Going offshore to escape the CFTC

Broker Discussion Forex Brokers
8224

@HyperScalper - I do not mean to step on any toes. I am only looking out for my fellow traders. Truth-be-told, having a disclaimer may not matter much. It has been my experience that people will believe whatever they want. Unfortunately, if things go south, some people may quickly forget about all of those warnings and disclaimers and start cherry-picking things out of context etc…

@SmallPaul - Regarding options trading, I would not be quick to assume that anyone that finds this thread may have no interest in it. Personally, I was interested at first, but decided that it was not for me. No harm, no foul.

We all share similar issues with regard to trading, due to regulatory pressure and legal jurisdiction. Whether we are trading forex, crypto or something else, it is all relative; the same issues that are caused by the CFTC and other regulatory groups are still present. Having an open forum to discuss our options is important. I think that the focus on Forex may simply be due to the fact that this forum is geared towards that, but at the end of the day, we are all trying to take control of our own money and invest it where we choose, preferably, without the regulatory limitations that have been placed on us.

I am thankful for this thread, personally, and welcome any discussion that is helpful, whether it relates to me or not. If I see something that I am not interested in, I can simply choose not to read it.

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8225

if you had interest in option trading before that is why option trading needs it’s own thread and should be talk about there

8226

Not really sure that I understand your point. Binary options trading still covers forex and faces similar regulatory restrictions imposed by the CFTC and other groups, so I do not see why discussion of brokers that offer such services should be prohibited here. Similarly, brokers that offer cryptocurrency trading can be discussed, some of which are already on the trusted list. Those same brokers may also offer trading of commodities, stocks and indices etc., so any opposition to the idea should be backed by sound, justifiable arguments, in my opinion.

8227

yes some forex broker also offer other assets but there main focus is forex, Binary options brokers primary focus are Binary option which should have it’s own thread

BTW i lost focus this is a broker thread, my bad

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8228

Dang, I feel the sting ! Yo, y’all keepin’ it real !! :slight_smile:

hyperscalper

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8229

Hi Everyone, my very post here! First, let me just say this thread is amazing! I have been trading for about a year now and just found this about a month ago. Tons of great discussion that I wish I had found earlier.

My question is: has anyone used capitalstreetfx (New user, so I can’t include the link)

They say they take US residents, so I opened an account and they did indeed verify my documents. I have not yet deposited any money for trading though as I haven’t been able to find much discussion of them online. I found a few comments about them on forex peace army. Other than that though, I didn’t find much.

Any thoughts?

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8230

Just use the trusted brokers from page 1. These are the brokers many of us have used and have great experiences with. The others on the list, although they accept US residents, either do not have positive feedback here or they simply lack enough of us using them to obtain the trusted broker label. if you go through the thread, you will find 4-5 that many of us use. It is best to spread your funds among at least 3 simply for risk mitigation purposes.

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8231

I totally agree @grandpipmaster. Everyone should distribute their risk across many brokers. I have accounts with several of the “trusted brokers” labeled here and they are all great. I have also ventured into trading with some other brokers like AAFX, who I have been using them for 9 months without issue. (This is a broker that has been labeled a SCAM online.) They offer No Swaps on their fixed spread accounts, which I haven’t seen anywhere else other than with FXGlory. Those two features can be useful for some trades. For the vast majority of my activity, I use the trusted brokers, but I do like to experiment with others. Knowing it is risk of course.

8232

I have spent some time on the CapitalStreetFX website, and I think this broker is worth serious vetting by members of this thread.

This broker

  • is registered in Mauritius
  • accepts clients from the U.S. (and just about everywhere else)
  • has a decent menu of trading instruments
  • has servers in New York, London, and Singapore
  • has a more complete FAQ on their website, than most other brokers
  • offers leverage of 150:1 on forex
  • and appears to have a proprietary trading platform (not MT4)

Spreads, swaps and commissions need to be looked at closely.

I did not chat with their (very persistent) Live Chat person, and I did not download their demo platform.
I was impressed with the well-written text on their website, and the details they provide in their FAQ.
I have added CapitalStreetFX to the Alphabetical List of Brokers at the top of this thread.

If any of you want to join in vetting this broker, please give us a report of your findings and your opinions.

grandpipmaster points out that we have a good stable of Trusted Brokers, and he implies that we don’t need to add new (and unknown) brokers to our List. I disagree with the part about new brokers. I think we should keep the doors open to new brokers for as long as this thread is alive.

What do the rest of you think?

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8233

I totally agree Clint. Did not need to imply that we do not need to beef up our arsenal. I was just stating that if you’re brand new to trading offshore, there are 4-5 tried and proven brokers on our list.

8234

Just went to CaptalStreetFX website. I knew I had checked them out before. Personally, wouldn’t use them. Here’s why:

The only account they offer which is an STP/ECN with no last look is the VIP account,which requires a 10,000 deposit and also charges $15 commission. We simply have numerous brokers offering this model with lower deposit requirements and much lower cost. The other 3 accounts are dealing desk/market maker models, and to be honest is the entire reason I do not trade in the US

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8235

Their FAQ has instructions on running "EA"s. This is Metaquotes terminology. Could their app be MQL4 compatible?

8236

I registered a demo account with CapitalStreetFX and got nowhere fast. After registering I noticed they use the obscure ActTrader platform not Metatrader.

The software also didn’t want to accept the credentials they supplied for the demo either.

Have to say hard pass on this one.

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8237

Ya they use ActTrader. Any clue what that is? Or any other broker that uses it?

8238

some info on acttrader

http://www.acttrader.com/

8239

CapitalStreetFX Typical Spread are horrible for non VIP account

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8240

TurnkeyFX is still operating? I can not change my password to log in , they do not reply to inquiries , "contact us " form shows "network error "when I try to contact them. Anyone knows what is going on there ?

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8241

There is no doubt that this thread has been a life saver for
me, as well as many others; and @Clint 's work has been just
exceptional !!!

But the regulatory environment, with the spead of U.S. regulations
through “memoranda of cooperation” to the E.U. and elsewhere
is just tightening the noose.

Now, it’s fine for us to bounce around amongst brokers willing to
work with U.S. persons, and navigate the increasingly difficult
maze of constantly changing funding methods. It’s fine for the
smaller U.S. trader to take the risk of having to change brokers,
who suddenly feel the pressure to refuse service to U.S. persons.

But building a sustaining business on that basis is just not
the way forward for me. And that means establishing an entity
which is not readily traceable to a U.S. beneficiary for access
to the world’s best brokerages.

I think that’s the sad truth here, and I am usually a great big
optimist. But when building a scalable and sustainable
trading business [edit: it] just can’t happen on the basis of a
"whack a mole* strategy amongst the very small remaining
set of offshore brokers.

The practical alternative is to use a U.S. broker, such as
IG perhaps, or similar, which has a (modified) MetaTrader
trading platform (swallow hard and use FIFO, and deal
with smaller leverage) or to get involved in offshore
company structure, to gain a sustainable access to the
world’s finer brokerages.

IF NOTHING ELSE, I’m sure this will kick off some discussion
and, like I said, I don’t like being negative on the prospects,
BUT… none of these comments diminishes the value of
this thread which many of us have used as a lifeline

So, again, thanks to Clint for all of his hard work; and let’s
hope some miracle changes the regulatory environment !! :slight_smile:
I wanted to end this one on a positive note

hyperscalper

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8242

OFFSHORE DEDICATED SERVER PROVIDERS

I’ve gone through, and well past the VPS phase, by
exceeding the performance parameters that a shared
hosting situation offers.

Eventually for my offshore server needs, I have settled
on HostRound dot com who are a Delaware company,
I believe, but who also offer Netherlands data center servers.
So I have 2 nearly identical Windowds serever boxen in Netherlands.

Just yesterday Windows Server 2008 became untenable
since Windows 7 and that server variant are at their
end-of-life for Microsoft support.

So I asked the kind folks at HostRound to upgrade me to
Windows Server 2012 R2 on my 2 dedicated Xeon boxes,
which they did at no charge; although they do not offer
any software support, so backup of application software
and reconfiguration falls to you, the client.

My 2 dedicated Window server boxes cost approximately $90
each monthly for Quad processors and 16gb memory. I’d highly
recommend that for someone who is able to do basic
self-management of a server; and then you can
do whatever you want with the system.

While I’m at it, I’d like to put in a plug for ServerPronto
on the U.S. side which I’d highly recommend for
a dedicated server. I have a 32gb Xeon Centos Linux box which
runs for many months without a need for reboot, and they
have fabulous DDOS perimeter defenses, and great
service, including backups all for just about $115/month.

For those just getting started in trading, it may not have
occurred to you how convenient it is NOT to have to
worry about a setup in your home office; but to take
the leap to at least a VPS, but, ideally to a dedicated
server which is reliable. You can get boxes on the
cheap, but you do get the service and reliability
that you are willing to pay for, and a good responsive
hosting service means a lot.

hyperscalper

8243

I agree. I feel the need to do the same. I wish to trade with IC Markets, Pepperstone, Dukascopy. These are some of the best regulated pure ecn’s in the world. Which, of course, every time I bring this up, poses that question, if the US regulations are so interested in protecting me, why can’t I trade with these brokers who absolutely blow away the ones registered with NFA . Not only in terms of trading conditions but also protection of my funds which doesn’t even exist in US. Once again, the most stringent regulations in the world and my funds aren’t protected??? I was using FXDD when they offered the Dukas feed, I know you did as well. I would be happy with that. Until someone figures out a solution, I do believe the brokers on the RED list are fine. If the NFA could touch them, they wouldlve by now.