XM Review

XM has been around for quite a while but has undergone a couple of name changes during it’s time. The brokerage has slowly built a strong reputation for offering competitive trading conditions and has become well established with a large and international client base.

XM.com has opted to build their whole offering around the MetaTrader 4 platform from specialist software developer MetaQuotes. As a result the brokerage only offers prospective customers the MetaTrader 4 platform, though the brokerage has ensured that the platform is available for PCs, MACs, Mobile and tablet devices. MetaTrader 4 remains the preferred trading platform of many traders in part for impressive charting and auto-trading capabilities (via Expert Advisors). In recent years their has been growth in the number of alternative platforms which has to led to some traders moving away from the MetaTrader 4 platform. Those who are not fans of the platform are likely to be put of by XM’s limited platform offering. Traders are able to manager their accounts and positions on devices which do not feature an installation of MetaTrader 4 via the companies XM Webtrader 4 platform which is accessible via any modern internet browser. The limited platform range is one of the main weaknesses of XM’s offering.

Low Spreads

The brokerage offers both Micro and Standard Accounts, but the difference between these accounts is negligible. Since launching as TradingPoint back in 2009, the company has always remained competitive in regards to spreads. Currently, the brokerage offers spreads as low as 1 pip on major currency pairings meaning the brokerage remains competitive with many of the big names in the industry. XM allows unlimited use of Expert Advisors and doesn’t prevent customers from using scalping or short term EA’s, though customers are limited to a maximum of 200 pending orders at any one time. XM additionally offers leverage of up to 888:1, making it one of the few EU regulated brokerages to offer such significant leverage. Though such leverage can also work against traders significantly increasing their risk. XM places no restriction on news trading and scalping, allowing traders to use any trading strategy they want to. Overall, the brokerage offers relatively favourable trading conditions.

The brokerage offers a total of 57 currency pairings to customers including a number of more exotic pairings. For example XM, offers both EUR/RUB and USD/RUB pairings. The volatility often witnessed in these pairings see many brokerages shying away from offering them to clients. The majority of traders will find all the pairings they want to trade available at XM.

The brokerage also offers a range of CFD markets, with it being possible to trade Commodities, Indices and Spot Metals with the brokerage. While this adds some diversity to the product range, XM still falls short of other FX brokerages who have begun offer a significant range of CFD products on the side. Still XM should be commended for the range of CFD’s they have on offer, which offer some diversity to the brokerages offering and give traders the opportunity to experiment with trading other asset classes.

Multi-lingual Customer Service

XM is widely known for offering high quality multi-lingual customer service, with the brokerage providing customer service in 20 European and world languages. The brokerage provides 24/5 customer service meaning that any time during the working week it is possible to get into contact with the firm should anything go wrong. This international approach has paid off for the brokerage with the firming boasting customers in an incredible 196 countries around the globe. The staff at the firm work hard to resolve any problems that may come up and cannot be commended enough for their positive and helpful attitude.

CySEC Regulated

XM.com is regulated by CySEC of Cyprus. CySEC is the organisation responsible for regulating financial services on the Mediterranean island. Due to Cyprus’ membership of the European Union, brokerages regulated by CySEC are able to offer their services across the European Economic Area. Europe’s regulatory framework also ensures that individuals trading with brokerages based on the island receive the minimum standards of regulation as set out by the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID). In the past XM have received two relatively small fines for minor regulatory breaches, but have never been on the receiving end of any major regulatory action and have not been on the receiving end of any action in the recent past.

Pro’s

• EU Regulated brokerage with a good regulatory record.
• Competitive spreads and trading conditions, with the brokerage impressive levels of leverage.
• Impressive range of FX pairings and CFD’s available with XM.com
• Multi-lingual and 24/5 customer service.

Con’s

• Limited platform choice.

XM can be considered a good choice for those looking for a regulated brokerage with no minimum deposit requirements. The brokerage offers good trading conditions with no restrictions on trading styles and is generally well thought of by a significant number of traders. Therefore it is relatively easy to recommend this brokerage to people looking for competitive trading conditions.