Please refer to posts 2341 through 2343 for my thoughts on ForexBrokerInc.
http://forums.babypips.com/forex-brokers/36221-going-offshore-escape-cftc-235.html#post670923
I vote - [B]no[/B] - on the basis of observation and discussions with others.
[B]FXGlory[/B] - I vote [B]no[/B]
Immediately after signing up with them, my phone number was given out to various spammers who kept text messaging it and calling constantly. I answered one who called me twice and it was an Indian-sounding man who was trying to tell me that my computer had a virus and I needed to pay for it. I looked up the number and many many others had this experience. Good thing I use a Google Voice number only for Forex brokers. These guys are no good.
[B]Assets FX[/B] - I vote [B]yes[/B]
I had an excellent experience with their platform. The customer service was responsive. The website is very simple but they were great. I withdrew money successfully (albeit less than I deposited 
). I hope others can vouch for this broker.
[B]Tradersway[/B] - I vote [B]yes[/B]
Despite some weirdness surrounding this brokerâs location, they were my first broker and I have never had any issues. I did feel that the chat service was a bit short with me at times but it has since gotten a bit better in my opinion. I have a friend who had a lot of money with them and withdrew it late last year following that whole phone number area code discussion we were having on here. He received his funds by wire and withdrew much more than deposited. I wish I could say the same. Anyhow, I think they are trustworthy.
[B]Sensus Capital Markets[/B] - [B]Undecided[/B]
So far everything is great. They received my wire and credited my account. One member of the chat team is very bad but I try to go on after 5PM EST so I can speak with Dennis W. who is absolutely amazing. He takes so much time out of his day to help me with everything. I had an issue with some of my trades taking 3 to 10 seconds to execute. It was pretty bad. He investigated and discussed it with his boss over several days (I am using a CNS VPS with a 1ms latency). I hope they fix it soon although I found an alternative solution recently to mitigate this problem. I still need to test them further to feel comfortable with a definite vote, although I am very much leaning toward a yes right now. It should be noted that the only method for US clients to make a deposit is via wire. Please see my previous post for some preliminary information on them.
[B]ProfiForex[/B] - No experience with them
Please mark this broker as unregulated as per my post 2267
The above link is an email I received from the SIBA regulator - Seychelles International Business Authority. It is misleading that ProfiForex claims Forex regulation. Indeed, all international business companies would thus be âregulatedâ. The regulation to which we are referring is whether or not there is actual specialized auditing and financial regulation for a foreign exchange dealer. I would like others to share their opinions and for Clint to make a determination thereafter to remove the SIBA regulation annotation from Post #1.
Keeping my above point in mind, I would like to direct this next bit toward Paul from [B]Tallinex[/B], as he has kindly been highly detailed with all of his responses. I would like to point out that he has been very open that [B]Tallinex [/B]is not regulated and [U]has discussed it extensively on numerous occasions[/U].
On the [B]Tallinex [/B]website, in the FAQ section, the following Q/A is posted:
[B]Q[/B]: Is Tallinex regulated?
[B]A[/B]: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) in St Vincent and the Grenadines is responsible for ensuring that Tallinex complies with its obligations under the IBC Act. The FSA enforces strict business practices equal to or exceeding requirements of financial services regulators in other countries.
I agree with the answer and I believe it was 100% accurate. However, in the context of what it means to be âregulatedâ â most people are not referring to this type of regulation. I have read through the SVG IBC Act multiple times in the past and it appears to be similar to other IBC Acts in the region, with no mention of true specialized Forex regulations. I hold St Vincent high on my list of trustworthy offshore locations, but I think we can agree that they do not regulate Forex specifically. The IBC Act requires compliance with paying dues, not soliciting residents of SVG and complying with other AML regulations. These are all excellent provisions for financial services companies, but I believe that this is more or less the extent of St Vincentâs compliance checks.
Please refer to my post about [B]PaxForex[/B] from last year. They had claimed previously that they were incorporated in St Vincent (while the FSA says otherwise). The Authority also went on to mention that they do not regulate Forex brokers incorporated within their jurisdiction. I want to stress one more time that Paul has been extremely emphatic about [B]Tallinex[/B] not being regulated there. My question to him is to clarify his view of keeping that Q/A post above in the FAQ section of the website, as the word âregulationâ has assumed a specific contextual meaning different than the meaning suggested on the website (in my view).
Moving forward, keeping post 2261 in mindâŚ
[B]PaxForex[/B] - I vote a [B]STRONG NO[/B]
Again, refer to 2261 as I put a lot of stress into my message last year â they claim to be incorporated in a jurisdiction that says otherwise. Not being regulated is one thing⌠not being honestly incorporated is another. I contacted them again right now via chat as their address seems to have disappeared from the website (luckily my screen shot still remains in post 2261). They gave me the same St Vincent address shown in my screen shot and their business name (Laino Group) is still the same at the bottom left of the website. Please exercise caution with them until someone can bring proper information to the table as to the whereabouts of the business.
I vote âyesâ for Traders Way, FxChoice, Profiforex, and ForexBrokerInc. They should be described as trusted brokers, probably. I have been trading with the first 3 on and off for about 2 years or more with no real problems. I traded briefly with ForexBrokerInc and my experience with them was good. They certainly try hard to acquire US traders. Traders Way offers 1,000 to 1 leverage up to $ 1,000 in the account, which comes in handy for dare devil day trading. I have not opened a real account with Tallinex or Sensus Capital yet.
The main thing thatâs keeping me away from Sensus is their 1:200 leverage. Since the Swiss move that happened in January, Sensus allows leverage only up to 1:200, even if you request the 1:500 leverage they normally allow. Iâve been told that they may soon revert back to the 1:500 leverage. For this reason I think that Sensusâ information should be corrected on Clintâs post to reflect the 1:200 leverage.
Sensus and Profiforex both have good spreads and commissions, while Sensus has a much lower spread, and higher commission which I like better. Profiforex also offers ECN pairs, but not all pairs are offered as ECN. They do not for example provide a GBPJPY ECN pair. GBPJPY on Sensus typically has a 1.3 pip spread, with a 1 pip commission, while Profiforex typically has a 1.3 - 2.5 pip spread, with 0.3 pip commission on GBPJPY.
Both have excellent customer service. The only problem Iâve had with Sensus is when I was trying to contact them via live chat. I entered a chat with a representative and received no real answer for 10 - 20 minutes until I was redirected to someone who was able to help me. This happened on multiple occasions.
The main thing I donât like about Sensus is the fact that I was told in a live chat that I would have to e-mail Sensus and ask for the higher leverage, and I would be able to get the leverage if the risk management department approved my request. I now find out right before wiring them money, that they donât offer the higher leverage, which is disappointing and is pulling me back to Profiforex.
On another note, Profiforex just instituted SSL encryption on their website, which I know some of you were waiting for. They as well redesigned their website a few days ago.
All other brokers besides Profiforex and Sensus either donât have high leverage up to 1:500, or their spreads and commissions are mountain high in my opinion. I realize Tallinex is trusted, but their spreads are a bit ludicrous after being with Profiforex and Sensus for the last 2 months.
Reply to Tomâs remarks (in THIS POST) about regulation (or lack thereof) of [B]Profiforex (Seychelles)[/B] and [B]Tallinex (St. Vincent and the Grenadines)[/B] â
B[/B] Apparently, Profiforex no longer claims âregulationâ by SIBA, or by any other government financial regulator. Iâve gone through their website, almost word-for-word, including their very lengthy FAQ, and have found no claim that Profiforex is a regulated forex broker.
They do, however, make the unusual claim that they deal only with âregulatedâ liquidity providers. Iâm not even sure what that means, let alone how to go about verifying it.
Given Tomâs research findings (and the apparent scrubbing of references to regulation from the Profiforex website), I will amend the Profiforex listing (on post #1) to indicate that Profiforex is not regulated.
B[/B] Tom has accurately quoted the Tallinex statement regarding regulation. To repeat it, hereâs a copy-and-paste from their FAQ:
[B]Q:[/B] Is Tallinex regulated?
[B]A:[/B] The Financial Services Authority (FSA) in St Vincent and the Grenadines is responsible for ensuring that Tallinex complies with its obligations under the IBC Act. The FSA enforces strict business practices equal to or exceeding requirements of financial services regulators in other countries.
Evidently, Tallinex has revised their FAQ sometime in the past month. Not more than a month ago, I read a very different statement on the Tallinex website regarding their regulatory status. Their statement at that time was essentially a short summary of the argument which Paul has made several times on this thread â (a) that Tallinex is not regulated, (b) that regulation does not guarantee protection to retail customers, and Š that regulation places costly burdens on brokers. That statement of their position was honest and straightforward.
Their revised statement regarding the FSA, although technically honest, is certainly much less straightforward. Tallinex seems to imply that the oversight to which they are subject by the FSA is âequal to or exceedsâ actual financial agency regulation. Well, maybe. But, their statement seems to be an attempt to dance around the question of regulation.
I was more impressed with their previous FAQ.
In our Offshore Broker List, Tallinex is correctly described as ânot regulatedâ.
My criticism of their wording (above) doesnât change the fact that they deserve to be designated as a trusted broker.
.
Feb 24, 3am EST
[U]Scorecard[/U]
[B]AssetsFX[/B] (Finland) â Yes (1) / Maybe (1)
[B]Renesource[/B] (Latvia)
[B]Sensus Capital Markets[/B] (Malta) â Maybe (2)
[B]FXGlory[/B] (Republic of Georgia) â No (1)
[B]Profiforex[/B] (Seychelles) â Yes (2) / Maybe (1)
[B]Real Trade[/B] (Seychelles)
[B]Forex Broker Inc[/B] (Marshall Islands) â Yes (2) / No (1)
[B]Forex Meta[/B]l (Panama)
[B]FX Choice[/B] (Belize) â [B]TRUSTED BROKER[/B] 
[B]Real Forex[/B] (Belize)
[B]IKOFX[/B] (British Virgin Islands)
[B]Traderâs Way[/B] (Dominica) â Yes (2)
[B]PaxForex[/B] (St. Vincent) â No (1)
[B]SmartTradeFX[/B] (St. Vincent)
[B]Tallinex[/B] (St. Vincent) â [B]TRUSTED BROKER[/B]
.
Iâve made the change.
The FAQ wording was amended (though I thought that was done last year) to ensure compliance with St Vincent FSA requirements, while also helping to ensure that those who donât âknow betterâ (and arenât interested in a candid explanation like we provided before) stop getting upset over nothing. When the âcandidâ version was on the site, we had inordinate numbers of people complaining to our live-chat and ticketing teams about lack of regulation, how they wouldnât be protected, etc., despite the fact that securities regulation didnât even apply to us in Estonia (at the time) or in St Vincent now. The current text has all but eliminated that issue, and people who âknow betterâ understand exactly what the message is actually saying, so it seems to be a reasonable âmiddle groundâ for now.
Hey, Tom ⌠I actually answered via Clintâs post, but the bottom line is that unless a jurisdiction considers Spot Forex to be a securities product (which St V doesnât and Estonia didnât until the end of last year) then thereâs no financial regulatory requirement. Typically, this puts responsibility for each category of company under different government departments, but St V is small enough that the FSA covers both - they actively oversee the regulated âsecuritiesâ businesses, make sure that all other companies are doing as they should, and license each type of company to operate by approving formation requests.
While I do understand these concerns regarding Forex Broker Inc, the fact still remains I have been trading with them over a year and a half and have had absolutely no issues with them. Trade execution is excellent and I have not encountered anything to lead me to believe they are not what they claim. Withdrawals are always extremely fast and wires are free over $500. I also would like to share my thoughts regarding regulation, we are not in a situation, as US citizens, where we can picky. It seems to me because the NFA/CFTC feels they are the global forex police that any broker who is regulated, regardless of the jurisdiction, stops accepting US citizens due to the strong arming of our regulatory bodies. In my opinion, these brokers remain unregulated or move out of places where regulations change simply so they may continue accepting US clients. Now I agree, there are probably only 6-7 of our 15, that are trustworthy brokers and I believe those 6-7 could get regulated in exchange for not being able to accept US clients, so they chose to remain unregulated.
Thank you for your clarifications, Paul. I understand now why it was done. Also, I did not know that this was a recent revision. I believe your responses to be very honest and direct. I hope those who donât know better wonât get angry and do anything destructive if they feel mislead.
Frank, have you withdrawn more than you originally deposited? I have heard horror stories about them and seen emails someone I know has showed me (he does not want his name posted here). Essentially, he was placing trades for 1-2 hours per trade and made a good amount of money. I saw the trading statement (it was during the EURUSD decline). Forex Broker Inc then claimed he was using arbitrage which really did not make much sense. They went ahead and disabled the account, confiscating his original deposit and all profits. They now ignore all emails and hang up on him when he calls. The original deposit was a few thousand dollars.
However, as I am not posting any proof for you to see (it is not my account), take it with a grain of salt. Apparently they have done this same thing to others if you check out their FPA reviews.
Now comes the next question â why would an ECN broker be so quick to call trades âarbitrageâ and confiscate the profits? I would understand if they were a market maker, but they claim to not be at all. They do not b-book trades according to the information on their website. However, I believe they b-book mostly everyone based on their behavior. I wish I could get him to sign up on here and vote ânoâ to even the score but he doesnât want to think about this anymore as he is having health issues and gets sickened and stressed by it.
Anyway, I hope others have had good experiences with them.
⢠Thanks to all of you who have weighed in on the âtrusted brokerâ conversation.
If [B]yes = 1 point, maybe = 0,[/B] and [B]no = -1 point,[/B] then the polling results to date are as follows:
Profiforex â 2 points (plus a maybe)
Traderâs Way â 2 points
AssetsFX â 1 point (plus a maybe)
Forex Broker Inc â 1 point
Sensus Capital Markets â (2 maybeâs)
The polls are still open, and Iâll keep them open until you guys tell me to shut it down.
I hope that other members will vote (yes, maybe, or no) for one or more of the brokers in Group 1.
⢠I have added one name back into Group 2: Investors Europe (Gibraltar). Initially, Investors Europe was in Group 1 and showed great promise for becoming one of our star brokers. But, they made the business decision to require their U.S. clients to conform to CFTC rules (50:1 max leverage, FIFO, no hedging, etc.), and we decided to remove them completely from the Offshore Broker List.
Then, sometime later, they stopped doing business with U.S. clients. Having taken that stance, they actually belong in Group 2 on our List.
⢠By next weekend, at the latest, I will remove all the red ink from the List.
UpdateTallinex withdrawals
I placed it on 2/20/15 which was a Friday after 3 pm it took to business days without counting Friday transaction was finalized 2/24/15 
Wow, I am sorry to hear that happened. Even without evidence, I have no reason not to believe you. Yes, I have withdrawn far more than Iâve deposited, and all wire withdrawals over $500 are free once youâve traded 2 lots, which is great considering the costs at some other brokers. I just realized today they reimburse any fees on deposits, I sent them 6 months of deposits and my account was credited within 90 minutes. So I am absolutely shocked when I hear of others not having good experience. Are you 100% sure your friend wasnât trying to cheat, there is a thread on forex factory regarding someone trading with forex.com in their ECN account and they reversed $20K in profits for same issue.
I looked at the account statement and they were just oil and EURUSD shorts that were held for 5 minutes to 2 hours at a time (sometimes even longer). Regardless, they have no right to confiscate an original deposit. He made quite a few thousand dollars within around 5 days which they were too uncomfortable with paying. He ended up getting lucky and was just going short constantly and taking profits. If you look at the charts from late last year, you will see that is all you had to do to make money on those instruments.
Anyway, I would never sign up with them personally. Everyone must do so at their own risk.
FWIW, I vote âYesâ on [I]Traderâs Way[/I]. Iâve been with them for little more than a year and have no complaints. On the few occasions I needed to ask them a question, the longest response time was an hour and forty minutes(I just checked my e-mail account). While I donât trade very often, many of my trades close within 2-5 pips of the entry price. This has never caused any issues for me. I believe [I]Profiforex[/I] has some kind of policy where they cancel trades closed within 4 pips of the entry.
Thanks, Jean. Regarding [B]Traderâs Way,[/B] your âyesâ vote will be included in the next tally.
Are you casting a ânoâ vote against [B]Profiforex?[/B]
Hello guys,
Iâm going to add the following post links to our List:
⢠in the [B]Sensus Capital[/B] listing â posts #2546, #2551, #2635, and #2637
⢠in the [B]FX Choice[/B] listing â posts #2551, #2558, #2628, and #2636
⢠in the [B]Tallinex[/B] listing â posts #2554, #2628, and #2638
⢠in the [B]Profiforex[/B] listing â posts #2561, #2631, #2635, #2636, #2637, and #2638
⢠in the [B]Traderâs Way[/B] listing â posts #2618, #2635, #2636, and #2650
⢠in the [B]Forex Broker Inc[/B] listing â posts #2631, #2634, #2636, and #2645
⢠in the [B]FXGlory[/B] listing â post #2635
⢠in the [B]AssetsFX[/B] listing â post #2635
⢠in the [B]Pax Forex[/B] listing â post #2635
Edit: these links have been added
Okay, I withdraw my yes vote for ForexBrokerInc and reverse it to a ânoâ based on tomd100âs revelation that the broker refused to return legitimately earned profits to a trader. That of course is an extremely serious, inexcusable offense. ForexBrokerInc needs to come on this forum and explain itself just like Tallinex has defended itself. If it is later proven that ForexBrokerInc never really cheated anyone out of their money then I will reverse my vote again and support them with a yes vote to call them a trusted broker.