Archives: Brokers

Is Circleforex Scam or Legit Broker?

It is not safe to trade with a Forex broker Circleforex. It claims to be owned and operated by Huanying International Limited and regulated and located in New Zealand. Circleforex 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 Circleforex?

Circleforex (Yuanhui Finance) is a Forex broker that offers a wide variety of investment products, such as currency pairs, precious metals, and other investment products.

• According to the website, the broker is holding a New Zealand financial service provider license (number: FSP476086). However, there is no such company in the regulator's register. Huanying International Limited actually exists anf the license number shown on the platform does belong to the FMA-regulated Huanying International Limited that has nothing to do with  Circleforex (Yuanhui Finance).
• Moreover, New Zealand's financial regulator Financial Markets Authority has recently issued a warning against Circleforex/ Yuanhui:

"We recommend exercising caution before dealing with www.circleforex.com as this website claims to be associated with FSP476086 in New Zealand which is incorrect. Circleforex / Yuanhui is not registered on the FSPR."

• Also, the only language available on the broker's website is Chinese, which points out the "market" that Circleforex has been targeting. 

Circleforex Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid Circleforex 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 AvaTrade and FXTM (Read about FXTM trading platform).

Circleforex Update

Recently the Circleforex 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 EssenceFX Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with EssenceFX, because it is an offshore broker. The Company is wholly owned by Essence Markets Limited under registration number 40309, regulated by the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission, and incorporated in the Republic of Vanuatu.

• Vanuatu is the easiest jurisdiction to open a brokerage, as the opening requires the company to submit a register online, prove initial establish 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 RCM FX, RickGlobal, and more.

What is EssenceFX?

EssenceFX is a global broker providing online currency trading services. The company provides access to a large choice and range of financial markets to trade, including Forex markets, Indices, and Commodities, all on the MT4 platform.

• As to the broker’s VFSC license, from our source, it costs €24,000 per year to become a member. However, and 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.

• The broker provides a Hong Kong contact phone number, however, it is not located or authorized by the local Securities & Futures Commission of Hong Kong. This usually means the broker has been targeting locals, illegally offering them financial services. 

EssenceFX Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid EssenceFX 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 and FXTM (Read about FTXM Trader).

EssenceFX Update

Recently the EssenceFX 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 RCM FX Scam or Legit Broker?

No, it is not safe to trade with RCM FX. RCM FX is owned by Regal Core Markets Limited which is an offshore company registered in Vanuatu and claims to be registered with a Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC) license.

• Vanuatu is the easiest jurisdiction to open a brokerage, as the opening requires the company to submit a register online, prove initial establish 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, OlympusMarkets, and more. 

What is RCM FX?

As to the broker’s VFSC license, from our source, it costs €24,000 per year to become a member. However, and 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.

• The company doesn't provide any contact address or phone number. Clients or potential investors can only contact the support team through the online request form, which doesn't seem very reliable. Also, besides the English language, the website supports the Chinese language. Most probably RCM FX has been targeting Chinese residents (without being authorized in the country). 

RCM FX Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid RCM FX and other brokers from Vanuatu. Very often unregulated or offshore brokers run investment scams. Thus, we advise traders not to trust attractive offerings and promises and instead find a reliable broker with tight regulations. Traders should trade with well-regulated brokers such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as Alpari and FXTM (See the Forextime Review).

RCM FX Update

Recently RCM 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 CT-Trade Scam or Legit Broker?

Our research showed that CT-Trade broker is a total scam. It is NOT SAFE to trade with this company. We found that there is no authorization or registration of the address, therefore the company seems to be highly suspicious and seems to be a clone firm. 

What is CT-Trade?

CT-Trade is the clone company of Citibank Europe plc. The clone claims to be regulated by Citibank Europe plc and has the same address as the original company – 71-75 Shelton Street, London, WC2H 9JQ, UNITED KINGDOM.

• Therefore, the clone should also be carrying the UK FCA license as the original company does. But the CT-Trade is not licensed in the UK or any other country. In case, of obtaining the STP license from UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, the company would need to pay USD 50,000 and also needs USD 100,000 of capital aside from client deposits.
• 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.

CT-Trade Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid CT-Trade 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 Top Forex Brokers such as BlackBull Markets and Eightcap.

CT-Trade Update

We found CT-Trade Website inactive. Since money safety in forex goes first we recommend avoiding any proposals from CT-Trade and staying alert in case of any proposals. 

Is CFD Royal Scam or Legit Broker?

According to our research, CFD Royal is a total scam. CFD Royal is owned and operated by Elit Property Vision LTD with a registered address in Sofia, Bulgaria. However, the broker is not authorized or regulated by the Financial Supervision Commission in Bulgaria or any other regulator.

• Forex and CFD brokers are required to have a license from the local financial authorities in order to offer and provide financial services. CFD Royal doesn’t carry such a license, so it cannot be considered a reliable broker to invest with.

What is CFD Royal?

As we kept our search about CFD Royal, we found a few shady things that definitely should be mentioned. The owner company Elit Property Vision LTD also owns other brokerages, such as CarterFS and RichmondFG. These companies have been blacklisted multiple times by different regulators, and this fact definitely doesn't put a lot of trust in CFD Royal.

• Another thing is that CFD Royal has previously been owned by United Limited, an offshore company based in the Marshall Islands. The Marshall Islands is notorious for its practically absent requirements and regulations. The setup cost is low and it does not regulate forex trading. And the last reason, why traders should avoid CFD Royal is that the company has been banned by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority:

"This firm (CFD Royal) is not authorized or registered by us but has been targeting people in the UK, claiming to be an authorized firm."

CFD Royal Review Conclusion

We advise all investors and traders to avoid CFD Royal 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 (See the Top Forex Brokers List) such as UK brokers or brokers in Australia and reliable brokers such as BlackBull Markets and Pepperstone.

CFD Royal Update

Based on our research CFD Royal Website is inactive. It is unclear whether the broker has changed its name and operates another fraud Forex activity or is just gone. We recommend avoiding any proposals from CFD Royal and staying alert in case of any proposals.