WikiFX Articles and Updates

[WikiFX]

Illegal broker: TBC
Regulatory status: Currently unregulated
Complainant: Ms. Zhang
Cause of complaint: Withdrawal failure

Investors might often heard about high leverage in forex investment, and tempting as the so-called “high leverage with high return” may sound, it often accompanies equally high risks, as there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Recently, WikiFX got a report from a victim of such “high-leverage” scam.


Event recap

In late July this year, Ms. Zhang opened an account with forex broker TBC. Tempted by the broker’s promise of high leverage, Ms. Zhang invested US$ 20,000 for her first deposit, hoping to make a fortune with it. However, her investment turned out unsuccessful as she lost nearly US$ 5,000 within a month. Towards the end of August, Ms. Zhang decided to withdraw her balance, but her application remained “in progress” while her withdrawn balance failed to reach her account. Ms. Zhang tried contacting the customer service and the IB of the broker, but neither of them responded to her request. To date, Ms. Zhang’s balance remains unavailable.

Ms. Zhang made a US$ 20,000 deposit to TBC

Ms. Zhang lost nearly US$ 5,000 within a month

Ms. Zhang’s withdrawal application remains “in progress”

Analysis

Many investors may assume that a higher leverage in forex trading means they can harness a larger amount of capital to make greater profits. However, such mindset is often easily targeted by illegal brokers, who lured gullible investors into their traps with so-called high leverage. A fact easily ignored by investors is that with higher leverage, there’s inevitably a greater risk; and in the case of choosing an illegal broker, investors face multiplied risks of losing their money.

Ms. Zhang is apparently a victim of the “high-leverage” scam. TBC claims on its official site that investors can “maximize your capital utilization through an optional 1: unlimited leveraged forex trading”. Yet the main financial regulators around the world such as FCA, ASIC and NFA all have restrictions regarding the leverage provided by forex brokers under their supervision, and no regulator allows forex trading with so-called “1: unlimited leverage”.

Per checking the WikiFX App, TBC is currently unregulated and has been in business for less than a year. Rated at only 1.11 on the WikiFX App, the broker is extremely untrustworthy, and investors should stay away from it.


Conclusion
TBC is but one example of the illegal brokers who try to deceive investors with their misleading “high-leverage” campaigns online. Investors need to carefully verify credibility of such advertisements and stay alert to slogans such as “ high-leverage”, “low threshold” and “great bonuses”. Always check the broker’s profile to make sure its compliance. If you have any doubt about the broker, you can download the WikiFX App to verify its identity.

 

[WikiFX]

[Previous visit recap]
In our last visit, WikiFX confirmed that the licensed branch of forex broker XGLOBAL in Cyprus really exists and is in regular business. As the “eyes” and “ears” of global investors, we pay random visits to forex brokers around the world and make comprehensive assessments of brokers base on the results. With these information and assessments, we can better serve investors by helping them to identify reliable brokers and stay away from illegal ones, and we remain committed to this mission despite all difficulties. This time we’re visiting AL-HIDAYAH

Broker’s Profile
Name: AL-HIDAYAH
Location: Malaysia
Regulatory status: suspected clone-licensed
Status: doesn’t exist at the address
Website: alhidayahbank.com
Address: level 14(b)&14(C) main office tower, financial park complex, jalan merdeka, 87000 labuan F.T.

According to the address from regulatory information, we arrived at Financial Park, the office building where AL-HIDAYAH is supposed to be located. Local Labuan residents told us that this business complex is the tallest in the area, hosting many local banks as well as branches of foreign banks such as Deutsche Bank, Citibank and UOB.

Because we didn’t have a reservation, we had to fill out a visitor registration from at the building’s reception and left our ID/business card. After we got to level 14 by elevator, we didn’t find AL-HIDAYAH on the floor directory, but a management firm named Regus instead. The staff members from Regus told us AL-HIDAYAH had moved away, while its former office is also empty with no one working there.

We confirm after the visit that AL-HIDAYAH’s licensed branch in Malaysia is not at the address from its regulatory information. Per checking the WikiFX App, AL-HIDAYAH is rated at 1.19 and its MM license from Labuan Financial Service Authority (LFSA) is suspected to be cloned. The broker bears substantial risks and investors should stay away from it.

To check out detail information of more forex brokers, you can download the WikiFX App. WikiFX will continue to present you latest market trends and forex information. Stay tuned as we bring you more forex updates.

 

[WikiFX]

Broker: Plus500
Visited on: September 20th, 2019
Conclusion: the broker truly exists.

On-the-spot investigation
According to regulation information, the licensed branch of Plus500 in Singapore is located at 1 Temasek Avenue, #18-07 Millenia Tower, and we recently check out on Plus500 at the spot.

We arrived at 1 Temasek Avenue, a grand-looking office building with distinctive features. The striking sign “Millenia Tower” can be seen at the entrance, where 2 security staff were busy checking visitor’s identities. The building also has an access control system, indicating strict security management.
At the reception’s, we asked whether Plus500’s office is inside the building, and the receptionist gave a positive answer after verifying our identities. Although we were unable to enter the office without reservation, we confirm that Plus500’s branch office in Singapore really exists at the address from regulation information.

Analysis
According to the Global Financial Centres Index 26 (GFCI 26) recently released, Singapore ranks No. 4 among the top 10 financial centers around the world, second to only Hong Kong in Asia. As one of the Four Asian Tigers, Singapore has made globally recognized achievements, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has played a crucial role in helping Singapore to become the world’s top financial hubs. In recent years, the rigorous and efficient regulation mechanism of MAS has greatly improved the local finance environment, which attracts many prestigious financial companies such as Plus500 to expand their business in Singapore.

According to the company’s official website, Plus500 is a leading CFD service provider that offers trading facilities on shares, forex, commodities and cryptocurrencies, alongside innovative trading technology. Established in 2008 in Australia with main offices in Sydney, Plus500 is listed on the London Stock Exchange and holds licenses from multiple global regulators, including ASIC(Australia)’s MM license, FCA(UK)’s STP license, FMA (New Zealand)’s STP license, CYSEC(Cyprus)’s MM license and MAS(Singapore)’s retail forex brokerage license. Per checking MAS website, Plus500’s regulation information is valid and the company’s Singapore branch is compliant and fully in business.

Conclusion
WikiFX App shows that Plus500 is currently in valid regulation, holding forex licenses from multiple regulators including FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia) and MAS (Singapore). With a high rating of 9.22 on the WikiFX App, Plus500 is a reliable forex broker that investors can entrust their assets to. Meanwhile, we still suggest investors to remain careful when trading forex and pay attention to asset safety.

 

[WikiFX]

Background

Previously we confirmed through on-the-spot investigation that Malaysian forex broker Albus Capital Inc. Doesn’t exist at its claimed address and has no valid regulation. Due to the relatively weak regulation over finance and forex industry in Southeast Asian, such illegal brokers are everywhere in the region and with little efforts, they can lure unwary investors into their traps.

Rating of Albus Capital Inc. on the WikiFX App

A successful case of recovering defrauded fund

Ms. Aisyah is a victim of Albus Capital Inc., who at first postponed her withdrawal request with various excuses and then deactivated her account with no reason.

Felling quite desperate, Ms. Aisyah sought WikiFX’s help to retrieve her money. WikiFX team immediately contacted her after receiving the message and checked all detail information of the incident.

As a large amount of money was involved and Ms. Aisyah was eager to get it back, WikiFX promptly reviewed all evidences she provided and came up with an action plan the very same day. With WikiFX’s generous support, Ms. Aisyah was able to recover her deposit of US$ 250,000 (equivalence of over 1 million Ringgits).

Ms. Aisyah’s conversation with WikiFX


How do illegal brokers usually trick investors?

With the fierce competition on forex market, illegal brokers are also “upgrading” their traps. WikiFX made a list of the typical tricks used by illegal brokers, and whether you’re still thinking about forex investment or have started trading already, it’s a good idea to watch out for these issues during your investment:

Giving wrong trading signals deliberately;
Analyst giving misleading information;
Manipulating investor’s account and causing loss;
Trading on the investor’s behalf and causing loss;
Causing loss or negative balance due to serious slippage/ network delay;
Failing to execute stop-profit or stop-loss orders;
Blocking investor’s deposit leading to negative balance;
Blocking investor’s access to trading account and causing loss;
Showing misleading market trend and causing loss;
Showing misleading price due to technical issues and causing loss.

Conclusion

Dedicated to the grand mission of safeguarding investors and their assets, WikiFX strives to improve the forex market environment for investors by weeding out the illegal brokers. Through years of unremitting efforts, WikiFX has exposed tens of thousands of illegal brokers, receiving wide acclaims among investors for these achievements.

If you’d like to report a broker scam and defend your rights, please leave a message on the WikiFX App and seek help from our professional team. We will also update latest information of investors’ complaints against illegal brokers.

 

[WikiFX]

As a forex investor, you may be once ambitious to make a fortune through trading currencies, or have read piles of books on fundamental and technical analysis in order to grasp the tricks of the trade, yet back to reality, you simply can’t make profits or even keep losing money. You may blame it on yourself, thinking it’s because you’re not good enough, but the truth is you may be a victim of illegal brokers and have stepped into their traps.

As forex market has no fixed spot for trading, investors need to trade through forex broker that serves as an intermediary in forex trading, and in many cases, the losses in investment can be attributed to the practices of illegal brokers. If you ever had any of the following situations:
-Suffered loss due to misleading instructions of the broker’s analyst;
-The broker manipulated your account without authorization;
-Suffered loss due to severe slippage or network delay of broker;
-The broker failed to execute your stop-profit/ stop-loss order;
-Couldn’t make deposit and ended up in negative balance;
-Couldn’t access your account and ended up at loss;
-The broker’s chart looks different from that of others;
-Suffered loss due to inexplicable “technical failures”.
-You need to pay attention to these warning signs as they suggest high possibility of being defrauded.

The rapid development of the forex industry has led to a proliferation of forex brokers, which also include unqualified ones that attempt to attract investors through methods such as boosting advertising efforts. As an authoritative forex media, WikiFX has recorded profiles of over 13,000 forex brokers from over 30 countries across the world, covering nearly the whole industry. For investors who have started trading, you may easily check the compliance of your broker; and for those who are about to begin forex investment, WikiFX can help you chose a regulated and trustworthy broker by offering brokers’ information of all aspects.

If you find on WikiFX App that the broker you’re trading with has any irregularity or non-compliant practice, or you’re having trouble withdrawing from the broker, you can report the broker to WikiFX by providing trading account records and other information. WikiFX will publish an exposure article after reviewing the evidences provided, and try the best to help you recover your defrauded fund through legal measures and other available means.


As a leading media of the forex industry, WikiFX not only offers reliable and comprehensive forex information to investors, but also aspires to help investors fight illegal brokers and recover their defrauded fund, driven by a sense of justice. Stay tuned as we bring you the story of how WikiFX successfully helped investor get back the money swindled by illegal broker.

 

[WikiFX]

The forex market has seen a series of big events since the beginning of October: US Federal Reserve released the monetary policy meeting minute, China and US conducted a new round of high-level trade talks and Britain is mapping out its way to leave the European Union. Amid the big news, forex brokers are still busy competing for market exposure through advertising campaigns. In WikiFX’s 20 largest ad-spending brokers ranking in October, the high rated brokers account for more than half of the list. However, 3 low rated brokers still got listed and even saw their rankings go up. Here’s the list of October’s top 20 ad-spending brokers.

The top 5 on the list remain unchanged compared with last month, while the No. 1 largest ad-spender XM has topped the list for 4 months in a row ever since it rose to the position in July. Headquartered in Cyprus and established in 2009, XM holds MM licenses from ASIC(Australia) and CySEC(Cyprus), as well as retail forex brokerage licenses from IFSC(Belize) and FSA(UK). With nearly a decade’s rich experience, the broker is now one of the front-runners of the industry. FXTM which takes up the second place is also a broker of considerable strength. Once the lasting champion of ad-spending list like XM, FXTM is a fully compliant licensee of FCA(UK), CySEC(Cyprus) and other regulation authorities. Forex brokers FBS, Alpari and AVATRADE ranked the third, fourth and fifth respectively.

Overall, high-rating brokers take up an overwhelming majority of the list. Brokers who just enter the list such as easyMarkets and BCR all have pretty high ratings as well.

But a few low-rating brokers are still trying to expand their market share. A typical example is IC Markets whose ranking soared from No. 20 in September to No. 6 this month, suggesting considerable market exposure of the broker. As IC Markets receives heavy complaints from investors lately on the WikiFX App and has tremendous risks, WikiFX has put the broker on blacklist. Another illegal broker BTCC Global dropped out of the list last month but returned to October’s ad-spender list, and the WikiFX App shows its NFA(US)’s license for generic financial services is suspected to be cloned. The broker has poor rating and investors are suggested to stay away from it.

The top ad-spending brokers list in October has significantly less illegal brokers comparing to previous ones, indicating that the overall environment for forex investment is improving. But a few illegal brokers are still making large advertisement spending which investors should beware of. As a leading forex media, WikiFX have now recorded information of more than 13,000 forex brokers, and investors can verify the information they received from a broker’s advertisements by searching the broker on the WikiFX App. If you have been defrauded by illegal broker and suffered loss, you can contact WikiFX and we will try our best to help you recover the fund. Please view recent articles of WikiFX for more information.

 

[WikiFX]

Broker: AAFT GLOBAL
Regulatory status: currently unregulated
Complainant: Mr. Lin
Cause of complaint: broker blocked withdrawal and manipulated account without authorization

The fast-growing forex market in recent years has seen a proliferation of brokers, who apply all sorts of marketing strategies in order to attract more investors. Ambiguous or even misleading information is not uncommon in the advertisements of brokers, which can be shown in a recent complaint case WikiFX has received. Mr. Lin, an investor from Malaysia, accused forex broker AAFT GLOBAL of posting misleading advertisements, blocking withdrawals and manipulating his account, causing him heavy losses.

Event recap
This April, Mr. Lin was introduced to AAFT GLOBAL by an investment consultant of a financial institution. After signing up at the platform, he made several deposits under the so-called consultant’s suggestion. By closely following the market trend, Mr. Lin was able to make some profits in his later investment, though he didn’t trade frequently. His several withdrawals during this period were all promptly handled by the broker. In July, Mr. Lin suddenly need to withdraw a sum from the trading account, but after his application was successfully submitted, he failed to receive the money. What’s more, after his withdrawal requests remained undealt with for a week, Mr. Lin found his account was being manipulated without his authorization, which soon wiped out his entire account balance.

Mr. Lin contacted the consultant who recommended the broker, but the guy first said Mr. Lin’s own maloperation was to blame and then said it was the problem of the MT4 software, and it wasn’t long before he stopped answering Mr. Lin’s questions. Mr. Lin also tried to contact AAFT GLOBAL’s customer service, but failed to get any helpful answer either. 2 months after the incident, Mr. Lin’s account remains empty and he still can’t get his money back.

Mr. Lin’s account suffered heavy loss due to unauthorized manipulation.

Mr. Lin’s email to the customer service of AAFT GLOBAL

Analysis
Notably, the broker’s name that Mr. Lin mentioned in the first place was “FIDUCIAN”, which couldn’t be found in WikiFX’s database; Through further investigations, WikiFX team found it’s introduction on the website of AAFT GLOBAL, though the connection between AAFT GLOBAL and FIDUCIAN remains unclear, the website seems to suggest that “FIDUCIAN” which swindled Mr. Lin is in fact AAFT GLOBAL itself. The broker’s website offers introduction in Chinese and English, and the Chinese version was not only poorly-worded but also give confusing and blurry description in terms of the broker’s regulatory status. The English introduction also appears suspicious.

Per checking the WikiFX App, AAFT’s profile and qualification doesn’t match its claim on the official site. It has been in business for less than a year and is currently unregulated. With a low WikiFX rating of 1.10, the broker is very dangerous and investors are suggested to stay away from it.

Conclusion
WikiFX’s powerful database currently includes information of over 12,000 broker regulated by authorities from more than 30 countries world wide and is constantly being updated. As choosing broker is a crucial step during investment, if you’re not sure about validity of the broker’s information you received from other channel, you can always look up the broker on the WikiFX App or our official website to gain a better perspective.

 

[WikiFX]

Broker: OANDA
Visited on: September 6th, 2019
Conclusion: the broker really exists

On-the-spot investigation
From regulatory information, we learned that OANDA’s licensed branch in Singapore is at 50 Collyer Quay #04-03, Oue Bayfront. WikiFX recently visited OANDA at the location.

We arrived at 50 Collyer Quay, a magnificent building located in the financial hub at the centre of Singapore and surrounded by several landmarks near Marina Bay. The Oue Bayfront area has a strict access control system to ensure security, so we weren’t able to get into OANDA’s office. But from the building’s reception, we learned that OANDA’s office is indeed located here, and the fact that OANDA has its office inside a building with a modernized and luxuriously-furnished lobby in such an expensive area suggests the company is of considerable size and strengths. We thus conclude that OANDA’s branch in Singapore really exists.

Analysis
forex brokers in Singapore is not very large, most of them enjoy good reputation and decent ratings. This can be largely attributed to the strict regulation system of Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Since its establishment, MAS has been continuously improving its mechanism and innovating its regulatory infrastructures and policies, and all these efforts further consolidated Singapore’s role as a financial centre in Southeast Asia.

According to OANDA’s website, it is a leading company in currencies data and forex trading that offers investors and other financial institutions leveraged trading, money transfer and data services. Through its development in the past 22 years, OANDA has grown from a technology start-up to a leading global company with branches in the US, UK and Singapore, holding licenses from 5 major regulators. Per checking regulatory information, OANDA has MAS (Singapore)’s license for retail forex brokerage and is qualified for forex related business.

Conclusion
The WikiFX App shows OANDA to be under valid regulation. Having been in business for over 15 years, the broker holds MM licenses from ASIC (Australia), FCA (UK) and NFA (US) and retail forex brokerage licenses from FSA (Japan) and MAS (Singapore). OANDA is currently rated at 8.9 on the WikiFX App, suggesting considerable credibility; but as the broker has received 18 investor complaints in the past 3 months, we remind investors to be careful in choosing this broker and ensure their assets’ safety during the investment.

 

[WikiFX]

Nowadays, illegal forex brokers are often exposed in news reports. From disconnecting trading server to causing serious slippage and negative balance through manipulation, the forex brokers keep coming up with new tricks to defraud investors’ assets, leaving them in heavy losses.

Exposure of illegal broker:
Complainant: Mr. Qiu
Illegal broker: G-IMFCH
Cause of complaint: the broker rejected withdrawal applications

Mr. Qiu is an investor at G-IMFCH. His withdrawal application, submitted this August, was left unapproved by the broker, and although the customer service kept saying they have “sped up” processing of the issue, Mr. Qiu saw no progress in solving his withdrawal failure after waiting for more than a month. Having had enough of the broker, Mr. Qiu finally decided to file a real-name complaint at WikiFX in order to warn others against G-IMFCH.

Analysis
It turns out that the customer service’s so-called “expedited processing” of the application is only a lame excuse for the broker to postpone investor’s withdrawal. Meanwhile, the English introduction from the broker’s website is full of empty brag with little substantial information, and it’s hard to tell from these hypes how exactly is G-IMFCH an “award-winning” broker as it claims.

Moreover, G-IMFCH has also posted countless advertorials under titles such as “forex trading strategies” or “handy forex tips” on web-based forums and media portals, in order to gain more media exposure and appeal to more investors who may become its victims later on. This again reminds investors not to rely on a single source of information such as online advertisements and carefully check a broker’s credibility through various sources before investment.

Summary
G-IMFCH claims itself to be holding a New Zealand’s FSP license with regulatory number FSP479826. However, Financial Markets Authority (FMA) requires all forex brokers offering in New Zealand to hold a derivatives license, and having FSP alone means the broker is unauthorized in forex brokerage. Many illegal brokers tend to fool investors from this aspect, claiming that they are compliant brokers under regulation, which is not true.

Conclusion

By checking the WikiFX App, we learn that both the FMA (New Zeland)’s license and FCA (UK)’s license that G-IMFCH claims to hold are suspected to be cloned. The broker, currently unregulated, uses white-label MT4/5 software with suspicious server IP and has a poor rating of 1.48 on the WikiFX App. In addition, WikiFX has received over 20 complaints against the broker in the past 3 months, suggesting high risks in the broker.
You may visit WikiFX’s website www.wikifx.com to view more exposures of illegal brokers. To report a broker scam, please contact us at [email protected]. Let’s work together and nip more illegal brokers in the bud.

G-IMFCH is rated at 1.48 on the WikiFX App

 

[WikiFX]

What is binary option
Binary option is one of the most common forms of option. Compared with forex trading, binary option doesn’t involve trading lots, margin or leverage. Instead of actually trading an asset, binary option investors bet on whether the price of an underlying asset will be above or below the set mark at a certain time. Binary option bears considerable risks, as its mechanism is very similar to gambling.

ESMA’s prohibition on binary options

Booming development followed by crackdown
The rapid development of the internet has led to a proliferation of web-based binary option platforms, particularly after 2010. Yet among these emerging brokers, many conduct unauthorized business and make huge profits through their illicit practices. Facing with the overgrown binary option platforms, European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) made an announcement last year, prohibiting the marketing, distribution and sale of binary options within EU boarders. As countries tighten their regulation, many binary option brokers choose to transfer their businesses to offshore companies in order to carry on their business operations.

Binary.com’s address from LFSA’s website

Visiting Binary.com
Binary.com claims itself to be an award-winning front-runner os online binary option with a trade volume of over 2 billion USD, and WikiFX visited the company’s branch in Malaysia upon investors’ requests. We arrived at the shopping centre where Binary.com is located, and found the company’s office. However, it’s empty with no one inside, and there were few people inside the building.

According to assessment data from WikiFX App, Binary.com is rated at 3.29. The broker uses non-MT4 trading software, which investors should beware of. In addition, WikiFX App’s risk warning suggests both the VESC (Vanuatu)’s license and FSC (the Virgin Islands)’s license held by the broker are in offshore regulation, while its FSA (Japan)’s license is suspected to be cloned, suggesting high risks. Investors need to be careful in choosing this broker.

Binary.com’s rating on WikiFX App

Choosing a compliant binary option broker
Before making an investment, it’s a good idea to do a thorough research on the broker and check its information from all aspects, like its compliance and regulation, authenticity of its claimed regulatory status, whether it manages clients’ assets in segregated account and customers’ feedback on the broker.

Stay tuned as we bring you more forex trading strategies (fundamental and technical analysis) and don’t miss out the great forex contents updated on WikiFX.