XM Broker Review: Can They Be Trusted

XM Overviews

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XM.com (previously known as XeMarkets) is a Cyprus-based international online foreign exchange broker that allows users to open accounts and trade the financial markets. The company provides financial trading services through a number of electronic trading platforms, including MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, allowing traders to apply Expert Advisor (EA) strategies. They also have a proprietary mobile trading app, XM – Trading Point.

Facts About XM

Pros and Cons

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Is XM Safe? Broker Regulations

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Depending on how many entities a broker has (that is to say, in how many other countries they operate), they will need to be regulated in those regions in order for them to be considered “legitimate.”.

For the most part, when traders (both new and professional) are looking for a broker, they want to know that they are safe, and the best way to do this is to find out if authorities regulate them in the regions they operate in.

Depending on the region XM operates in, they will need to (or should) be regulated in those regions. XM operates in many regions and is thus controlled (regulated) by a few regulatory authorities. Due to this, they are regarded as safe in most cases. These “commissions” that oversee them in each region are ASIC, CySEC, IFSC, FSCA, the FSC, and the FCA.

It should be noted that many other broker review sites don’t list all the authorities that regulate this broker because, depending on your region, you will be automatically directed to the entity of XM that you will fall under.

If you are still wondering how safe they are, we already know that they were established in 2009 and have had no problems with the authorities that govern them since they began. Also, take into consideration that they have been given many accolades over the years for the services they offer as a broker. Some of their awards include;

• Best FX service provider
• Best customer support
• Global forex broker of the year
• Most reliable broker

These are just a few that we are mentioning, but they have accumulated over 65 awards, which you can view here.

One angle that poses a concern is their low score on Trustpilot. For a broker this large, it is not uncommon to have cases where clients are not happy, and this is shown with a 2-star rating out of a possible 5 from over 270 reviews.

Besides this, the broker is considered safe and trustworthy due to the tier 1 regulators overseeing them. You can view a list of these authorities below.

What Can I Trade with XM?

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Heading to the XM website one of the first things that will catch your eye is that they have over 1,000 trading instruments. This means that for the financial markets that are available to an XM client, such as forex, crypto, etc., the total number of assets available to trade total over 1,000. That’s pretty incredible.

At its core XM lets you trade pretty much what most other brokers offer, but just more of it. They offer Forex, Crypto, Stock CFDs, Commodities, Equity Indices, Metals, Energies, and Shares. Let’s look at these markets and what XM offers its clients.

Forex

When trading forex with XM, you have over 50 currency pairs to choose from that are available to trade 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, with a leverage of up to 1000:1. You have zero swap on Ultra-low accounts with tight spreads, and no requotes, and there are no hidden charges that you need to worry about.

Crypto

XM lets you trade crypto 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is a zero-swap product. Most brokers limit leverage on crypto, but XM lets you capitalize with a leverage of 250:1. This asset class also boasts tight spreads and no requotes.

Stock CFDs

Trading stock CFDs can at times, be a bit more lucrative than trading actual stocks because of the ability to short. XM give some advantages of trading Stock CFDs with them that include;

• Cost-effective and direct access to the global equity markets
• Instant access to global economies
• Speculation on market uptrends/ downtrends
• Going short/long according to market moves
• Suits both short and long-term trading strategies
• No extra fees apply

Commodities

Commodities refer to instruments such as Corn, Coffee, Cocoa, Sugar, etc. There are many advantages to tradings these types of assets, and XM has listed some advantages of trading commodities with them;

• Trading without actually owning the financial instrument on which the contract is based
• Instant exposure to global economies
• Speculation on future uptrend/downtrend market price movements
• Ideal also for beginner traders due to low deposits
• Ability to go short and profit from falling prices
• NO stock exchange fees

Equity Indices

Indices refer to tracking a group of assets, and many popular Indices include ones like the S&P 500, DAX, FTSE, and more. All of these and more are tradable with XM at a leverage of up to 500:1 with no extra hidden costs or fees.

Metals

With XM, you are able to trade gold and silver with no requotes with zero swap on ultra-low accounts with a leverage of up to 1000:1. Again, XM reiterates that there are no hidden costs or extra fees.

Energies

XM then lets you trade energies like oil which is highly volatile and can be traded on a margin of as low as 5 USD with no overnight financing on oil CFDs. Other energies you are also able to trade with XM include natural gas.

Shares

Shares are available if you intend to open a Share account, which means you will not be trading in CFDs, but rather purchasing actual stock in a company. This means you will not be able to go short and will only make a profit when the share price goes up. We discuss more on the Share account in the following sections below.

How to Trade with XM?

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There are two primary ways to trade with XM. The first is to use their software, either MetaTrader 4 or MT5. If you do not already know, MetaTrader is considered to be the gold standard when it comes to day trading (and pretty much any trading) software. MetaqQuotes released MT4 in 2005, and since then, it and its brother (MT5) have had no superior or even competition regarding the best trading platform.

XM uses their own branded version of MT4 and MT5, the MetaQuotes license to them, and these two platforms are the ones you will use if you intend to open an account with XM. It should be noted that depending on the account you choose to open, you will need to choose either MT4 or MT5. Typically, traders who use MT5 will trade more stocks as MT5 is more accustomed to this being the “newer’ version.

Some other brokers have proprietary platforms or web terminals that you can use, but XM keeps it simple. That is to say, you open an account, verify your account, download the software, and trade.

There is only one other way to trade with XM: by using their proprietary mobile app, XM -Trading Point. As with most other mobile trading apps, you will have the chance to download it on iOS or Android. You can also sign up using the app and then trade straight from your smart device whenever you want. Mobile trading apps make trading much simpler and faster, especially for busy individuals, and the XM – Tradin Point app is no different. If you want to know more about this mobile app, then check out the links below;

• XM Trading Point (Android)
• XM Trading Point (Apple)

How Can I Open XM Account? A Simple Tutorial

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Opening an account with XM is pretty simple, as is the case nowadays with most brokers. Everything is done online through their site or mobile app and in a handful of steps. No matter where you are in the world, you will only need to head to their website, and you will be redirected to the correct region in which they operate (don’t worry) all regions look and operate the same).

For this tutorial, we will be covering how to open a live account. The first thing you will need to do once you have visited their website is to click on one of the many green buttons prompting you to open a live account.

 

Following that, you will be prompted to a section asking you to fill in some personal details such as;

• First name
• Last name
• Preferred language
• Country of residence
• Phone number
• Email

You will also be asked to choose your trading platform and your account type, which we will look at in detail.

 

 

Once that is complete, you will be prompted to the next page, where you will need to fill in more personal information regarding;

• Date of birth
• Address details
• Trading account details
• Account Password

You will then need to agree and confirm that you have read and accepted their terms and conditions.

 

 

That’s all you need to do to open your live trading account with XM. The only thing left for you to do is to confirm your Email address, log into the member’s area, verify your account and download the platform that you opted in your registration to trade with (either MT4 or MT5).

 

XM Charts and Analysis

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XM has a plethora of research tools, charting tools, and analysis tools when it comes to helping new and professional traders alike. We touched on how they use MT4 and MetaTrader5 as their trading platform; this is the industry standard and has been for almost two decades. We have many articles covering MT4 and MT5 features, and XM has so many other rich learning and analysis tools that we will focus on those rather.

Let’s begin by focusing on the tools that XM offers anybody (not only its members) that will allow them to keep up to date on the markets and be able to do some in-depth research. The research tools that XM off are as follows;

• Markets overview
• Discover
• XM research
• Trade ideas
• Technical summaries
• Economic calendar
• XM TV
• Podcast
• Trading signals

In terms of the markets overview section for XM, this is their news section that is kept up to date not just daily but as frequently as breaking financial news occurs. Most of the news comes from either in-house analysts or directly from Reuters.

For the Discover section, you will also not need to hold an account with XM if you wish to view some of the incredible market insights this section offers. Here you will be able to see the most viewed charts for bullish, bearish, most popular, and trending.

For those traders who are into technical analysis rather than fundamentals, the XM research section will cater to you perfectly. There is technical analysis based on all the markets, from forex to stocks, commodities, and more.

The trade ideas section is where you will find trading scenarios that are potential positions based on technical analysis. This section will detail many aspects of a position, like the direction, patterns, interval, trend change, quality of trade, clarity, initial trend, and uniformity.

Unfortunately, although all this research and analysis is free, if you wish to move through the pages and use multiple tools, XM prompts you to open an account for unrestricted access. As you now know from our easy tutorial, this is pretty simple to do, so you should do so if you wish to further use their research tools.

 

 

This restricted access applies to the technical summaries section. Once you have opened an account and gained access to this section, you will find the trend for any asset that XM has available to trade, giving you a strong indication of its direction over the course of the next 5, 10, and 60 minutes as well as over the daily and monthly period.

You then have the XM economic calendar. Now other brokers typically have an economic calendar that you can reference for important financial events; however, the XM calendar is much more insightful. It has filters allowing you to navigate between events for specific countries, their date, as well as their importance. Once you have narrowed the field for the event you are looking for, you can pull up a price chart, event chart, or even insight into its volatility and impact.

 

 

XM TV is the next research tool they offer, and if you know anything about Bloomberg, then you can imagine XM TV being the same just on a smaller scale. This YouTube Live stream that occurs at specific times in the week gives a breakdown of the markets and also makes future predictions for the week ahead.

XM even has its own Podcast, which not many other brokers can say they have. This Podcast goes over current financial news, and future predictions are pretty regular. This means you can almost expect a podcast once a day, and some days, you may even get two.

It should be noted that not only is the Podcast broadcast on their website, but it is available through many of the most popular media platforms;

• Spotify
• Amazon Music
• Apple

Lastly, trading signals are a way for you to view signals regarding the markets for any asset that XM has to offer. Unfortunately, even though you are able to open an account with them, to use this feature, your account needs to be verified, and at the time of this review, mine was still pending.

We also have to cover XM’s massive scope of learning material that it offers you as a new trader. Their learning center includes the following sections;

• XM Live
• Live Education
• Educational Videos
• Forex Webinars
• Forex Seminars
• Platform Tutorials
• Offline Trading Courses

As with the research material for some of the Learning Center features, you will need to open an account in order to take advantage of it.

XM live is where you will find live interviews with experts, learn the financial markets, and discover what products and services XM offers you for your trading benefit.

The XM live education is where you will find live webinars daily, along with Q&As with experts, learn trading fundamentals, learn how to prepare for a trade, follow real-time trading, have live debates, and more. There are two “rooms” that you can choose to join, with one being a beginner and the other being more advanced. In both cases, both rooms are free to join, and you can find the links below;

• Beginner live education trading room
• Advanced live education trading room

The forex webinar section is exactly what you might think it is, and it comprises 70 instructors in over 22 languages, 7 days a week. The webinars detail everything there is to know about forex, and you will only need to visit the section to look up a webinar in your language and schedule it.

Although we will not cover the seminars in this review, you should know that XM has live seminars worldwide and thoroughly explains the foundations of Technical Analysis and the “hidden relationships” of multiple time frames and how they are applied to intraday trading. The pinnacle of the seminar will be the practical application of multiple time frames and the use of volatility to find the best instruments to trade on a daily basis.

Then XM also has an MT4 video tutorial course. “Our team put all their talent, knowledge, and energy into developing video tutorials that can serve their true purpose and provide users with exactly what they require: answers. We have gone the extra mile to create an outstanding result: the XM learning tool for traders,” said Chris A. Zacharia, Chief Marketing Officer. Everything on MT4 you wish to learn you will find here.

Lastly, XM also offers offline trading courses in terms of learning materials. Depending on your location and where you were routed to for the correct entity, there will be a list of offline trading courses that you can attend in your country, or area.

 

 

XM trading platform features

XM Account Types

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XM offers four account types that are almost identical in nature to one another. The only exception is the Shares account type. This account only lets you trade in USD with a contract size of a 1-share minimum. This account has no leverage as it is a share account, meaning you will be purchasing actual shares and not trading in CFDs. The maximum number of open and pending orders for this account is 50 total positions. XM is only able to give a spread on these shares as per the underlying exchange.

It will help if you remember that most brokers (like XM) trade forex, commodities, Indices, etc., in the form of CFDs, so they are able to change the spread to suit different account types and their client’s needs, but in the case of actual shares it is different.

The lot restriction per ticket on a Share account will depend on each share, and no hedging or swaps are relevant when dealing with this account. The last thing you need to consider is that if you would like to open a Share account, you will need a minimum deposit of 10,000 USD.

XM Then has three other forex accounts. These are typical in terms of forex accounts that other brokers offer, including a micro account, standard, and ultra-low account. The first thing to note here is that all accounts can have a leverage of 1000:1 (one thousand). Then the contract size will vary depending on the account.

For the Micro account, the contract size is 1 lot, but it is equivalent to 1,000, which is unlike standard accounts for most brokers and just like XM, where its standard account is the typical contract size of 1 lot equal to 100,000. The Ultra-Low accounts (Micro or Standard) will have the same contract size.

In fact, the only difference that we can tell between the standard and Micro and then the Ultra-Low accounts is that the latter has a spread as low as 0.6 and has no swap fees, which you can view here.

Otherwise, the accounts are identical in terms of minimum trade volume, hedging, swaps, and minimum deposits (which is only 5 USD). The maximum number of open and pending orders is 300 positions for any account, and the spread for the standard and Micro accounts is 1 pip. All accounts also have an Islamic option which is available.

Lastly, you can expect the base currency of the accounts to be the currencies that they are regulated for, which include USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, CHF,‎ AUD, HUF, PLN, SGD, and ZAR.

Do I Have Negative Balance Protection with This Broker?

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Negative balance protection is something that concerns many traders and is an aspect of trading and brokers that not many new traders know about or understand.

In essence, negative balance protection is where a broker will cover your account in the event your account runs into a negative balance. That is to say, perhaps, for example, you have a trade open that shorts dramatically, taking you into a negative balance. No matter the balance, the broker will cover it and bring your account back to zero.

This means you can never lose any more money than what you have deposited into your account, unlike some other brokers where if your account goes into the red, you will first need to pay them back before you have access to your account again.

Luckily all accounts the XM offer (even the Share account) are covered with negative balance protection.

XM Deposits and Withdrawals

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Taking a look at the XM help center, there is not much information by way of them informing potential new clients which methods are available when they would like to make deposits or withdrawals. They say, “we offer a wide range of payment options for deposits/withdrawals: by multiple credit cards, multiple electronic payment methods, bank wire transfer, local bank transfer, and other payment methods.”.

This is all good and well, but many prospective new clients would like to know their options because depositing and withdrawing money is a crucial aspect of trading and the platforms available to do so are just as important.

Luckily, we have opened an account, and as shown in the image below, XM offers quite a few ways to deposit and withdraw money through a bank transfer, card, and online wallets. In total, there are eight ways to deposit money into your XM account, and they are;

• Credit/Debit Cards
• Online Bank Transfer
• Neteller
• Skrill
• Webmoney
• Perfect Money
• G Pay
• SticPay

 

 

The minimum deposit and withdrawal for all accounts besides Share account is only 5 USD, but depending on the payment method and your region, this may vary slightly. You are able to read more about this in the member’s area once you have opened an account.

It should be noted that some considerations should be taken into account with withdrawing from your XM account. They have a specific procedure that they follow regarding how much is allowed to be withdrawn into your card, e-wallet, and via a bank transfer. This is beyond the scope of this article, but you can find some more information on it here.

Support Service for Customer

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XM has held numerous awards over the years since it started operating for its excellent customer service. The first thing that should be noted is that all support channels, which include Email, Live Chat, and Telephonic support, are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The live chat can be directly accessed by heading to the XM website and searching for the “live chat” button at the top of the screen. This will give you access to a support agent in any one of the numerous languages that XM support. Without a doubt, you will be able to find out pretty much anything you need to know about your account or the company here.

You are also able to call them 24/7 at +5012236696. This may be an international call for most, but if there is an issue you need to deal with and nothing will do besides speaking to a support agent, then this will be your best bet.

There Email support channel is also available 24/7, and you can expect a response to your query within 24 hours of having Emailed them.

Lastly, they also have their Help Center where you can find information on supporting documents, trading accounts, deposits and withdrawals, trading platforms, and supported features of XM as a broker.

Prohibited Countries: Where Can I Not Trade with this Broker?

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The only countries that XM is not allowed to operate in, according to them, are the USA, Canada, Israel, and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Dodd-Frank Act passed by the US Congress, and the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission) no longer allows XM to let residents from the USA open trading accounts with them.

Legally speaking, no foreign brokers are allowed to provide financial services to US citizens unless the brokerage firm is licensed by US financial authority.

If you are unsure whether or not XM is allowed to operate in your country, you should open an account and then navigate to “country of residence” to see if your country makes the list of approved countries.

Special Offers for Customers

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Many brokers offer special promotions, such as giveaways, signup bonuses, etc., to entice prospective new clients to signup with them. With regards to XM, they offer quite the deal for new traders looking for a reliable and safe broker.

Even traders with accounts that are open with other brokers may move to XM because of some of the promotions they offer.

The first promotion is their initial signup 50 USD trading bonus that you get when you open an account. You do not even need to deposit any capital to be eligible to receive this bonus. The only thing you will need to do is to open an account and verify it. That’s it.

The next promotion is their deposit bonus is a 50% deposit bonus up to 500 USD plus a 20% deposit bonus up to 4,500 USD. XM offers a two-tier bonus on your deposit, which is combined to give you a considerable $5,000 on top of your investment amount, giving you the ability to start trading with more capital.

It should be noted that the XM Ultra-low accounts are not eligible for this bonus. You can read more on that here if you like.

XM also has a referral program where you can earn up to 35 USD for each person you refer to signup and open an account. The amount you will receive will also increase the more friends you refer, and all your earnings can be withdrawn.

With so many rewards and incentives already, you might think that XM could not be any more generous, but you would be wrong. In addition to all other bonuses and rewards, XM will offer special seasonal bonuses a few times a year, marking certain calendar events and occasions that will be available for very limited periods. In addition, we will also offer highly exclusive bonuses that will be made available on an invitation-only basis. You can read more about these promotions here.

Lastly, XM prides itself on having no fees for deposits and withdrawals. All e-wallets, major credit cards, and debit cards are covered completely. However, only wire transfers above 200 USD are covered. They also emphasize the fact that they have no hidden fees or commissions. You can also read more about this here.

All in all, XM has some nice incentives for individuals looking for a change to a broker that offers special promotions.

XM Review Conclusion: Reputable Broker with Easy-to-use Platform

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XM has been in operation since 2009 and is regulated by tier 1 authorities. They have a wide range of assets to choose from and accounts that will pretty much suit any needs. Besides being a CFD broker, they also offer the chance to open a Share account where you are able to purchase company stocks.

PIPPENGUIN

XM has been in operation since 2009 and is regulated by tier 1 authorities. They have a wide range of assets to choose from and accounts that will pretty much suit any needs. Besides being a CFD broker, they also offer the chance to open a Share account where you are able to purchase company stocks.

Their resources in terms of educational and research material far surpass many other brokers, and as such, looking at this broker as a whole, there is not much we can find wrong with them. If you are looking for a broker that has been in business for going on two decades, has a ton of assets to trade, many accounts to choose from, and some great signup promotional offers, then you should look them over.

Summary and Key Takeaways

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XM is safe and reliable because it is regulated by six authorities and has been in business since 2009. They have accumulated over 65 awards and many customer service awards since their inception.

They offer five broker accounts: a Micro, Standard, Ultra-low Micro, Ultra-low Standard, and Share account. Besides the share account, there are over 1,000 instruments available to trade.

FAQs

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Can XM be trusted?

XM is regulated by 6 top ties authorities, including ASIC, CySEC, IFSC, FSCA, the FSC, and the FCA, regulate them, and they have been in operation since 2009. With this, we regard them as safe and reliable.

How long does XM withdrawals take?

Withdrawals from XM will vary depending on the method you used. This is due to the fact that they offer methods of withdrawal through e-wallets, banks, and credit and debit cards. On average, when using a bank transfer or credit or debit card, you can expect to wait about 2 business days.

Can I withdraw profits from XM?

Profits can be withdrawn anytime when trading on a No Deposit Trading Account. However, the account needs to reach at least 10 micro lots (0.1 standard lots) and have at least 5 round-turn trades.

Does XM have a withdrawal fee?

XM in no way charges any withdrawal or deposit fees. All withdrawals and deposits are fully covered for e-wallets and bank cards, and for bank transfers, all fees are covered for withdrawals and deposits exceeding 200 USD.