Archives: Brokers

Is 247SmartFx Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with 247SmartFx. 247SmartFx is owned and operated by Game Capital Ads Limited and claims to be located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. However, the broker does not mention its regulations. Brokers located in Germany should hold a license from the local authority - BaFin. 

What is 247SmartFx?

According to the website, 247SmartFx is an emerging global market leader in financial trading. Game Capital Ads Limited provides premium-quality trading services, which have fulfilled the trading needs of clients since the creation of the company in 2013.

• As we have already mentioned, 247SmartFx claims to be located in Frankfurt, and the contact phone number provided on the website has a British country code. The broker also claims to be licensed by the British regulator Financial Conduct Authority (reference number 723385). However, the FCA reference number 723385 is registered for www.smartfixuk.com, not 247smartfx.com. It seems like the broker is just another clone firm.
• Clone firms use some or all of the details of a genuine entity, aiming to convince investors they are indeed the authorized company or that they work with them.
• In addition, 247SmartFx has been blacklisted by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission:

"The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (‘CySEC’) wishes to inform investors that the following websites (including 247smartfx.com) do not belong to an entity which has been granted authorization for the provision of investment services and/or the performance of investment activities."

247SmartFx Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid 247SmartFx and other unregulated brokers. The lack of information about the broker’s regulations, trading conditions, and contact details should be the biggest red flag for those who plan to invest with the entity. Usually, such companies run investment scams. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as FP Markets, Alpari Group, and FXTM (Check out FXTM broker).

247SmartFx Update

Recently 247SmartFx website remains inactive and unavailable to reach, 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. 

Is First BTC FX Scam or Legit Broker?

First BTC FX 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.

What is First BTC FX?

First BTC FX is a Forex, CFD, and cryptocurrency broker. According to the website, the company has been providing premium-quality commodities and Forex trading services since 2013. It is not safe to trade with a Forex broker First BTC FX. It claims to be owned and operated by First Global (UK) Limited and located in the UK. 

• On its website, the broker provides regulatory information about the licenses it holds, the license from the Financial Conduct Authority, and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. However, it turned out First BTC FX is just a clone of the regulated financial institution. It has been using the name and license numbers of the FCA-regulated (Check out FCA-regulated company Fortrade Limited) First Global (UK) Limited which is not associated with First BTC FX in any way.
• First Global (UK) Limited is an international, full-service securities house that was established in 1998. The company provides services to mainly institutional clients throughout the United Kingdom and Continental Europe.
• Many companies, such as First BTC FX, purposely use the details of well-regulated entities to mislead potential clients. Such companies are called “clone firms” and should be avoided at all costs.
• In addition, First BTC FX has been blacklisted by the FCA:

First BTC FX Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid First BTC FX and other unregulated brokers. The lack of information about the broker’s regulations, trading conditions, and contact details should be the biggest red flag for those who plan to invest with the entity. Usually, such companies run investment scams. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as FP Markets, Alpari and FXTM (Learn about FXTM minimum deposit).

First BTC FX Update

Recently the First BTC FX website remains inactive and unavailable to reach, 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. 

Is TegasFX Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with TegasFX. TegasFX is a trading name of the Clover Markets Limited company located in Vanuatu, while regulated by the VFSC to ensure the highest level of client funds protection, as claimed.

• It should be mentioned that Vanuatu is an offshore zone notorious for scam brokers. To be more informed read why to avoid Vanuatu brokers. 

What is TegasFX?

TegasFX also claims its International standards achievement while the client funds are held in segregated bank accounts with international banks. The broker’s ability to offer market-leading pricing and trading conditions through the MT4 platform by providing clients with True ECN/STP environment (True ECN Brokers).

• TegasFX claims to be a new way of true ECN/STP trading with low-latency infrastructure, low market spreads (Best Low Spread Forex Broker), and a wide offer of trading instruments that get extended from time to time.
• However, the main concern throughout the broker’s offering is that Vanuatu is an offshore zone, which in fact does not implement the strictest rules of the financial firm established or constantly overseeing. Therefore, offshore firms claim about their sustainability are rather funny than serious, as may be just sweet words. Therefore, it became an offshore zone for shady forex brokers such as RCM FX, EssenceFX, and more. We have a detailed article explaining the risk of trading with brokers from Vanuatu.
• Furthermore, a lack of regulation seriously hurts the investors’ protection, while the trader cannot be sure how exactly the firm delivers its trading environment and manages funds, apart from its alleged trustful states.
• There are many ways the trader can protect himself and not fall under a number of risks, such as by choosing among the most reputable and of course well-regulated brokers. Since after making the mistake of investing with a company that misses serious regulations, it will be very hard and almost impossible to get the funds back or claim any compensation. And that’s besides the spoiled experience with the trading itself.

Overall TegasFX Ranking 

We disclosed regulation and safety problems with TegasFX, thus we do not rank positively TegasFX, based on our Expert Opinion with over 10 Years of experience in Forex Trading.

• TegasFX 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.

TegasFX Alternative Brokers

We revealed that TegasFX has a lot of issues, especially in respect of its safety and regulations. Thus, here are much better Alternatives to TegasFX with tight regulations and favorable trading conditions. We select Good Brokers and reliable options for your comparison below: 

• ADS Securities – Wide Range of Trading Instruments
• Capital Index – Good Trading Conditions
• InterTrader – Competitive Spreads

Deposit & Withdrawal

Making deposits at TegasFX is easy, as the broker offers multiple funding methods, such as Bank wire transfers, Creditcard (ADVCash), Bitcoin, Ethereum, US Tether (ERC-20), etc. 

• The minimum deposit amount is $200, while for the maximum amount, there is no limitation.
• The processing time for the deposits is usually very short and mainly is done on the same day. However, Bank transfers might take 1-2 business days.
• There is also an inactivity fee - a $5 fee after 6 months of inactivity.
• However, traders claim to face withdrawal problems with TegasFX, thus we recommend taking this fact into consideration before signing with the broker.

TegasFX Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid TegasFX 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 AvaTrade, FXTM, and eToro.

• Overall ranking and experience for TegasFX is Negative

Is Golden Financial Scam or Legit Broker?

Golden Financial 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, never monitored in terms of its safety and simply may operate the business in any way it wishes.

What is Golden Financial?

Golden Financial claims to be one of the world's largest foreign exchange, precious metals, securities, futures, and stock traders. The company is owned and operated by Golden Financial Solutions (Service) Ltd., and according to its website was founded in London, UK - the headquarters of the company.

• The broker claims to be regulated by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and New Zealand's Financial Markets Authority (FMA). However, we didn't find any records of the company in the registers of the mentioned regulator and most probably wouldn't find its license details with any other regulators.
• Moreover, New Zealand's FMA has issued a warning against Golden Financial:

"GFS is not licensed to issue derivative products (CFDs) to New Zealand retail investors; GFS is not regulated in New Zealand as claimed on its websites; GFS could be involved in a scam."

• The pages and official sources of the international regulators’ list alert are shared with the authority directly or by other countries’ supervisory bodies or transmitted centrally. Those tools and the general purpose of the regulatory bodies operate in order to enable stability of the market offerings, protect clients from potential and numerous frauds, enable reliability rules to financial service entities, and more. 

Golden Financial Review Conclusion

Considering false regulation information provided by the broker and a warning from a reputable authority, we don't recommend trading with Golden Financial. Investing with a properly regulated broker is crucial for the safety of any investment (See regulated forex brokers list here). Some of the reliable regulators are UK’s FCA, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as FXTM, eToro (Read about eToro broker), and XM.com.

Golden Financial Update

Based on our research, the Golden Financial website is inactive. This means the broker has muted its trading offering and does not operate. However, we recommend avoiding and staying alert in case of any proposals. 

Is 10Brokers Scam or Legit Broker?

It is not safe to trade with 10Brokers. The broker is suspected to be a scam. 10Brokers states to be located in Estonia, however, it is not registered with the local financial authority, which makes the broker's offerings untrustworthy.

• It is not advisable to sign in with unregulated or offshore brokers, as very often they turn out to be scams, causing traders to lose their investments. 

What is 10Brokers?

10Brokers is a broker that offers to trade with such assets as Forex, CFD, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies. The company is owned and operated by Euro Wealth OÜ that claims to be based and registered in Tallinn, Estonia.

• However, we didn't find any records of 10Brokers being regulated by the Estonian Financial Supervision Authority (EFSA). Although, the broker has actually been mentioned in the regulator's records, unfortunately, those are the broker alerts and warnings:
  "Finantsinspektsioon (the Estonian Financial Supervisory Authority) would like to inform clients and investors that Euro Wealth OÜ (previous business names AllProTech OÜ and Nostro Technology OÜ; registry code 14183116) does not hold an activity licence for the provision of investment services in Estonia and therefore AllProTech OÜ is not authorised to provide investment services in Estonia. The company offers the possibility to trade different derivatives through web page https://10brokers.com/."
• There is a big confusion with the names of the owner-companies of the 10Brokers, as we found at least 5 names that were associated with the broker this year. EFSA has already stated that Euro Wealth OÜ was previously named as AllProTech OÜ and Nostro Technology OÜ and these two companies were blacklisted as well.
• Also, KHO TEHCH Ltd. and FGM Technology Ltd were appearing next to the broker's name. In addition, FGM Technology Ltd. (trading as 10Brokers) have been blacklisted by the UK's FCA in June 2018:
  "FGM Technology Ltd trading as 10 Brokers is not authorised by us and is targeting people in the UK. Based upon information we hold, we believe it is carrying on regulated activities which require authorisation."

10Brokers Review Conclusion

Considering all the cons of the broker, we don't recommend trading with 10Brokers. Investing with a properly regulated broker is crucial for the safety of any investment. Here are some reliable regulators: UK’s FCA, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as FBS and BlackBull Markets.

10Brokers Update

We found that the 10Brokers website is inactive. This means the broker has muted its trading offering and does not operate. However, we recommend avoiding and staying alert in case of any proposals. 

Is Platinums Trade Scam or Legit Broker?

It is not safe to trade with Platinums Trade. The broker is suspected of being a scam. It does not provide any information about its regulations and registration. The contact information provided on the broker's website indicates Italian and English phone numbers, yet Platinums Trade is not registered in any of these countries, although it is obligatory to have a license in order to be able to provide financial services there. 

• Signing with offshore or unregulated brokers means putting your investments at risk. 

What is Platinums?

Platinums Trade is a Forex and CFD broker. The company is owned and operated by West Media Group limited and based in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which is a well-known offshore zone for forex brokerages. But not every trader knows that there is no forex regulation in St Vincent, so the broker companies are not overseen by any authority. Such licenses are cheap (around USD 2,000) and easy-to-get, which doesn't sound very reliable.

• Platinums Trade doesn't provide any information about its regulation. The website supports English, Italian and Spanish languages that indicate the countries the broker has been targeting. Also, the contact phone numbers shown on the website are British and Italian, however, the broker doesn't have offices in these countries and obviously is not regulated there.
• In addition, Italy's regulator CONSOB has issued a warning against Platinums Trade in April 2018:
  "The National Commission for Companies and the Stock Exchange, in accordance with article 7-octies, letter b) of the Consolidated Law on Finance (TUF), has ordered Platinums Trade through the website www.platinumstrade.com to cease infringement of article 18 of the TUF consisting of the offer and performance of investment services and activities to the Italian public."

Platinums Trade Review Conclusion

To succeed in Forex trading, it is essential to find a regulated and trustworthy broker with favorable offerings. Platinums Trade is not one of them.  We advise avoiding non-legitimate companies and to choose only among the recommended FCA Regulated brokers or similar regulated entities. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as FBS and BlackBull Markets.

Platinums Trade Update

We found that the Platinums Trade website is inactive. This means the broker has muted its trading offering and does not operate. However, we recommend avoiding and staying alert in case of any proposals. 

Is Lockwood Investments Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with Lockwood Investments. Lockwood Investments is owned by United Limited, which is an offshore company registered in 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 PTBanc, Pinprotrade, and more.

What is Lockwood Investments?

Lockwood Investments is an offshore broker that offers Forex and CFDs trade. The map on the website in the 'Contact Us' section shows the location in Sofia, Bulgaria. Probably, they haven't changed it while changing the name of the owner company. As we know, Lockwood Investments has previously been owned and operated by Solutions CM LTD, which also owns such unregulated brokers as OriginalCrypto, Britonprice, and Easy Line Pro.

• In fact, Solutions CM, as well as the brands owned by this company, have been blacklisted multiple times by different regulators.  In order to avoid a bad reputation, brokers just change their names from time to time to delude their new customers.
• In addition, Lockwood Investments has been blacklisted by Spain's CNMV:

"http://lockwoodinv.com is not authorized to provide the investment services detailed in Article 140 of the Securities Markets Law, which include investment advice, or to provide the auxiliary services detailed in letters a), b), d), f) and g) of Article 141 of the said Law in relation to the financial instruments detailed in Article 2 of the said Law, including, for those purposes, foreign currency transactions."

• The most recent warning is from the French regulator AMF:

"The Autorité des Marchés Financiers and the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution warn the public against the activities of several websites (including www.lockwoodinv.com) and entities proposing forex investments or proposing online investment services in France for derivatives whose underlying include crypto assets."

Lockwood Investments Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid Lockwood Investments and other brokers from the Marshall Islands. Brokers with offshore regulations are not reliable, due to the lax regulations and almost non-existent rules. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as FXTM, eToro (Check our review on eToro), and XM.

Lockwood Investments Update

Our research revealed that the Lockwood Investments website is inactive. This means the broker has muted its trading offering and does not operate. However, we recommend avoiding and staying alert in case of any proposals. 

Is Fin-Tech Prime Scam or Legit Broker?

Fin-Tech Prime is not a safe broker. The broker seems to be located in Tallinn, Estonia. However, it is not regulated by the local regulatory authority. Instead, the brand behind Fin-Tech Prime - Morgan Ltd. is registered in the Marshall Islands, which is an offshore zone. It is a well-known fact, that the Marshall Islands does not oversee the financial firms and their activities. This means the companies can operate however they wish, putting the clients' funds at risk. 

What is Fin-Tech Prime?

Fin-Tech Prime is a Forex and cryptocurrency broker and a trading name of General Media OU, located in Tallinn, Estonia. There are two more names behind this brand - Morgan Ltd., located in Bulgaria, and Morgan Holdings Ltd., located in the Marshall Islands. However, the broker is not regulated by Estonian Financial Supervision Authority or the Bulgarian Financial Supervision Commission, which only proves that Fin-Tech Prime is another unregulated offshore broker on the list.

• Moreover, UK's Financial Conduct Authority has issued a warning against the broker:
  "This firm (Fin-TechPrime) is not authorized by us and is targeting people in the UK. Based upon information we hold, we believe it is carrying on regulated activities which require authorization."

Fin-Tech Prime Review Conclusion

We strongly advise only dealing with financial firms that are authorized by respected and trustworthy regulators (Find and Compare Forex Brokers). In order to check if the chosen broker is authorized by the FCA, you can check its Financial Services Register to ensure it is. But if you are still searching for a well-regulated broker, check our list of FCA-regulated brokers. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as  FBS and HFM.

Fin-Tech Prime Update

We found the Fin-Tech Prime website inactive and unavailable to reach. This means the broker no longer operates. However, it is best to avoid and stay alert if any proposals come.