FXCC

FXCC is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and is a part of the European Markets in Financial Instruments Derivatives (MiFID), which gives it the freedom to operate in the entire European Union under the European Economic Area (EEA) agreement.  Its authorization via the EEA also extends to the United Kingdom, allowing it to provide services to British residents.  FXCC is also registered in the Republic of Vanuatu, from where it provides services to clients outside of Europe and the UK.

Italians will be trading under the FXCC subsidiary that is registered in the Republic of Vanuatu. 

For all intents and purposes, the VFSC is not considered a forex broker regulator and applies no supervision of any CFD trading-related activities.  Clients must rely solely on the reputation of FXCC, as no additional measures exist to ensure client protection. However, in a show of good faith, FXCC segregates all client funds from the company’s operating capital at top-tier banks, and it offers negative balance protection to all its clients.   

While Italian traders may be apprehensive about trading under a subsidiary that is essentially unregulated, FXCC’s subsidiary in Europe is regulated by CySEC, a top-tier authority that maintains strict regulatory oversight.

Overall, because of its history of responsible behaviour, CySEC regulation, and the wide industry acclaim, we consider FXCC a safe broker.

The account opening process at FXCC is user-friendly and fully digital and accounts are approved within an hour.  

All Italian residents are eligible to open an account at FXCC, and there are no minimum deposit requirements.

Creating an account is straightforward, the process is fully digital, and accounts are usually ready within an hour. FXCC offers individual and corporate accounts, but we will focus on opening an individual account:

1. New traders will have to click on the “Register” button at the top of the page, where they will be directed to fill in their name and email address and create a password.
2. Traders must then fill in their details, including name, surname, telephone number, country of residence, physical address, and financial experience.  Traders will also have to upload the following documents:
   1. Proof of Identification – FXCC accepts all government-issued documents such as Passports, national ID cards, driving licenses, or other government-issued IDs. 
   2. Proof of Address – Proof of residence/address document must be issued in the account holder’s name within the last 6 months and contain a trader’s full name, current residential address, issue date, and issuing authority.
3. Next traders must fill in their trading account settings, including preferred base currency, trading account type (live or demo), level of leverage, and expected deposit amount.  

Applications are usually approved within one hour.  Traders can then login and fund their accounts.  

Overall, FXCC’s account-opening process is fully digital and hassle-free, and accounts are generally ready to trade within an hour.

FXCC’s financial asset offering is limited to Forex, indices, metals, energies, and cryptocurrencies.

FXCC has a simple account structure with trading costs included in the variable spreads. FXCC states that its revenue is derived from the spread, but it is not transparent about how the spreads are derived, and it does not publish the average spreads on its site.

Based on our experience, the average cost of trading one lot of EUR/USD is 6 USD, which is much lower than the costs of the accounts at other similar STP brokers. Additionally, there are no minimum deposit requirements to open an account at FXCC.

Swap Fees (Overnight Funding)

FXCC charges swap fees, or fees for positions that are held overnight. Unfortunately, FXCC does not publish the swap fees on its website.

We opened and tested FXCC’s EXN XL and Demo accounts:

ECN XL Account

There is no minimum deposit requirement on the account, and spreads start at 0.0 pips on the EUR/USD, averaging at around 0.60 pips.  No commissions are charged, but trading is only offered on the MT4 platform.  

FXCC’s account has hedging capabilities, allows automated trading and scalping, and has a minimum transaction level of 0.1 lots. Once the account reaches a Margin Level that equals the Stop Out Level or below, the system will automatically close all open positions.

Demo Account

The FXCC demo account expires after 30 days, which is not ideal for beginners. The demo account gives you a starting balance of 10,000 USD and allows traders to view charts, news, and analysis and get access to the full-featured MT4 platform.  Demo accounts are an excellent way for beginners to experience real-time prices and real forex market volatility.

FXCC’s mobile apps are limited compared to other similar brokers. It offers a mobile version of MT4 but no proprietary mobile trading solutions.  

FXCC offers support for the MT4 mobile trading app for Android and iOS. Traders should be aware that there is some loss in functionality when compared to the desktop trading platforms, including reduced time frames and fewer charting options. Still, traders can close and modify existing orders, calculate profit and loss, and trade on the charts.

FXCC only offers support for the MetaTrader 4 platform. In addition to the desktop and mobile applications, FXCC also offers MT4 WebTrader, the browser-based version of the platform. Multiterminal is also available if you are managing numerous accounts simultaneously.

MetaTrader 4

While not the most beginner-friendly software, MT4 has been the industry-standard platform for trading Forex and CFDs since 2005. Its intuitive interface and user-friendly environment provide essential tools and resources for successful online trading.    Features of the MT4 include:

• A built-in library of more than 50 indicators and tools to streamline the analysis process.
• An impressive array of analytical tools is available in nine timeframes for each financial instrument.
• Live price streaming on live accounts and demo accounts 128-bit encryption for secure trading
• Algorithmic trading allows any trading strategy to be formalised and implemented by an Expert Advisor. 
• Customisable alerts
• Access to MetaTrader market and MQL4 community

FXCC offers the out-of-the-box MT4 trading terminal, but upgrades are available through third parties for an additional fee. One significant advantage is that FXCC offers free in-depth user guides, which many brokers fail to do and can set traders up for longer-term success.

In order to comply with the Anti-Money Laundering Directive, withdrawal requests will only be sent the same way the funds were received and up to the initial deposited amounts. FXCC offers many deposit and withdrawal methods, including bank wire transfers, credit cards, and debit cards, various e-wallets, and cryptocurrency payments. 

FXCC offers a “zero deposit fee” promotion.  This means that FXCC will pay the deposit fees charged by the payment processor when funds are deposited.  However, withdrawal fees are charged for most payment methods. 

FXCC offers a limited number of base (trading account) currencies compared to other similar brokers.

Trading accounts can only be denominated in three base currencies – EUR, USD, and GBP, which is limited compared to other brokers.  Most other brokers denominated accounts in at least five to ten currencies.  Additionally, FXCC does not offer NGN trading accounts, which is a disadvantage for s who will likely have bank accounts denominated in NGN, and who will have to pay currency conversion fees on deposits and withdrawals.

For traders that trade in large volumes (more than 10 lots a month), it is better to open an account denominated in USD at a digital currency bank, especially for trading on assets such as the EUR/USD. This is because when trading a USD quoted currency pair with another currency account, there will be a small conversion fee for every trade made.

Overall, FXCC offers fewer trading account currencies than most other large international brokers and doesn’t offer accounts denominated in NGN. 

FXCC only offers a VPS service, which is limited compared to other brokers. However, unlike similar brokerages, it does not offer additional sentiment indicators or analytics services such as Autochartist or Trading Central.

VPS

VPS services ensure that trades are never disrupted by technological or connectivity issues, such as load-shedding or internet service failure, which is a benefit to algorithmic traders who need to be connected to a server 24/7 to maximise uptime.  Other benefits of the VPS service include:

• 24/6 VPS email support
• 24/7 Redundant power to your VPS
• 24/7 Redundant internet connectivity to your VPS
• Low latency connectivity to FP Markets trading servers for precision trading
• Uninterrupted EA trading

The Virtual Private Server (‘VPS’) is owned and managed by a third-party provider (‘BeeksFX’) who is separate and independent from FXCC.  Clients have to meet certain eligibility criteria to receive free VPS services:

• Maintain a minimum equity of $2,500 (or equivalent currency).
• Minimum monthly trading volume 30 standard lots round trip.

Clients who do not meet these criteria must pay a monthly subscription fee of 30 USD.  

FXCC’s limited research and analysis section provides an up-to-date basic daily technical analysis, a morning roll call analysis, and a forex news section. It also offers a ‘Traders Corner Blog’ with up-to-date trading news and an economic calendar for planning.  All market analysis material is fully translated into over 80 languages. 

New traders have access to fourteen quality educational posts plus a dedicated section on major economic reports.  FXCC also offers eleven downloadable ebooks, but does not offer training videos, trading seminars or courses. All educational content is translated into over 80 languages, which is impressive.  

The multi-lingual customer support team at FXCC is available 24/5 via telephone, live chat, and email, but, as with all regulated brokers, cannot offer investment advice.  FXCC also has seven social media channels and a FAQ section that answers many of the most common questions.