Going offshore to escape the CFTC

I have asked around a bit and it turns out that most non-US brokers [B]WILL[/B] open an account for a non-US company with US directors/shareholders, be it a classic offshore company somewhere in Panama or a regular LLC in Australia. Either can be fully set up and maintained over the Internet with a local registration agent.

Gary Gensler, looks like you’re screwed. :60:

It’s a ‘feel good’ moment – all round. ;D

Lets let the representative of the offshore broker answer the question as that bares more credibility than the featured anecdotal evidence displayed.

US traders who engage in opening up offshore shops to deceive the american government, would this be legal at least at FX open?

How would they deceive the American government if they’re not prohibited under the US law from owning companies outside the US and these companies are not prohibited from opening accounts with brokers outside the US?

‘bares’ more credibility… LOL, might bear more than your featured anecdotes.

‘legal at FX open’ … is FX Open a country?

Oh Jaysus, getting a headache from laughing. you’re SO on ignore, I’ve productive [B]honest[/B] work to do! LOL!!

SMAN1109,
The CFTC was pretty clear in its press releases for the recent “nationwide sweeps against unregistered foreign currency firms” that it is [B]NOT[/B] trying to ban individual traders from using all such firms (not an illegal activity). They just said to be careful. Here’s the exact wording from the press release:

“The CFTC strongly urges the public to check whether a company is registered before investing funds. If a company is not registered, an investor should be wary of providing funds to that company.”

Hi GypsyTrader. I asked the lawyer for offshore and he said it would be legally acceptable since the offshore company is the client, not the US resident Director. You have an all clear from FXOpen NZ and also for FXOpen AU.

That’s really great. Many overseas registration agents offer incorporation services online, whereby one can set up and maintain a foreign company with a bank account on its name without ever having to travel to its country of domicile. In Australia, the most well-known such agent is Company Registration - Register a company in Australia - Incorporate Online Limited Company Formation Business Incorporation .

What is the current minimal deposit for an FXOpen ECN account? I noticed spreads to be really great there - among the industry’s lowest.

Hello, Gypsy

Sorry for the delay in replying to your question.

Regarding the 3-page List at the beginning of this thread, I am able to edit it as needed, and I’ve been fixin’ to do just that.

I’m aware of the info you have recently posted on this thread, and I will include it in the update.

I’ll aim for sometime this week — NLT Sunday, the 15th.

If anyone has new information (in addition to the information already provided by GypsyTrader) which should be worked into the next update of the Offshore Broker List, please post it here within the next few days. I will do an update of the List later this week. Thanks.

Not sure if you took note of it already, but FX Choice (Belize) also accepts the US customers directly with no restrictions. So, please, add it to your list.

$1000 is the minimum ECN deposit, but I would suggest $2000-5000+ depending on your circumstances of course.

Thanks. I will go with Pepperstone.com for now - spreads for their Razor accounts are identical to yours, but the account opening minimum is much lower ($200).

Here’s also an excellent real-time Forex brokers’ spreads comparison for live accounts: Spreads | Myfxbook

Got it. Thanks.

[B]Shatner,[/B]

I’m gathering info for an update to the Offshore Broker List this week.

Do you have anything further to report on[B] HotForex? [/B]

Do you have an active, funded, live account with them? Have you done any withdrawals from your account?

Have you talked with anyone at HotForex about your status as a U.S. resident? What is their current position regarding new U.S. clients?

Thanks, in advance, for your reply.

Does FXOPEN have a Chinese branch, some traders would like to use 400:1 leverage and will open an offshore business in China to have capability.

You’re going to need more than a minimum of $200 to open an offshore company in Australia why be frugal with the minimum deposit ?

Then you’ll have to pay taxes in two countries with all the expenses a small deposit does not seem practical

[B]Interim update to the List[/B]

Later this week I will update the List of Offshore Brokers. Here are the updates gathered, so far:

2 brokers will be added to Group 1

• [B]FXChoice[/B] (Belize)

• [B]Pepperstone[/B] (Australia)

2 brokers will be moved from Group 1 to Group 2

• [B]Uni-FX[/B] (U.K.?) — their website has been replaced by one webpage which says “This Account Has Been Suspended”. I will place a note on the listing for this broker saying that they may no longer exist.

• [B]Universal FX[/B] (British Virgin Islands) — formerly listed (erroneously) as Switzerland — this broker no longer accepts U.S. residents as clients; their website says “Universal Investments (International) Ltd is a company registered and located in the British Virgin Islands and does not solicit or accept customers that reside in or are domiciled in the United States or its territories.”

Also, with this update, I will be filling in some of the blanks in the current broker listings (spreads, leverage, etc.).

[B]If you guys have any additional info for this update, now is the time to post it.[/B] Thanks.

No: Australia and the United States treaty - key points

Pepperstone does not open accounts for individual US customers - only for their non-US companies.

Yes, you can try MT4 ECN真实外汇交易平台|模拟外汇-FXOPEN中文官方网站 to join other Chinese FXOpen traders.