Ducky is probably right. My “instinct” tells me that I will not be opening an account with them though. When I click on the sign-up link located at:
Live Registration
it is NOT a secure web page and it asks me for my personal info and national ID#. AND… although the Whois registration does give a Toronto address, there is no mention of a Hong Kong address, etc. (just because it says so on there website, it means nothing).
I think it’s also interesting to note that a search for the reputed address turns up this:
100 King Street West, Suite 5700 Toronto ON, Canada M5X 1C7
Phone:416-915-4188 Fax:416-915-4194 E-mail:[email protected] Web: Multifacet Diversity Solutions which is a Muslim something-or-the-other which is fine but has NOTHING to do with forex.
I can tell you straight up… if it ain’t got a secure sign-up page where it asks for your personal info… and you give them the info… you are asking for problems. It HAS happened to me. I DON’T like it. You do whatever you want to do.
I already have and haven’t received a response. Actually though, there are plenty of other brokers to choose from so why even bother with one who appears “possibly shady”.
I really don’t mean to be rude but I’m trying to speak straightforward and saying that if a broker can’t provide a secure sign-up it MIGHT be cause for alarm. If it is not a secure site, basically [U]anyone[/U] can retrieve your info regardless of whether the broker is legit or not.
Do you want your national ID# floating around in cyberspace so anyone can match it up with your credit card/banking account #'s? I guarantee you that [B]it can/does/will happen[/B]. If you want to take that risk then you can also risk 90% per trade when you’re trading FX. The odds are maybe about the same.
Sure thing - this is very dangerous, and so is the use of potential scam brokerages. There’s a lot more fraud on the web than we think, so extreme caution is advised at all times.
I think it’s just a waste of time, because the new draconic rules states that any broker that deals with a US citizen account must repatriate the account to a US broker, otherwise they will be harsh penalties. That is why the US brokers are just waiting for the “new” accounts to come in and love this ruling. The new date to enforce this is June 21 2011, so really by the time you start making some money with a off shore broker your account will be back in the hands of a US broker. They don’t elaborate about penalties but probably if some broker doesn’t comply they will make some arrests and make everybody scared.
THE CFTC CANT DO A DAMN THING! They just want everyone to think that they can. Does the cftc now have a military branch? Please panama, cyprus, germany, they are going to tell the cftc to go f*ck themselves and as long as everyone understands all the cftc has is threats nothing will happen and nothing can happen.
Is that moron gensler going to put on an army hat and storm panama, bvi, cyprus??? It is beyond a joke. They are just hoping their threats scare some brokers. It may, but there will always be solid options.
Unfortunately they do have the means, if a broker does not repatriate the US accounts or continues to advertise and accepts US citizens without licensing here, they will be indicted and convicted here in US and through deportations agreements already established with mainly all the countries will be brought back here to do the time. Noriega I think is still doing time here on drug charges filled here, so Panama brokers are not very safe either. Once they are convicted here their US assets can be confiscated and arrested at the border if they wish to visit our beautiful country. All they need is to make an example of one broker and I’ll bet the other ones will comply, they did that before and it worked, Poker sites, Swiss cigarettes and alcohol dealers. I hope we can do something here to change this ruling which is protecting the US brokers and not the traders.
Unfortunately they do have the means, if a broker does not repatriate the US accounts or continues to advertise and accepts US citizens without licensing here, they will be indicted and convicted here in US and through deportations agreements already established with mainly all the countries will be brought back here to do the time. Noriega I think is still doing time here on drug charges filled here, so Panama brokers are not very safe either. Once they are convicted here their US assets can be confiscated and arrested at the border if they wish to visit our beautiful country. All they need is to make an example of one broker and I’ll bet the other ones will comply, they did that before and it worked, Poker sites, Swiss cigarettes and alcohol dealers. I hope we can do something here to change this ruling which is protecting the US brokers and not the traders.
You are talking about completely different things. Completely offshore brokers, who dont business in the us will be fine. what you are posting is exactly what the cftc wants people to think. Drugs and invasions of countires for crimes like that are one thing. There is not a chance in hell the us is going to invade a country over a regulated offshore firm accepting us trading clients.
Their means don’t extend to [B]brokers with no US presence[/B]. Where would these brokers repatriate the accounts of their US customers? And why would they have to follow the US regulations if they provide their services strictly in places of their corporate domicile that have their own laws and regulations to be followed, completely different from the US ones?
Correct “NO Us presence” means that they will have to state that in their site: “NO US Citizens Accounts” and that is what the CFTC states that if they want to do business here they will have to get licensed. Also the repatriation of their existing accounts if they don’t want to do business here, is going to be done through a US broker of their choice. Now there is a “gray” part with the existing offshore accounts regarding the retroactive powers of this ruling, so if they don’t comply by June 21 2011, the “lucky ones” that already have accounts outside and not repatriated might receive a letter from Homeland Security that they are dealing with a broker that has links to a terrorist group and scare the **** out of you.
The domestic legislation of many offshore brokers does not prohibit them from accepting and servicing US customers, especially if the service takes place outside of the US where the US legislation does not apply. “No US presence” means exactly “no US presence” with no divisions in the US, and not something different, such as “no US citizens’ accounts”, since those accounts will by no means be located in the US. Offshore brokers would go nuts if they had to comply with the legislative provisions of all countries in the world in addition to their domestic ones.
Where in the rules is this stated?
The US Department of Homeland Security would first need to obtain and present sufficient evidence thereof prior to making such statements, or else they would brutally violate the presumption of innocence.
I just hope you are right and I am wrong:
"Except as provided in §30.5 of this part, it shall be unlawful for any person, with respect to a foreign futures or foreign options customer:
(a) To solicit or accept orders for or involving any foreign futures contract or foreign options transaction and, in connection therewith, to accept any money, securities or property (or extend credit in lieu thereof) to margin, guarantee or secure any trades or contracts that result or may result therefrom, unless such person shall have registered, under the Act, with the Commission as a futures commission merchant and such registration shall not have expired nor been suspended nor revoked; provided that, a foreign futures and options broker (as defined in §30.1(e)) is not required to register as a futures commission merchant: one, in order to accept orders from or to carry a U.S. futures commission merchant’s foreign futures and options customer omnibus account, as that term is defined in §30.1(d); two, in order to accept orders from or to carry a U.S. futures commission merchant’s proprietary account, as that term is defined in paragraph (y) of §1.3 of this chapter; and/or three, in order to accept orders from or carry a U.S. affiliate account which is proprietary to the foreign futures and options broker, as “proprietary account” is defined in paragraph (y) of §1.3 of this chapter. Such foreign futures and options broker remains subject to all other applicable provisions of the Act and of the rules, regulations and orders thereunder. Foreign futures and options brokers that have U.S. bank branches, offices or divisions engaging in the activity listed in this paragraph are not required to register as futures commission merchants if they comply with the conditions listed in §30.10(b)(1) through (6).