics for you 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Open as many strategies as you wish — Only triggered strategies will utilise your purchasing power. Use historical data to analyse how your plan might have fared in the past. Using real-time data, you may test your methods without risk. Gain insights from each trade’s extensive and detailed facts. With the press of a button, you may modify your plans based on their results. Use the Capitalise.ai app on your iPhone or Android to manage your trades on the fly; edit, halt or automate new trading methods.

VPS

A Virtual Private Server (VPS) is crucial for traders who use complicated trading systems and Expert Advisors (EAs) that demand ongoing connectivity but do not require the trading platform to run on their own workstation. To provide this service to its clients, FXCM has teamed with two well-known VPS providers. You can also get a free VPS from other brokers including Key to Markets. I think a VPS is great if you want to run automated systems 24/7 without your own computer switched on.

Live Charts

FXCM provides advanced real-time charts for a variety of trading instruments. There are ten chart kinds and more than a dozen periods. There are approximately 80 technical indicators on the charts. TradingView, a well-known financial research organisation that offers charting and analytical services, provide this professional charting package.

Specialty Platforms

FXCM provides its clients with the ability to trade on any of the following specialist platforms upon request:

FXCM Platforms Summary

FXCM offers a ton of educational and research resources. Several trading articles are available to help new traders learn the ropes. These articles start with terminology, fundamental principles, indicators, and trading techniques and go to trading strategies. The website includes a vocabulary of approximately 45 pertinent trade words. The video library includes lessons on platform use, forex introduction, order kinds, and mobile platform usage.

Market Updates

The worldwide market news is updated multiple times during the day. It provides the most recent news and events in the economic activity of many nations. Forex and other financial markets are covered in the news.

Economic Calendar

The FXCM economic calendar highlights worldwide economic events that have an impact on trading instrument prices. You may look up events and compare analyst consensus to historical data. The calendar also provides trade suggestions.

FXCM Plus

This is a collection of tools meant to help traders. It includes daily trading signals, a technical analysis tool, and trade analytics. During trading hours, the daily signals are created and updated in real-time. To find trading opportunities, the technical analyst uses indicators and charts. Trading analytics can help you to detect trade errors and optimise your trading for improved results.

Apps

This is a market area where platform-tools may be purchased or downloaded for free. Over 50 MT4 applications, 50 Trading Station apps, 10 NinjaTrader apps, and 10 standalone programmes are available in the shop. The applications mostly consist of automated techniques, indicators, and addons.

Market Analyser

This technology searches the markets and generates five distinct sorts of signals. It can scan forex and CFDs using the indicators and periods selected by the user. This can be a good way to get some inspiration for trade opportunities.

Technical Levels

This is a free daily email brought to you by Trading Central, a professional research organisation that offers technical analysis and daily market commentary on a variety of instruments. The newsletter is called “Before the Bell,” and it is distributed by email. It includes daily asset assessments as well as chart analysis.

Trade Volatility

This tool tells you about market sentiment and volatility across different trading instruments. It can be a useful tool to help gauge in which direction the market may be heading.

FXCM Research and Education Summary

FXCM has multiple payment options for deposits and withdrawals, including wire transfers, debit/credit cards, and e-wallets. I think they could improve by adding support for crypto payments to keep up with competitors who already so, such as InstaForex.

FXCM Funding Summary

FXCM Group of companies is registered and regulated in different jurisdictions. The broker has the following regulation licences:

FXCM Regulation Summary

FXCM Safety

FXCM employs Secured Socket Layer (SSL) encryption on all of its websites and platforms. SSL encryption safeguards data transfer between clients’ computers and FXCM’s servers, keeping hackers out of the picture. This is critical because identity thieves and online fraudsters may attempt to steal sensitive user information such as credit card numbers, verification papers, and user accounts. All customer funds are maintained in separate bank accounts. These accounts are held in top-tier banks in Europe, Australia, and other FXCM countries of operation. In Australia, for example, customer money is kept by Citibank, Australia, a well-established multinational bank. The ‘Financial Services Compensation Scheme’ insurance provides additional protection for European clients’ funds (FSCS).

FXCM offers clients support during weekdays (24/5) via live chat, WhatsApp, phone, and email. This is another area in which I feel that the broker could improve by extending support hours to weekends. There are other brokers who provide 24/7 support, including Plus500.

FXCM is a seasoned CFD broker with several regulatory licences. The broker has invested in cutting-edge technology solutions to assist in providing clients with favourable trading circumstances. The award-winning proprietary Trading Station is brimming with useful features for traders of all levels and sorts. FXCM also supports the widely used MT4 platform. With the inclusion of the sophisticated NinjaTrader and other APIs, FXCM has become a broker with many options based on individual trading needs. FXCM has formed alliances with respected professionals in order to provide its clients with top services. Partnerships with TradingView, Trading Central, and VPS providers are examples of this. However, when compared to other brokers who provide thousands of assets, the amount of tradable assets accessible is quite restricted. I also feel they may be slightly overwhelming for beginners who may prefer the simplicity of what Trading 212 have to offer in comparison.

FXCM Review

Minimum Deposit: $50

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