OctaFX is a forex broker widely popular for its competitive spreads. With multiple trading platforms, the company claims to offer instant trade execution with no slippage. Besides having a competitive edge to provide world-class research and educational resources, the broker hosts excellent customer support. Unfortunately, except for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the broker lacks regulations anywhere in the world. In this piece, I review the broker in detail.
Overview
Founded in 2011, OctaFX is headquartered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Having more than 6.6 Million accounts opened, the broker serves clients across 100 countries worldwide. Ever since its inception, the broker has won 38 industry awards to date. The company claims to be fully compliant with international legislation and regulatory standards. However, OctaFX does not hold a regulatory license outside its home country. In addition to offering traditional trading services across multiple financial instruments, the broker also supports copy trading services. Serving clients in 9 languages, the broker’s customer support team stays on its toes to help clients round the clock.
| Pros | Cons |
| Supports copy trading Excellent customer support Offers swap free account Wide range of payment methods Great research tools | No major regulations Does not accept US clients Fewer tradable instruments Charges in-activity fee |
Who OctaFX Is For?
OctaFX is for those who seek cost-effective trading solutions. While the broker’s low deposits make it easy for small traders to get started, the bonus offers can make anyone sign up instantly. Since the broker also supports copy trading services, it can be a hassle-free option for both novice and veteran traders to generate passive income. Moreover, interest-free accounts are well suited for shariah practising traders. The broker also offers unlimited demo accounts that can be equally beneficial for new and skilled professionals. Clients can practice different trading and money management strategies using demo accounts without compromising their real funds. Not to mention, the broker employs minimal trading restrictions that might sound good to all scalpers out there. In short, the broker serves to be an all-in-one place for trading enthusiasts.
Sign up bonus: The broker offers a 50% deposit bonus on a minimum deposit of $50.
Is OctaFX Safe?
Since the broker doesn’t hold regulations anywhere except Vincent and the Grenadines, it could be a point of concern for some traders. Also, you don’t have any insurance security. However, the broker keeps clients’ investments in segregated bank accounts. OctaFX also employs Secure Socket Layers (SSL) web encryption and two-step authentication to keep clients’ financial information out of the reach of intruders. The payment methods are also protected by 3D Visa authorization making it nearly impossible for hackers to steal your card details. Despite the absence of regulations, I haven’t heard of any scam at OctaFX.
Rating: 4/5
| Year founded: | 2011 |
| Publicly traded: | No |
| Licenses: | Local regulations in St. Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Backlist: | Nil |
Offering of Investments
Although the broker offers a rich product portfolio, it still doesn’t compete with the industry standards. For instance, clients can trade a total of 32 currency pairs and a maximum of 10 indices. While Natural Gas, West Texas Intermediate crude oil, and Brent crude oil are the only options under commodities offering, traders can only trade Silver and Gold as a metal. Also, you don’t have many choices available concerning digital assets. Not to mention, the range of tradable instruments may vary in different regions. For example, clients residing in the UK can’t trade crypto CFDs amid the FCA restrictions. Therefore, do not forget to confirm the availability of a particular product before signing up with the broker.
Rating: 3.5/5
| Forex: Spot Trading | Yes |
| Currency Pairs (Total Forex pairs) | 32 |
| Social Trading / Copy-Trading | Yes (Copy trading only) |
| CFDs instruments | Forex, Stocks, Indices, Crypto |
Commissions & Fees
The fees and commissions vary depending upon your selected account type. At times, the broker offers three types of accounts, including MT4 Micro, MT5 Pro, and CTrader ECN accounts. Unfortunately, the trading cost seems to be a little higher than average industry standards. The broker employs floating spreads starting from 0.6 pips and charges $6 per round in a standard lot. Nonetheless, the average spread cost stays between 1.0 and 1.2 pips.
While the minimum deposit needed to open each account at OctaFX is $100, the broker allows a minimum withdrawal of $5. Given below is a quick comparison of accounts available at OctaFX.
MT4 Micro: With a minimal volume of 0.01 lot and maximum leverage of up to 1:500, clients can trade 28 currency pairs, 03 crypto assets, and 04 indices in the MT4 account. Not to mention, clients can also access gold and silver in this account.
MT5 PRO: The MT5 Pro account is for advanced-level traders. It comes with 28 currency pairs, 03 digital assets, 02 metals, and 10 indices for trading. The minimum volume starts from 0.01 lot, and available leverage is 1:200 in the MT5 Pro account.
CTrader ECN: Clients can trade 28 currency pairs along with gold and silver in the CTrader account. Cryptocurrencies and CFD trading are unavailable in the CTrader ECN account.
Rating: 4/5
| Minimum Initial Deposit | $100 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD – Standard | 1.1 pips |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD – Active | 1.0 pips |
| Minimum withdrawal | $5 |
Platforms & Tools
Being a MetaTrader broker, OctaFX offers a full suite of MetaTrader platforms, including MT4, MT5, cTrader, and cAlgo. Traders can either use them online or have them installed on their desktops and mobile phones. Not to mention, MT4 and MT5 are known to be the best trading platforms in the industry.
Using cTrader, clients can annotate through charts and graphs to identify price trends. It also works great for deploying automated trading techniques. While most traders already know the features offered in MT4 and MT5 trading platforms, I would focus more on the OctaFX copy trading platform.
OctaFX copy trading platform is accessible online. Traders need to use the web-based version of the MT4 platform to start duplicating trades of other professional traders. Although the trading interface is easy to navigate, it still lacks the community feel.
Rating: 3.5/5
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | No |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes |
| Charting – Indicators / Studies (Total) | 70+ |
| Charting – Drawing Tools (Total) | 50+ |
| Charting – Trade From Chart | Yes |
| Order Type – Trailing Stop | Yes |
Research
With some decent offerings under the research section, OctaFX competes for the industry standards on higher nodes. Starting from market information to technical analysis, it features a range of valuable resources. While the economic calendar enables clients to keep track of major economic events coming ahead, the market analytics tool features trade ideas. Forex news feed and prevailing interest rates updates are yet some commendable features at OctaFX. Traders can also find a holiday calendar at OctaFX to stay abreast of the upcoming national and international holidays. Overall, the research section seems satisfactory. However, the broker could have added more content under each category making it more appealing.
Rating: 4/5
Education
OctaFX’s educational section also has some helpful informational resources. It includes forex basics, video tutorials, instructions, glossary, FAQs and webinars. The forex basics tool offers fundamental trading concepts that can be very useful for beginners. The video tutorials specifically help clients learn how to set up a trading account, start copy trading, etc. It is worth mentioning here that there are only four videos available that can’t be deemed enough in any case. The company should have considered adding more tutorial videos covering both basic and advanced level guides. The glossary section contains trading vocabulary enabling traders to understand the meaning of different trading terms. While the FAQs section helps clients know the quick resolution to their queries, traders can sign up for one-to-one sessions via free webinars. Honestly, I didn’t feel contentious after going through the educational library of the broker.
Rating 3.5/5
Mobile Trading Platform
Unfortunately, the broker doesn’t offer any proprietary mobile trading app. However, clients can access the mobile-based version of MT4 and MT5 trading platforms. The supported versions of the mobile trading platforms are available to download from Google Play Store and App Store. The mobile trading platforms make it easy for clients to access the market anywhere, anytime. Traders can also access many trading features on their mobile screen as available on the desktop or web-based version. However, the availability of limited features will remain an exception.
Rating: 3/5
| Mobile devices | Apple and Android |
| Features | Watchlist, one click trading, charting tools, price alert, etc. |
Final Words
OctaFX is a medium-range forex broker more suitable for novice traders. While the minimum deposits are relatively high, the lack of regulations could limit traders from signing up with it. Nonetheless, the broker offers excellent customer support round the clock. Besides multiple deposit and withdrawal options, the broker has a hassle-free sign-up process with a relatively quick verification system. Not to mention, OctaFX comes with an exceptional research facility.
