FXTM Nigeria Review 2021

FXTM Nigeria is a popular forex broker that is well regulated with multiple top-tier regulators. But their trading & non-trading fees is higher compared to other brokers.

Regulated By: FCA, CySEC, FSCA

Address: 3rd Floor, 5, Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria

Foundation Year: 2011

Min Deposit: $5

Open Account Note: Forex & CFD Trading is Risky.

ForexTime (FXTM) is a popular forex & CFD broker that was founded in 2011. They are one of the most popular brokers in Nigeria.

FXTM is considered a safe broker for Nigeria-based traders since it is regulated by Tier 1 financial regulators such as the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) of the UK. It is also regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority(FSCA) of South Africa and the CySECof Cyprus.

Currently, FXTM offers seven different kinds of accounts to its registered users. All of the accounts come with an option to choose MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5 as the forex trading platform. But, their fees are higher than other brokers.

FXTM allows you to trade 59 different pairs of currency, along with stock CFDs, energy, indices, metals, and cryptocurrencies. Their FXTM Invest also has a social copy trading feature.

We checked all that is good & bad about FXTM Nigeria. Read our detailed review below.

FXTM Nigeria – A quick look

Is FXTM Nigeria Safe?

FXTM is regulated by several different financial regulators in various jurisdictions. It is regulated by 1 Tier 1 financial regulator & 2 Tier 2 regulators.

1. 1. ForexTime UK Limited is regulated by FCA: Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK has granted FXTM license no. 777911.
   2. FSCA: FXTM is also regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) which is the primary financial regulator of South Africa. The FSCA has allotted it the FSP No. 46614.
   3. CySEC: FXTM is also regulated by CySEC which is the financial regulator of Cyprus. The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission has registered FXTM under the CIF License Number 185/12.

1. FSC: FXTM is regulated in Mauritius by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) which has granted it the license number C113012295.

Overall, we consider FXTM to be a safe broker to trade forex. This is because it is held accountable by financial regulators in various jurisdictions.

FXTM also practices the segregation of funds in different AAA-rated bank accounts to ensure that your deposits are kept safe. The funds deposited by clients are kept in separate accounts from those in which the broker’s own funds are kept.

FXTM Nigeria Fees

The exact fees and commission that you will be charged depend on the account opened and the instrument that you are trading. However, you can get an estimate of how much they charge through a few benchmark examples.

1. High Spread – For the benchmark EURUSD currency pair, those who are using a Standard account will be charged an average spread of 2.0. The spread for this currency pair is even higher for those using a Cent account, in which the average spread would be 2.4.For these two types of accounts, the average spread is higher than a number of other brokers such as HotForex and XM Trading.

   Below table shows the comparison of their spread for Gold/USD for various account types:
   

   However, they charge a significantly lower average spread if you use any of the other five types of accounts that they offer. The average spread can go as low as 0.4 for the benchmark currency pair if you are trading through a PRO account.

2. Average Commissions with ECN Accounts – FXTM offers a commission-based ECN account in which the spreads are low. In the ECN account, FXTM charges a commission of $2 per lot per side. This works out to a total round turn commission of $4. However, the lowest spread is with the Pro account, other accounts have higher spread.Even though the Pro account charges the overall lowest spread, it is worth nothing that you need to make a minimum deposit of $25000 in order to open this account.
3. Deposit and Withdrawal Fees – FXTM does not charge any fee on making deposits. However, they do charge a withdrawal fee depending on method you use to make a withdrawal. In some methods they do not charge any withdrawal fees, whereas in others they may charge a fee of around 1% or a flat fee.
4. Other Charges – FXTM charges an inactivity fee if you do not use your account for a period of six months. They will charge a $5 fee for every month of inactivity after the first six months.

Overall, FXTM does not have too many hidden fees. Their spread is on the higher side if you trade using a Standard account, however, they provide ECN accounts if you want to trade with a lower spread.

FXTM Trading Account Types

FXTM offers a total of six different account types, which are each suitable for different needs. There is a difference in Fees, minimum deposit, trading instruments, and trading platform.

But not all types of accounts are available to traders in Nigeria. The Shares Account and the ECN Zero Account are only available in the UK and EU countries.

The following accounts are offered by FXTM Nigeria:
1. Standard Account – This has a minimum deposit requirement of $100. They charge a higher spread but do not charge any commission. You can use both MT4 and MT5 trading platforms. You can trade forex, Stock CFDs, commodities, and Index CFDs.

2. Cent Account – This type of account has a minimum deposit requirement of $5. But you are charged a higher spread however, but no commission. You can only trade using the MT4 platform. Financial instruments such as forex and commodity CFDs are available.

3. ECN Account – The minimum deposit requirement is $500. You will be charged a commission but a lower spread. You can trade through either MT4 or MT5. Forex, commodities, stock CFDs, Indices CFDs, are available.

4. ECN Zero Account – You need to make a minimum deposit of $200. There is no commission, but you will be charged a higher spread. You can trade through either MT4 or MT5. Forex, commodities, stock CFDs, Indices CFDs, are available.

5. Pro Account – The minimum deposit requirement is $25,000. The spread is lower than all other account types, and you will not be charged a commission. You can use either MT4 or MT5. You can trade Forex, commodities, stock CFDs, and Indices CFD. Spot metals and real stocks are available for those who are not from the EU or the UK.

Instruments available at FXTM Nigeria

With FXTM, you can trade with a range of instruments which are forex, commodity CFDs, stock CFDs, Indices CFDs, and cryptocurrencies. But, the range of stock and commodity CFDs that are being offered is low compared to other brokers.

The number of forex instruments available is approximately average. However, they do not offer any instruments in the ETF and Bonds categories. They do offer cryptocurrencies which a lot of forex brokers do not.
Type of Instrument # Available
Currencies 48
Stock Index CFDs 11
Commodity CFDs 6
Stock CFDs 166
Cryptocurrencies 4

FXTM Nigeria Trading Platforms

With FXTM, you can trade using your mobile, web browser, or desktop. FXTM uses a popular third-party software called MT4 or MT5 to allow you to conduct your trades. Both these platforms are functionally quite similar.

Web Trading Platform – Their web trading platform can be easily customized according to your needs, however, it does not have two-step login or price alerts. It is available in a number of languages and provides a fee report.
Mobile Platform – You can enjoy a user-friendly trading experience, and you also receive price alerts and it has a good search function. However, this also does not have a two-step login process and does not provide order confirmation.

Desktop Trading Platform – This is functionally and design-wise similar to the web trading platform. In the desktop version, you can also set the platform to provide price alerts unlike the browser version. This also does not have a two-step verification process before you login to your account.

Overall, FXTM offers a standard trading experience thanks to its use of the MT4 and MT5 trading platforms. They do not have a proprietary trading platform of their own, which can be an advantage if you are used to using MT4 or MT5.

FXTM Education

FXTM sends you a daily analysis of various price movements in the global markets. This can be helpful for novice and experienced traders alike. This analysis can be accessed on their website for free. They also conduct regular webinars which can be helpful in understanding the market.
Their analysis is focused on technical aspects rather than fundamental aspects. Hence, it may be more suitable for traders rather than investors.

They attempt to educate their users through the Education section on their website as well.
An extensive economic calendar is also available on their website for free.

FXTM Nigeria’s Customer Support

As per our tests FXTM has fast and helpful customer support. You can reach out to them through chat, email, or a phone call. However, their customer support services are available only on weekdays.

1. Quick & Helpful Live Chat – FXTM Live chat customer support is available 24/5. As per our tests, we found their chat support to be quick & helpful in responding to the queries that we asked them.It is easy to contact them through live chat. The live chat icon is available on their website’s bottom right on the page. Apart from their website, you can also reach their live chat support services through WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, and Facebook Messenger.
2. Slow Email Support – You can also get in touch with them through email. They usually respond to their emails within a 24 hours, which is not that fast. We got a response from them the next day.If your question is more complicated, then it is recommended that you try to contact them through email so that they can provide a detailed response. The response which you receive is usually informative and helpful.
3. Local Phone Number – They have a local Nigerian phone number which you can call for customer support.
4. Office in Lagos – They also have local Nigerian office located in Lagos, if you want to get in touch with them in person. They have provided the address of the office on their website.

Do We Recommend FXTM Nigeria?

FXTM Nigeria is a fair broker as per our review, and there are better options if you are looking to trade at lower fees.

There are both pros and cons to trading through FXTM. We found that they have good customer service and they are a reliable broker that is regulated by Tier 1 regulators.

The account opening process is without any hassle and is completely digital. They also offer several educational materials on their website to help you become a better trader. They conduct regular webinars and offer free resources. You can also try their demo account before signing up in order to get a complete experience of their services.

However, they charge a higher than average spread when trading with their Standard accounts. They also have a below average selection of Stock CFDs and do not allow you to trade any Bonds or ETFs.

They also charge a few hidden fees such as an inactivity fee and withdrawal fee.

Overall, we would recommend giving FXTM a try if you are not too concerned about trading fees.