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Is SmartFX Scam or Legit broker?

SmartFX is not a secure Forex broker since it does not hold a license from any worldwide serious Forex authority. Meaning the broker is suspected of being a fraud company since it was not checked for its compliance before establishment, was never monitored in terms of its safety, and simply may operate the business in any way it wishes.

• SmartFX is owned and operated by Smart Securities and Commodities Limited. We are Regulated by Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC) and Authorized to deal with securities by providing all kinds of financial services to our clients. Registration number - 40491 with a registered address at Office 1276, 1st-floor Govant building, Kumul highway, Port Vila, Vanuatu. 
• Vanuatu is the easiest jurisdiction to open a brokerage, as the opening requires the company to submit a register online, prove initial established capital which is $2,000 only, pay a fee, and within 2-3 months, the firm is crisp and registered. Therefore, it became an offshore zone for shady forex brokers such as JustProForex, 70Trades, and more.

What is SmartFX?

SmartFX is an international online Forex and CFDs trading firm offering 24 hours access to a diverse range of trading products including fares, currency pairs, commodities, futures, indices, and stocks. Through SmartFX and the renowned MetaTrader 5 trading platform clients can take advantage of high liquidity, low spreads (Find out more on Low Spread Forex Brokers), mobile trading, technical analysis, and even more. The broker claims to maintain high standards to keep trading environments secure and offer the best tailor-made trading conditions for every client.

Overall SmartFX Ranking 

Based on the revelations of our research there are multiple issues in respect of SmartFX  regulation and reliability, we do not rank positively SmartFX , based on our Expert Opinion with over 10 Years of experience in Forex Trading.

• SmartFX Overall Ranking is 2 out of 10 based on our testing and compared to 500 other brokers, see Our Ranking below compared to other popular and industry Leading Brokers.

SmartFx Alternative Brokers

Considering the SmartFX safety issues we found during our research, we suggest much better Alternatives to SmartFX with good regulations and excellent conditions. We select Good Brokers and trustworthy options for your comparison below: 

• BlackBull Markets – Best for Copy Traders
• XM – Broeker with Low Minimum Deposit
• Interactive Brokers – Good for Stock Trading

SmartFX in India

SmartFX does not offer financial services to the residents of India. 

SmartFX in the USA

SmartFX does not offer financial services to the residents of the USA. The United States is one of the countries that is not accepted by SmartFX. As per U.S. law, brokers regulated by CFTC are the only brokers allowed for USA traders. So, except for SmartFX, you are only permitted to trade with U.S-regulated platforms.

Deposits & Withdrawals

SmartFX offers a big variety of deposit methods. 1) Electronic Payment Methods (Skrill, Neteller, STICPAY); 2) Bank Wire Transfers (National Bank of Vanuatu and Local bank in Dubai); 3) Credit/ Debit cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express). 

• The minimum withdrawal is 100 USD for Electronic Payment Methods, Credit/Debit cards, and Bank Wires as well.
• With SmartFX you can withdraw your funds anytime. Simply log in to your Client Portal and place your withdrawal request. It is only possible to send your withdrawal back to the original source of the deposit. Usually, all withdrawal requests are processed within 24 hours on business days. To deposit or withdraw the funds, your account must be Verified.
• SmartFX does not charge any additional fees for deposits. You should however be aware that you may incur fees on payments to some international banking institutions. SmartFX accepts no responsibility for any such deposit fees.

Apps

SmartFX provides its traders with the opportunity to trade via the MT5 mobile platform (See other MT5 Brokers too). Ideal for traders on the go, MT5 mobile brings new order types and detailed market-depth information straight to the mobile device. It is available for iOS and Android users. 

Demo Account

The broker also offers a demo account. A demo Account is created for you to practice your skills without any risks. You trade oe virtual money, which you can't withdraw. A Live Account is created to get you to trade with real money and your profits/losses are for real. SmartFX's Demo Account doesn't have an expiry. You can practice your skills for the period you need to get familiar with a terminal and trading until you are ready to trade on a Live Account.

SmartFX Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid SmartFX and other brokers from Vanuatu. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as Alpari and FXTM.

• Overall ranking and experience for SmartFX is Negative

Is JustProForex Scam or Legit Broker?

It is not safe to trade with JustProForex, as it is an offshore company (Regulated Forex Brokers in Europe). Justproforex Overseas Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission with license number 17933, is a subsidiary of Justproforex Group Ltd, and shares the “Justproforex Brokers” trading name. 

• Vanuatu is the easiest jurisdiction to open a brokerage, as the opening requires the company to submit a register online, prove initial established capital which is $2,000 only, pay a fee, and within 2-3 months, the firm is crisp and registered. Therefore, it became an offshore zone for shady forex brokers such as IC Finance, 70Trades, and more.

What is JustProForex?

JustProForex offers its clients to trade FX, metals, CFDs (on shares, indices, commodities, bonds, ETF, cryptos), and exchange-traded Physical Stocks. It promises trading at core spreads (Brokers with Low Spreads) paying very low commissions according to the order size. Positive slippage is also enabled; trading on MT4+, MT5+ desktop, web (Explore Best MT5 Brokers), and other third-party platforms equipped with custom add-ons and indicators. The broker claims to use world-class, renowned auditors, and all clients’ funds are fully segregated and kept secure within the UK and German banking institutions. Let’s have a look at what JustProForex statements are true and what are false.

• As to the broker’s VFSC license, from our source, it costs €24,000 per year to become a member. However, there is no handbook or guidelines for brokers to run their businesses. Therefore, there is zero protection for traders. We have a detailed article explaining the risk of trading with brokers from Vanuatu.

• According to the website, JustProForex Group Ltd operates under strict European regulations, is regulated and licensed by CySEC (Cyprus) (You can check CySEC regulated broker's review by the link Triumph FX), is MIFID II compliant, and is also registered with Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (BaFin) (Germany) (Read LegacyFX Review that is also a BaFin regulated forex broker), the FCA (UK) (Read about FCA Regulated Fortrade LTD)and the ACPR (France). JustProForex Group Ltd is also a member of the ICF (Investor Compensation Fund). However, the registration details provided by the broker belong to another regulated company that has no association with JustProForex. 

• The broker is not regulated and has been misleading its clients with false regulatory information. Moreover, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission has included JustProForex in its warning list:

  "The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (‘CySEC’) wishes to inform investors that the following websites do not belong to an entity which has been granted authorization for the provision of investment services and/or the performance of investment activities."

• We have also noticed that JustProForex has the same website interface as the blacklisted and suspended FX Premium, and there is a chance JustProForex is a “new face” of FX Premium, therefore it should be avoided at all costs. You can read our full FX Premium review here.

JustProForex in India

JustProForex allows Indian traders to open accounts and trade. However, JustProForex has no mention of complying with any Indian regulators on its website. It is also worth mentioning that Forex trading is actually prohibited in India. The broker is not regulated by any regulatory body in India, that’s why money safety may be the issue here.

JustProForex in the USA

The United States is one of the countries that is not accepted by JustProForex. As per U.S. law, brokers regulated by CFTC are the only brokers allowed for USA traders. So, except for JustProForex, you are only permitted to trade with U.S-regulated platforms.

Deposits and Withdrawals

The broker offers the following payment methods: Visa, Mastercard, Wirecard, Barclays, Skrill, Sofort, Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Bank Deposits, Western Union, and MoneyGram.

• The minimum deposit requirement is 500 USD. 
• The broker does not provide any information about withdrawals.

Demo Account

We couldn’t find any information about the Demo Account on the JustProForex platform. 

JustProForex Review Conclusion

We strongly advise avoiding unregulated brokers such as JustProForex and opening a trading account only with brokers that are regulated by respected world authorities that comply with the required set of rules and have a good reputation through the delivered timeframe of operations. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as AvaTrade and XM.com.

JustProForex Update

Recently the JustProForex website remains inactive, meaning the broker has muted its trading offering and does not propose account openings. However, we still advise traders to be alert and careful, in case they receive trading proposals. 

Is CobraCFD Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with CobraCFD, as it is an offshore company. Cobracfd is owned and operated by Cobracfd Ltd and Kings Power Ltd. registered in Trust Company Complex, the Marshall Islands.

• The Marshall Islands is notorious for its practically absent requirements and regulations. Due to the setup cost being low, it does not regulate forex trading. Therefore, it became an offshore zone for shady forex brokers such as MegaTradeFX, Swissinv24, and more.

What is CobraCFD?

CobraCFD claims to deliver options for trading in some of the most popular liquid assets, including currency pairs, stocks, most major financial indices, and commodities. CobraCFD operates around the globe and places great emphasis on providing professional and reliable services to all its customers. They offer several trading platforms that have been designed to meet the needs of investors from beginners to advanced. However, we have some concerns about the reliability of this broker (Best Forex Brokers for Beginners). 

• According to the website, Cobracfd operates in accordance with international financial and money laundering laws. However, they do not provide any specific information about the regulation and it doesn’t seem CobraCFD is regulated by any authority. The broker provides British contact number without having an actual office there or being regulated in the United Kingdom.
• Moreover, CobraCFD has been blacklisted by the Italian regulator CONSOB:

“CONSOB  availed itself of the powers deriving from the "growth decree" regarding the blackout of the sites (including CobraCFD Ltd (website www.cobra-cfd.biz) of abusive financial intermediaries, as well as the new power introduced by Law no. 8 of 28 February 2020, regarding the blackout of the site through which the abusive bid is made.”

CobraCFD Review Conclusion

We strongly advise all investors and traders to avoid CobraCFD and other brokers from the Marshall Islands. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as City Index and eToro.

CobraCFD Update

Recently the CobraCFD website remains inactive, meaning the broker mutes its trading offering and does not propose account openings. However, we still advise the traders to be alert and careful, in case they receive trading proposals.