Think Forex is not accepting US customers anymore.
And so is IamFX and several other foreign brokers. Yet many are accepting. Brokers are free to make their choices.
You are not going to get in any trouble. As mentioned you cannot. And even if you could the broker would have to release your information, which if it is a broker accepting us cliens, it wont do.
Itās impossible for US to do anything about it. They have no right. Simple as.
You are 100% correct. My point is simply that even if they did, there is very little they could do about it.
Actually, I have a hillarious idea to entertain ourselves further: we can contact those brokers with no US presence that still do not accept US customers and ask them why they feel they should abide by the US laws if they service all of their customers completely outside the US. :rolleyes:
I like it, no I love it. I am gonging to do it. You too?
Sure thing. Will be posting their responses here (if I get any).
Also, if a broker replies something like āwe are not licensed to provide services in the USā, ask them where their customers have their trading accounts located - in a country where they reside on in the country of the brokerās corporate domicile. 
I think the difference between those who will and those brokers who wonāt is probably based on where they keep their funds. The US provides banking service for half of the world. If the broker works through a US bank, they may be concerned that their accounts might be frozen if they tread to hard on Uncle Sams toes. That is really unlikely but businesses have to play it safe on many different levels than the ones the we are aware of as traders. Some may be wholly or partially owned by a US concern. There are lots of reasons that it wouldnāt be a good move for one particular broker to accept us Yanks while it would not be a problem what-so-ever for another.
Hi, guys
Iād like to throw my 2 pips into this discussion about the brokers who have said ānoā.
As I see it, they have said āno, for nowā. And, I think for many of them, this makes a lot of sense.
For many of them ā for some of the really good ones ā thereās no rush to beat their competitors to the lucrative U.S. offshore market: we will still be here a month from now, or six months from now, and we will certainly consider upgrading to a bigger or better broker, if the opportunity presents itself.
For many of the brokers who have said āno, for nowā, it makes sense to wait for the dust to settle, to see whether the CFTC is, in fact, as powerless over foreign brokers as they SEEM to be at the present time. There is hardly any downside to holding off for a month. Or six months. These brokers can change their minds in the future. And, when they do, there will be plenty of ways for them to get the word out to prospective U.S. clients, without actually advertising in the U.S.
Thereās no downside to saying ānoā now, and āyesā later. But, thereās a huge downside to saying āyesā now, and then saying ānoā later: that would create bad press for any broker doing it, not to mention the cost and aggravation of opening, and then closing, a ton of accounts.
So, I say letās stay on friendly terms with all the brokers who have said āno, for nowā. And letās check in with them from time to time over the next few months.
And, in all our contacts with them, letās be courteous and professional.
Thatās my 2 pips.
It would be the case only if the brokers saying āyesā now were substantially worse than the brokers saying āyesā later. Otherwise, nothing will make people switch back the latter category of brokers once they start accepting US customers again.
As for the rest, I do agree with you.
add to the list:
Intelfx from new zealand accept us citizens.
intelfx.com ā¦ spread eu 2, gj 7
unregistered
I have added a CAUTION to our listing for [B]WSD Global Markets (New Zealand)[/B]. See Page 1 of our List for details.
Iām checking into this broker. They appear to be a Malaysian or Indonesian company, relocated to New Zealand. They have New Zealand incorporation, but they are not regulated by the New Zealand securities authority. More later today.
I am not recommending the broker at all, actually, this is why i mentionned āunregisteredā. Wording was wrong. Should have been : āunregulatedā. Sorry for that.
Iām so glad that I found this forum and this thread. I have been actively engaged in this issue ever since I sent the CFTC my comment months ago during the open comment period preceding this harsh regās implementation; I have been outspoken on the odious Frank-Dodd BS. (Those two should be in prison for high crimes against the Constitution, IMO.) I have been trading Forex for just about two years now, and like many of you have been outspoken over the continual erosion of our rights and liberties as Americans and the increasingly tyrannical, Socialistic rule of enormous government.
Iām currently with FXCM and was very dismayed when I found out that they were kicking me out of the UK branch back to the US. However, my trading performance since my account was repatriated has been good. (Over the last number of months Iāve been building up to consistent profitability.) I am okay with 50% margin right now, and although Iām a bit embarrassed to say it, I think itās actually helped my trading discipline to be limited to that level of margin. What concerns me is that I imagine this may only be the beginning, and like another poster said - they could continue chipping away at margin, down again to 25% and then to 10%, perhaps with the rationale that in equities pattern day traders only get 4:1 margin. That would be devastating.
Important point to raise, Bishnitz. Iām glad to see that many offshore companies are continuing to accept US customers for now, but as Bishnitz points out the real test of the foreign brokers will be when the repatriate requirement goes into effect. The feds have been making it difficult for foreign banks to provide service to US customers, in the name primarily of fighting tax evasion, and so this really isnāt anything new. Iāll continue to research the offshore options but probably wonāt be moving any funds to them unless and until Iām confident that the Nanny Uncle Sam is done wreaking havoc on my liberties.
By the way, FXCM told me that if I could show residency outside of the United States they could move me back to the UK platform. And indeed Iām considering just such a move, although Forex margin rights are a secondary reason for why Iām considering vacating the US.
Another point: I canāt really fault US brokers for not doing enough to fight against this regulation. They were trying as much as possible to limit the damage the CFTC was going to do, and we can all admit it could have been worse. Donāt fault the brokers when the real problem is with government. Power corrupts, and the US federal government has gotten so corrupted by Progressivism that the ruling elite in the country no longer think of government being limited or restrained in any meaningful way. Barbara Boxer said that in her view Congress has no limitations on the areas it wishes to legislate on. Rome is burning my friends.
Iām glad you found it, as well!
Reading your post, I was amazed that I agree with everything you said.
I even agree with your assessment of FXCM-US (as things stand currently). Like you, I had my FXCM-UK accounts ārepatriatedā; and, when that occurred, I expected that I would hate the change. But, so far it hasnāt been a problem.
But, like you, Iām concerned about what the CFTC is planning next. And Iām disgusted with the arrogance of the CFTC and the whole dictatorial regime they serve.
I will continue to fight them on principle. And I will open an offshore account with one of the brokers on our List, so that I have an alternative to U.S. retail forex ā in place and operating ā when the CFTC again decides to throw their weight around.
By the way, did you know that your FXCM āaccountā never actually left the U.S., and when it was ārepatriatedā it didnāt actually come back from anywhere?
All those āoffshoreā FXCM-UK accounts are on the same server in New York as all the FXCM-US accounts. Only the rules were changed. For you and me (and others), our accounts were simply switched from CFTC rules to FSA rules, and then back again.
Big Brother could pull the plug on that server, and suddenly there would be no evidence that you ever had a forex account.
Again, welcome to this forum, and to this thread. Your post was a delight to read.
Thank you so much for the warm welcome, Clint. Youāve been doing excellent work compiling the broker information for this thread. Iām so glad that weāre simpatico on this topic - while it can feel that weāre under attack as small retail forex traders, at least we know through venues like these that weāre not alone. Perhaps we will be able to organize in some form to stand up for our rights in the future. Btw, Iām a big Eastwood fan myself.
Iāve been very happy with FXCM generally, very pleased with their technology and customer service. Others may have less positive experiences, but I think they really work hard to satisfy their clients. As for all clients being on the same servers regardless of the national platforms theyāre supposedly tied to, that makes sense. I realized that switching platforms is really just a software setting on their end, and that makes sense given the global nature of currency brokers and the Internet.
As to the more central issue of getting the plug pulled and then seeing your account evaporate, FXCM appears to be a very professional brokerage, so Iāve never really had any concerns from that standpoint. I have to believe that they have redundant backup systems in place; they have never given me a reason not to trust them. I have a lot of confidence in FXCM and very little confidence in my government. I also happen to love FXCMās Trading Station II platform and find it to be superior to other trading clients Iāve seen.
However, people are right to be cautious about any firm they put in trust with their money, and some of the international brokerages discussed here may not warrant such trust. As was discussed previously herein, I would never trust a firm that doesnāt encrypt its sign up forms.
My comment about not opening any foreign brokerage accounts until after next June was imprecise. Like you I will probably open another account over seas if I find a trustworthy brokerage, but I wonāt be moving any substantial funds over there until we see how the firms handle the June 2011 deadline. My concern is that many of the reputable ones are going to be compelled by their national regulatory authorities to drop US customers, but weāll have to see how it works out.
To a profitable trading week ahead!
Yo Clint, thatās a comprehensive list, nice one.
I got an email from my good friend Tymen Wortel, in Western Australia. Many of you know Tymen from his years on this forum.
Tymen has been following this thread, and watching us build our Broker List. And he suggested that we look into an Australian broker called Kinetic Securities, which he says is an IB for GFT. Tymen is a client and long-time fan of GFT, and apparently heās well-acquainted with the people at Kinetic Securities.
Iām looking into this broker. So far, I have confirmed that they do welcome new U.S. clients, they offer the MT4 platform (among others), and they claim to offer 2-3 pip spreads on most pairs.
But, Iām having a terrible time finding basic information on their website ā what is it with Australian and New Zealand brokers and their websites? ā and this is the reason I havenāt added them to the List yet.
If anyone has any relevant info on Kinetic Securities (Australia), please share it.
Hereās a portion of Tymenās email:
Dear Clint,
This is Tymen.
I have been reading your thread on brokers on Babypips.
Just thought I would give you some updates.
You may want to put some of this onto your thread at BP.
Firstly, Kinetic Securities of Sydney and Melbourne are a forex broker that I have advertised while I was on BP.
They are a first class setup and are out to get all the traders they can.
While America has its decline in forex because of the new leverage requirements, we do not have that here.
So I thought that I would let you know that Kinetic takes clients from anywhere at all.
They offer the leverage that you want.
They are an STP service.
They offer 4 different platforms as well as being an introducing broker for GFT.
Tymen has been doing some interesting things since leaving BP. To catch up with him, and find out what heās been up to lately, copy and paste either of these addresses into your browserās address bar and hit enter: Welcome needynotshy.com - Justhost.com ----- or ----- bolldna.com/ Your browser will add the prefix.