CMTrading Broker Review
Forex brokers are mostly based out of popular investment destinations such as the US, the EU, and the Asia-Pacific, mainly due to the relevance of these regions in the modern financial markets. However, some new and adventurous companies are also emerging from several different tax havens to take advantage of the low cost of operations and tax savings, which in turn helps them to offer better services at a fraction of the cost.
Nevertheless, we do find that brokers tend to base their operations around the European, American, and Asian time zones, in a bid to better target the highly lucrative retail traders from these continents.
It is also not uncommon for traders to find brokers based out of less-popular broker destinations, particularly countries such as South Africa, which may be considered to be new in the long history of the financial markets. CM Trading is a South African broker that has several exciting Forex trading products in its portfolio to compete with the more established companies in the market. However, is CMTrading a genuine company that is capable of providing reliable FX brokerage services? Make sure to read through our elaborate review of CM Trading before signing up for an account.
CMTrading Regulation & Global Presence
In recent times, the African continent has witnessed a significant presence in the global financial markets, with South Africa leading away at the front. South Africa, known for its proximity to sea trade routes, proactive market participation, and international partnerships, is quickly turning out to be a significant player in the global markets. South Africa has one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, which is poised to become an important contributor to the world’s economy.
The country is also well-known for its comparatively wealthier population in the African continent that is looking to invest in attractive investment opportunities. Therefore, South Africa has been attracting substantial investments from both local and global financial companies, leading to a spike in interest among Forex brokers.
CM Trading is one of the largest Forex brokers in South Africa and is easily the top performing financial company in the South African FX market. CM Trading is regulated by the Financial Services Board (FSB), which is South Africa’s equivalent of a regulatory organisation that is responsible for monitoring financial companies operating in the region.
The FSB is still a new organisation that is steadily improving its regulatory standards to meet the industry benchmark, which essentially makes it slightly inferior to the more established agencies such as the NFA (US), the FCA (UK), the CySEC (Cyprus), and the FSA (Japan). CM Trading is a brand name that is jointly owned and operated by Global Capital Markets Trading and BLACKSTONE Marketing SA (PTY) LTD.
Despite being a relatively newer regulatory organisation, the FSB has formulated several policies and guidelines that are aimed at enhancing investor safety. Security of funds is guaranteed through the segregation of accounts, along with routine auditing requirements that promote financial transparency among companies.
The FSB is an independent agency with limited powers, but the organisation does enjoy several powers when it comes to regulating and supervising the activities of Forex brokers operating in the nation. Hence, CM Trading’s FSB licenses are certainly better than investing in any offshore FX brokerage that does not have a regulatory clearance.
CMTrading Assets
CMTrading mainly deals in Forex, commodities, and indices, with its products being offered as Contracts For Differences (CFDs) through a market maker platform. CM Trading is a new company in the Forex business, and there are several limitations that affect traders in general.
Nowadays, traders have the freedom to invest in financial instruments from several markets across the globe, primarily made possible by brokers that are willing to offer different tradeable assets as a part of their brokerage services. CM Trading is a bit conservative when it comes to the number of financial instruments, with the broker deliberately opting to restrict market access to only the most popular FX currency pairs, commodities, and major indices.
Forex: EURUSD, GBPUSD, USDJPY, USDCHF, USDCAD, NZDUSD, EURJPY, GBPJPY, EURGBP, EURAUD, EURCHF, GBPCHF, EURCAD, CHFJPY, EURNZD, AUDJPY, CADJPY, AUDCHF, NZDJPY, AUDNZD, AUDCAD, AUDUSD, CADCHF, GBPAUD, GBPCAD, NZDCAD, NZDCHF, USDZAR
Indices: S&P 500, DJ 30, NASDAQ 100, CAC 40, DAX 30, FTSE 100, NIKKEI 225 (Japan), Hang Seng (Hong Kong), S&P / ASX 200 (Australia), DJ EURO STOXX50, FTSE / MIB (Italy), S&P/IBEX (Spain), AEX (Netherlands), MSCI (Taiwan), JSE, USDX (US Dollar Index)
Commodities: Gold, Oil, Coffee, Metals, Natural gas, Sugar
With a few more tradable assets in the mix, particularly from the shares market and cryptocurrencies, would have certainly made CM Trading more attractive to the general trading population. However, CM Trading is still a viable choice for traders if they are only looking to invest in the most common FX pairs, commodities, and global indices.
The CM Trading leverage is highly restrictive, primarily when Forex brokers offer in excess of 1:500 for the major currency pairs. While brokers from the US are legally obliged to limit the maximum leverage to 1:50, other global brokers do tend to offer attractive margin options for more freedom to trade the markets. CMTrading only provides a maximum leverage of 1:200 for Forex instruments, while the leverage for other assets such as indices and commodities have even lower leverage ranging from 1:50 to 1:100. Margin trading is risky, but using leverage diligently can help in reducing the capital outflow and the overall risk to a trader.
Types Of CMTrading Accounts & Trading Features
CMTrading desires to be at the forefront of the Forex trading market, by advertising itself as an innovative Forex trading platform. However, CMTrading adopts the market maker protocol using an automated internal dealing desk platform. The market maker model has several drawbacks, primarily the conflict of interest between the broker and the trader. Market maker brokers using an internal dealing desk will almost always transact clients’ orders internally, and rarely send them to a liquidity provider or other market participants. Although market maker brokers from other countries such as the US, the EU, and other parts of the Asia-Pacific are specifically barred from trading against their clients, there are no such laws in South Africa.
CMTrading is also slightly more expensive than a regular market maker account. The company offers four different account categories, each divided into separate account options according to the initial investment. The CMTrading minimum deposit is $250 for a Mini account, which gives access to some essential trading features such as a demo account, daily market review, weekly market review, and a CMTrading e-book. The Mini account is available for all deposits up to $999, but $250 is considerably larger than the minimum deposit required for ECN accounts at other brokers. The Mini account also has comparatively higher spreads, but you can expect to get around 2-3 pip spread quotes on the major currency pairs.
The second account option is the Standard account, which requires at least $1000-$4,999 as the initial deposit. The Standard account offers all the standard features that are available with the Mini account, on top of several account benefits such as one risk-free trade, CMT debit card, and Forex webinars. If you are searching for a tighter and more competitive CMTrading spreads, the Executive and Gold accounts should be a better option, which quotes a minimum spread starting from 1 pip. The Executive account requires an investment of around $5,000 to $24,999, while the Gold account is more expensive with a minimum deposit requirement of $25,000.
The broker promotes its VIP debit card for its Executive and Gold account holders, mainly for withdrawals, but CMTrading also adopts other payment modes such as Neteller, CashU, fasapay, bank wire, Credit, and Debit cards. The Gold account has several premium benefits over the regular accounts, which include same-day withdrawals, three risk-free trades, personalised spreads, two trading strategies, and detailed trader education.
Traders would have preferred CMTrading to offer a micro account option, especially with a smaller initial deposit, which could have helped the broker to acquire more traders from the retail traders’ spectrum. The trading conditions and features are not overly exciting, but it does present a dependable trading environment that should suit the average trader.
CMTrading Bonus & Trading Promotions
CMTrading offers a 20% bonus on all deposits that are above $500, with a maximum bonus of $1000 available per account holder. The bonus represents the broker’s strategy to attract international traders, which also contain several terms and conditions related to trading and account transactions. The broker also provides a free international debit card for all deposits above $1000, but the trader must choose between the debit card and the deposit bonus. Traders can also sign up for bonuses, gifts, and other giveaways from time to time, but the availability of a bonus should satisfy a large number of traders in the market.
CMTrading provides a risk-free trade option to its traders, which include one risk-free trade for Standard accounts, two risk-free trades for Executive accounts, and three risk-free trades for Gold accounts. The FSB hasn’t outlined any policies that prohibit bonuses, unlike its EU and US counterparts, which gives the freedom to brokers to follow several promotional strategies to attract new traders.
CMTrading Platform
There are different types of trading platforms in the Forex trading industry, where most brokers choose to stick to a popular trading platform to save costs. CMTrading works primarily through an internal dealing desk protocol, which requires the company to create an edge in the market by offering some of the best trading platforms in the market. Therefore, the broker has gone ahead and spent some significant amount of money into offering several different trading platforms and trading resources for ensuring the best market access for its clients.
CMTrading offers the popular MT4 as its main trading platform, but traders are also free to use the Sirix platform if they prefer.
CMTrading offers the convenience of trading either through an installable trading interface or through a web browser for trading on the move. As a trader, one would be extremely pleased with the broker’s support services and allied trading tools, which include the CM Trading CopyKat, the Social Trading platform, and EA support. CMTrading CopyKat is a unique copy trading platform that allows traders to copy trades from the more successful traders in the market, while the Social Trading platform is designed to offer a collaborative environment for social trading.
CMTrading supports full use of EAs for automated trading, despite being a market maker broker. The company also provides unhindered access to daily and weekly market reviews for all account holders, along with several trading strategies and in-depth trader education for premium account holders. The varied choice of CM Trading Forex trading platforms is undoubtedly going to be appreciated by all existing and new CMTrading clients.
CMTrading Apps For Mobile
CMTrading has a proprietary mobile trading platform that offers a secure platform for trading the markets. However, the broker also supports MT4 mobile apps, along with the option of using the SIRIX trader for smartphones and tablets. CMTrading is compatible with web browsers, smartphones, and tablets, making it one of the best options available in the market. CMTrading seems to be really committed to offering the best trading platforms for its traders, and the broker is true to its word by offering some of the leading platforms for trading the Forex market.
CMTrading Customer Service & Contact Information
With a customer support channel that is available on call 24X5, CMTrading is open for business during regular market open hours. Traders can contact the broker through the live chat feature, or through email and international phone numbers provided on their contacts page. CMTrading has set up international support centres in Canada, Malaysia, the UK, China, France, Mexico, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain. Therefore, the broker has covered all the main time zones, to ensure seamless customer interaction.
CMTrading is based out of Johannesburg and operates under the FSB for all Forex trading related activities. The broker’s payment systems and credit card processing are done via its sister concern based out of Cyprus, but all funds are transacted under the watchful eyes of the FSB and the CySEC. The broker has different departments to take care of clients’ concerns, which does help in improving the overall standards of customer service and client satisfaction.
CMTrading Resources
CMTrading offers daily and weekly market reviews, technical/fundamental analysis, and Forex education through its online platform. The broker also offers trading strategy consultation, detailed webinars, and other unique trading tools for all premium account holders. It is also interesting to note that the company supports EA trading, along with social trading with tools such as the CMTrading CopyKat, which presents a unique opportunity for traders to take advantage of the social trading platforms to copy trades from the more successful traders in the market. The broker also provides a free signals service, but it is only available for Executive and Gold accounts, upon request.
CMTrading Verdict
Pros
- Excellent choice of trading platforms.
- Regulated by the FSB of South Africa.
- Proprietary CopyKat platform for copying trades from successful traders.
- Supports automated and social trading.
- Professional and friendly customer service.
- Good choice of trading resources for premium account holders.
- Availability of bonus on deposit.
Cons
- Higher minimum deposit requirement than most brokers.
- No ECN/STP account.
- Limited choice of assets.
- Low leverage of 1:200.
FAQ
What Is The Minimum Deposit Required For A CM Trading Account?
Traders should deposit at least $250 for a CMTrading account.
Is CM Trading A Reliable Broker?
Yes, CM Trading is regulated by the Financial Services Board (FSB) of South Africa and is a genuinely reliable Forex broker.
What Are The Different Choices Of Markets?
CM Trading offers access to Forex, commodities, and indices trading.
Summary
CM Trading is one of the largest brokers operating out of South Africa. Although the broker has developed a great Forex brokerage, there are still some features that requires subtle improvements to convert CM Trading into a world-class Forex broker.