can anyone explain to me how this guy has the impression that I think easyfx is “some magical broker/firm” and “some wonderful firm” after making 1 post comparing some information I have gathered on 2 brokers?
“Pick one from the top 5 biggest regulated,
well capitalized, and reputable firms.
Why is this such a difficult task?”
Have I not already made it perfectly clear why that seems to be such a difficult task? apparently not. how do I know which are the top 5 firms when all I find from various searches are mainly bad reviews of EVERY firm?
this is the NEWBIES forum, people come here to get information when they dont have the experience themselves, sarcastic ‘know-it-all’ comments help nobody, let alone telling people they have no business even contemplating fx trading.
I wouldn’t worry about it. Some here have less patience or are more inclined to deliver caustic replies than others.
I can understand why this may seem difficult; but this may be a result of the criteria you are using to evaluate your choices.
First, figure out which firms have the highest all-around visibility in the industry: not only to traders, but to regulators, as well. Among these firms will be those that, on the one hand, are infamous, while on the other hand there are those firms that boast the the highest net capital, which typically correlates to a large quantity of active, funded client accounts. As you may be aware, forex brokers (which are classified in the US as “FCMs”) are coming under much heavier scrutiny by the CFTC, and many smaller firms are on the brink of closing or have closed because net capital requirements are purging them from the industry.
An important resource to use to determine the most highly capitalized firms is the latest data posted here:
Second, as you are probably well-aware, individual reviews of brokerage firms are highly subjective and vary widely in quality, content and accurate reporting. There is no firm that has not somewhere been accused of everything from excessive slippage during a news release to outright fraud. Are these accounts true? In some cases perhaps, but in others not. Because you have no idea, in the end, if a review is dubious or not, it is best to read them with measured skepticism.
Third, familiarize yourself with the makeup or profile of different firms. You seem to have an idea of what features you would like a firm to have: low spreads, a debit card, etc. There are few to no firms out there that will be a 100% match for your preferences. Some factors must take priority, though: regulatory oversight, stability, and net capitalization among them. Once you have a list of firms that meet those conditions that are essential, you can then begin to narrow further according to your likes/dislikes.
The goal is to arrive at a short list of firms (two or three) that are tightly regulated, well-capitalized, highly visible, have preferably been established for a number of years and which have platforms and features (e.g, money movement) that correspond to what you want. From there the decision is easy.
But, yes, it is a bit daunting and even overwhelming when you are first getting into Forex. Soooooooooo many firms, soooooooooooo many claims, soooooooooo many opinions, sooooooooooo many reviews. lol
However, it took me all of 1 week to narrow it down to 3 or 4 choices. I knew my trading style was going to be scalping/day trading so I knew I had to find a broker that would accommodate my style with no grief or excuses. I wanted regulated, I wanted in the USA, etc.
Did I get EVERYTHING I wanted? No. But I am very happy.
Once I am ready to do swing trades or longer term trades, I will open an account with a broker like GFT or IBFX. Until then, I have work to do.
Thanks. a UK based one would probably be useful but so far I am not aware of any, they mostly seem USA based.
Since I have a full time day job it is likely I will only be trading in the evenings after 7pm GMT, which means its also likely a large portion of my trades are going to roll over to the next day and the rest are going to be relatively short scalps. I will also be trading relatively small amounts until I hopefully build up enough funds to trade a bit bigger.
based on that I would assume trailing stops may be useful for me since i will not be able to monitor the trades very frequently during the day and high leverage would enable me to make reasonable gains with the limited funds (obviously assuming i gain and not lose).
anyway I will make a new thread rather than drag this one slightly off topic any further.
hey, i’m a real noob here. Just wondering if you can point me out which book out there that is important to read? I really don’t know where to start. I read the school of pipsology on here… Think i’m attracted to pivot points, trend lines and either RSI or stochastic… oh and probably a moving average as well.
(btw if I only use those I mentioned above, would that make my trading system too simple?)
If I was going to start with one book…it would be Trading In The Zone by Mark Douglas
It will not teach you strategies, technicals, fundamentals, Fibonacci, etc…it will teach you how to keep yourself in control and how to focus your mind properly.
YOU WANT TO START WITH YOURSELF FIRST. The book will take you about a weekend. It is easy reading. It might seem a bit long in the tooth at times but just sit back down, relax and calmly read through it. Do not try to understand every single part of it. Just read through it and grasp the “big picture” the author is trying to relay to you.
When you are done reading it. Read it AGAIN and this time…pay close attention, make notes and get into it as deep as you can.
I just gave you $1 million dollars worth of advice for free. Even the top traders who are pros acknowledge the power of that book.
I’ll add my two cents. I’ve been trading a few demo accounts for a few weeks, trying out different systems. All the systems I have tried seem to work if I can follow the rules of the system. However I seem to have a problem called ‘emotions’ that has reared it’s ugly from time to time. Impatience, fear, and greed to name a few.
In my humble opinion with the limited knowledge I have, it seems keeping emotions in check will be a much bigger piece of the pie than finding the ‘holy grail’ trading system…
man thanks heaps for the tips! do they sell it on borders? i can’t buy things from the net coz i don’t have a credit card… sigh
btw i love books about trader’s psychology too. I feel naive without it. I read this book called the zurich axiom the other day. And it just opens my eyes a whole lot from it
I use ECN but ECN is overrated and not for
everyone. Only consider ECN if you are
going to scalp and will trade huge lots.
Not 1-2 lots but 10-50 standard lots
at least with the target TP goal of 2-5 PIPS.
Don’t get sucked in with this no spread
nonsense. Whenever commissions are involved
whether you win or lose, you want minimum
trades for maximum hit and returns. ECN
is not for newbies who want to trade nano lots.
Read the book I mentioned above! It will solve that problem for you. I am not kidding.
And yes, you are exactly correct. Many systems here and found in other forums do work. But DO YOU WORK? Does your BRAIN work? You need to have your head working correctly. How can you drive a car if you are drunk of your rear? How can you trade if your head is all drunk with emotions?
Ewok, plenty of great UK brokers, but they’re mostly spreadbetting companies, because it’s tax free in the UK as it’s classified as gambling. Basically works the same but rather than using lots, you bet an amount per pip.
Brian, I got to agree - Trading in the Zone is a great book. I didn’t read it for ages, because the title makes my toes curl, but it is genuinely very useful.
Because you win a little and it SUCKS you in, then you think its easy
and then BAM … takes your money…bottom line you are trying to predict something that is unpredictable, you put your best effort on you system but there are still too many unknowns that effect the market, people make money
but only a small precentage…you have to be tough and emotionless sometimes, which is hard to do with real money…
Try this test first to see if you are ready
take a 100.00 BILL and go to your bathroom and flush it down the toilet
if you are ok with that afterwards, then forex might be for you:D
Absolutely true. Some traders just get lucky their first 2 or 3 trades or their first 10 trades. this gives them arrogance, and they start getting WAAAAY too aggressive and daring…so a small risk turns into a large risk looking for the big pay off and some bragghing rights. BAM! You lose. now you are shocked, your confidence is weakened, you make another big bet to get it back…BAM! You lose. You started off going in a specific, well planned direction and now you are wandering aimlessly in the Forex woods and daylight is running out.
Trading In The Zone addresses this stuff. I really thought this book was going to be a bunch of hype but my friend gave me his copy and I am glad he did! I did have to buy my own copy because he wanted it back. He said it was too valuable to give away, he said he would need to reread it regularly to reinforce himself. I was amused at first. Now I clearly see what he meant!
That’s actually a different version of an old samurai mind trick used for bravery in battle. “I’m already dead so I can not be killed. If my head is chopped off it’s of little consequence because I am already dead.”
JohnnyFX is infuriated by noob questions, but for some reason he insists on reading them on a forum and then responding in an attempt to make himself feel superior and to point out your obvious stupidity.
Hey JohnnyFX, you never answered my question on the other thread. Are you are successful trader who lives off his Forex trading? Or are you just all talk. As you said, are you one of the, “losers,” who, “blabs,” on forums?
Seriously if get so upset at reading noob questions, don’t read them.
