Point Summary

Headquarters Belize, Dubai
Country of regulation ESMA, CySEC, ASIC, etc.
Platforms MetaTrader trading software offering MT4 and MT5 platforms
Instruments Stocks, CFDs on Forex, Commodities, Portfolios, Metals
Costs Trading costs and spreads are average compared to competition
Demo Account Available
Minimum deposit 5$
Base currencies Various currencies supported
Leverage 1:30 (EU) 1:888
Withdrawal options Credit Card
Bank Transfer
Skrill, Neteller, etc
Education Professional Education with vast learning materials, Live webinars and regularly held Seminars
Customer Support 24/5


Introduction

XM Review
XM was first started back in 2009 in Cyprus, so far operating clients from over 190 countries and is among the most trusted Regulated Brokers.
XM is regulated by the FSC Belize and they have European passports with the MiFID, as well as being regulated by the CySEC in Cyprus, as well as being regulated in Australia as an ASIC entity.

They have an offering of more than 400 different instruments, this includes over 350 CFDs, as well as more than 55 currency pairs.

About 1.5 Million Traders and investors at XM choose its wide range of XM trading products and the services broker provides along with advanced trading solutions, yet suitable for beginning traders as well. The reason for such fast growth and trust to the broker is that XM aims to provide one of the best user experience in the industry to its clients.

They offer more than 20 language options for their users and they cater for any and all levels of trader. One of the recent awards they have received is being named as the best FX broker in Europe in 2018 by the World Finance Magazine.
 


Awards

Overall, XM achieved a great focus on the Client’s needs while offers very competitive conditions and a range of services that attract global traders. Apart from its highly good results and reputation among the trading community, XM received truly global recognition with many reputable awards for industry achievements including Best Forex Broker for Europe, Most Trusted Broker, etc.



Is XM safe or a scam?

The XM broker group of entities stuck to enhanced regulatory standards as the broker is fully compliant with the necessary regulation policies in each jurisdiction it operates. Therefore, Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd (XM.com) considered being a safe broker as clients are operated in accordance with the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) of the European Union and follows other regulatory obligations, as well.

Is XM regulated?

XM Group is a group of regulated online brokers, which serves as Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd established in 2009 and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), another entity Trading Point of Financial Instruments was established in 2015 in Australia and is regulated by Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). So the regulatory obligations are covered at a sustainable level as we see through our XM Review.

In addition, the global operation is enabled by XM global Limited established in 2017 and regulated by the Financial Services Commission, allowing to offer its services across the globe. Despite the fact that IFSC is an offshore license, that does not actually implement strict overseeing of the trading processes, yet additional heavy regulation of the XM made it an acceptable choice.

XM entity Regulation and License
Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd CySEC (Cyprus) registration no 120/10
Trading Point of Financial Instruments Pty Ltd ASIC (Australia) registration no 443670
Trading Point MENA Limited Regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) Reference No. F003484
XM Global Limited FSC (Belize) registration no. 000261/158


Is XM a reliable broker?

The main idea of the regulation is that the trader can trade secure, knowing that clients funds collaborate according to the strictest rules with minimized risks of fraud or unfair use. XM operates its trading environment according to the regulatory measures making it a reliable broker.

Client funds are kept in investment grade banks and use segregated accounts, also falling under the Investor Compensation Fund that ensures recovery of funds up to €20,000 in case broker goes insolvent (note that the coverage scheme depends on the particular entity - Trading Point of Financial Instruments Ltd). Besides, one of the advantages you will get as a trader is a Negative Balance Protection, so there is no risk to lose more than the available balance.

Accounts

You may be a new or professional trader so XM made an ideal choice between account types to suit your trading potential, also with a potential capability to magnify your income with a correct selection of the account type. You may open an account following simple steps of verification and submit through a fully digital process simple to navigate.

If you are new to trading a demo account is another useful tool to test trading potential which XM is offering for free use.
Pros Cons
  • Fast digital account opening
  • Easy switch between Demo and Live Account
  • The proposal between Accounts based on spread only or with commission charges
  • Very Low minimum deposit
  • Account types vary according to jurisdiction
Account types

XM provides clients with a large range of account types, each with its own unique features and benefits. The different account types offer different leverage amounts based on different regulatory jurisdictions (CySEC, ASIC and FSC), as well as the choice of commission-free or commission-based accounts, as well as a Shares account, Islamic Swap-Free account and a Demo trading account.

Example: XM entities depending on the jurisdiction rule thus apply slightly different offerings, while Accounts availability depends on the client’s country of residence. Alike CY branch offers three account types, excluding Ultra Low Accounts, also some conditions may vary too.

But XM made a choice between four main account types – Micro, Standard, XM Ultra Low Account and Shares Accounts while all offered features are custom-oriented.

Overall, XM made it a simple as you may choose preferred trading style through either account to trade smaller size through Micro Lots, or to trade regular size with Standard account based on spread only basis. Lastly, Zero Accounts will offer you another fee strategy where the spread is an interbank quote starting from 0 pips and the trading charge will be deducted through a commission per lot.

So make sure to verify the applicable proposal before you sign in, also see the breakdown below.


XM Global Trading Accounts (IFSC Regulated)

XM Review

XM CySEC Regulated Accounts
XM Review
Can you open XM account in South Africa?

If you are a trader from South Africa – yes you can open XM account, as XM applied for registration to local regulator since 2016 and even since appealing to South African traders. So truly worldwide traders can enjoy great customer-oriented features XM offers and engage in all the trading benefits relatively easily.


Account Base currencies?

As for the account base currencies, XM added extra flexibility in this regard too, as choosing XM Account you may select the base currency of your preference from the great supported selection. This range includes even South African Rand (ZAR) or Singapore Dollar (SGD), besides to other global currencies.

So all in all register with XM allows you transparency of money transaction, while you will avoid conversion fees for both deposits and withdrawals while selecting your preferred base rate.



Leverage

Depending on the account type and the entity under which the XM follows regulatory obligations, you are entitled to the leverage on a scale from 1:1 to 888:1. So to understand which leverage level you entitled to use, always refer to the conditions of your residency as various XM entities apply different conditions again due to regulatory obligations
 
  • XM offers leverage up to 30:1. This Leverage applies to the EU regulated entity of the Group. Also, Leverage depends on the financial instrument traded
  • XM Australian entity and its regulation allows up to 30:1
  • And XM Global Ltd offers high leverage of 1:888
 
However, always choose your leverage smartly, as well as the entity under which you would like to trade, which you may learn more through the XM education center.

XM Review

Market Instrument

In total, there are more than 1000 different CFDs offered by XM. There are more than 55 currency pairs with a total over 1000+ trading markets on offer and they don’t offer any ETF products.



Commission Fees

With XM the amount of fees and commission that you have to pay will be dependent on what sort of account you have with them. You have two accounts which are free from commissions – Standard and Micro accounts, while the XM Zero account is based on commission.

Assets Fee level Fee terms
SP 500 CFD Low The fees are built into spread, 0.7 is the average spread cost.
Europe 50 CFD Low The fees are built into spread, 2.6 is the average spread cost.
EURUSD Average With standard and micro accounts the fees are built into spread, 1.7 pips is the spread cost. With XM Zero accounts, there is $3.5 commission per $100 000 traded and average spread is 0.1 pips.
Inactivity fee Low Inactivity fee of $5 / month after 90 days. if balance reaches $0 account is archived.


In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of XM for each asset class. For example, in the case of forex and stock index trading, spreads, commissions and financing rates are the most important fees.

We also compared XMs fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, XTB and eToro. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of XM alternatives.

To have a clear overview of XM, lets start with the trading fees.

XM trading fees

XM trading fees are low.

The Standard and Micro accounts charge higher spreads but there is no commission. The XM Zero account charges lower spreads, but there is a commission. The following calculations were made using the Standard account.

We know its hard to compare trading fees for CFD brokers. So how did we approach the problem of making their fees clear and comparable? We compared brokers by calculating all the fees of a typical trade for selected products.

We chose popular instruments within each asset class:

  • Stock index CFDs: SPX and EUSTX50
  • Stock CFDs: Apple and Vodafone
  • Forex: EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDUSD, EURCHF and EURGBP

A typical trade means buying a leveraged position, holding it for one week and then selling. For volume, we chose a $2,000 position for stock index and stock CFDs, and $20,000 for forex transactions. The leverage we used was:

  • 20:1 for stock index CFDs
  • 5:1 for stock CFDs
  • 30:1 for forex

These catch-all benchmark fees include spreads, commissions and financing costs for all brokers. Lets see the verdict for XM fees.

CFD fees

XM has generally low CFD trading fees. Compared to its competitors, they are about the same or lower.

XM CFD fees for a $2,000 long position held for one week
SP 500 index CFD fee $2.4 $2.0 $2.4
Europe 50 index CFD fee $2.4 $2.2 $2.7
Apple CFD fee $3.4 $17.9 $6.3
Vodafone CFD fee $5.6 $20.9

Forex fees

XMs forex fees are average compared to its competitors.

XM forex benchmark fees of a $20,000 30:1 long position held for one week
$17.1 $15.0 $19.6
GBPUSD benchmark fee $13.8 $11.1 $16.2
AUDUSD benchmark fee $13.9 $10.0 $12.4
EURCHF benchmark fee $9.1 $6.6 $11.8
$12.2 $9.9 $19.9

Real stock fees

Non-European clients can also trade real stocks using the Share account. Commission fees depend on which stock market you trade on.

XM stock commission
Stock market Minimum commission per transaction (USD) Commission per transaction (%)
USA 1.0 0.04
UK 9.0 0.1
Germany 5.0 0.1
France 5.0 0.1

Non-trading fees

XM has average non-trading fees. There is no account fee, and XM charges no withdrawal fee in most cases, though bank withdrawals below $200 carry a $15 fee.

There is an inactivity fee of $5 per month after 90 days of inactivity. This is charged every month until your balance drops to $0, at which point your account is archived.

XM non-trading fees
Deposit fee

Overnight fees

Lastly, you should calculate also XM overnight fee or the fee that a trader pays in case the position is opened longer than a day and is agreed through a swap contract that comes as a cost. Every currency has a different interest rate which comes as a calculation.

As an example assume that the interest rates in Japan and the US are 0.25% p.a. and 2.5% p.a. respectively, with an open position, you can either gain USD 6.16 per day or lose USD 6.16 per day, as the rollover calculated as an interest to borrowed currency or earned on the purchased currency..

Trading Platforms

XM does not have its own trading platform; instead, it uses third-party platforms: MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. These platforms are very similar to each other in functionality and design. One major difference is that you cant trade stock CFDs on MetaTrader 4; they are available only on MetaTrader 5.

XM Review

Web Trading

The XM web trading platform has great customizability. You can easily change the size and the position of the tabs.

Directly accessible just from one account and available in various versions all platforms are integrated with a full site of technical analysis, indicators and comprehensive tools, stop or trailing orders. SO you may access XM trading just by the use of the browser and login to Web Trading.

XM Review

Pros Cons
  • User friendly software
  • A mainstay at MT4 and MT5 platforms
  • 16 Different platforms suitable for Web, Mobile and Desktop trading
  • Mobile App for iOS and Android
  • Simple to use
  • Fee Report
  • Supporting numerous languages
  • Only MetaTrader offerd


Desktop Trading


In design and functionality, XMs MetaTrader 4 desktop platform is almost the same as the web trading platform. One major difference is that you can set price alerts on the desktop trading platform.
It has the same design, is available in the same languages, offers the same order types, has the same search functions, and offers the same portfolio and fee reports as the web trading platform. The desktop trading platform doesnt have two-step authentication; however, XM provides a two-step account login procedure on the website where you can deposit and withdraw funds.

To set email or mobile notifications, you have to add your email address and mobile MetaQuotes ID (you can find it in the MT4 apps settings). You can add them if you go to Tools and then Options.
XM Review


Mobile Trading

XM has a great mobile trading platform, offered by MetaTrader 4. It is a well-designed and user-friendly platform with a good search function. However, Touch/Face ID login is not supported.

As a result of being a MetaTrader only platform, you will able to utilise the platforms on iOS and Android devices, whether it is through the MT4 or Mt5 apps which can be downloaded straight away from either the App Store or the Android Play store.

MT4 and MT5 apps offering great charting with 3 Chart Types, over 30 technical indicators in its package and full trading history journal
Pros Cons
  • User friendly
  • Good search function
  • price alerts
  • No touch/face ID login
  • No order confimation

We really liked its design and user-friendliness. You will easily find all the features.
XM Review

The search functions are good. You can search by typing the name of the product or by navigating the category folders.
XM Review

You can use the same order types and order time limits as on the web trading platform.
XM Review



Deposits and Withdrawals

The funds transaction at XM are managed in a customer-oriented way too, traders having a choice of multiple payment methods supported in all countries. Various payment options including commonly used, also XM again took care of clients’ comfort and introduced a local bank transfer option, which enables to fund the account through local banks and currency with no conversion charges.

Pros Cons
  • Fast digital deposits, including Neteller, WebMoney and Credit Cards
  • 5$ as a first deposit
  • Multiple Account Base Currencies
  • 0$ deposits and free withdrawals
  • Withdrawal requests take up to 3 days
  • None
Account base currencies

At XM, you can choose from 11 account base currencies.
XM Review

Why does this matter? For two reasons. If you fund your trading account in the same currency as your bank account or you trade assets in the same currency as your trading account base currency, you dont have to pay a conversion fee.

A convenient way to save on currency conversion fees is by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank. Revolut or Transferwise both offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account only takes a few minutes on your phone.

Deposit fees and options

XM charges no deposit fees. In addition to bank transfer and credit/debit cards, you can use many types of electronic wallets:

  • Neteller
  • Skrill
  • Skrill 1-Tap
  • MuchBetter Wallet
  • Trustly
XM’s minimum deposit amount is only 5$ allowing to open either a Micro Account or a Standard account or a XM Zero or a XM Ultra Low account.

*XM Zero and XM Ultra Low accounts are not available to all the entities of XM Group.

A bank transfer can take several business days, while payment with a credit/debit card is instant.
You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name.

XM Review

XM withdrawal fees and options

XM charges no withdrawal fees. In the only exception, bank (wire) transfers below $200 incur a $15 fee.

For credit/debit cards and electronic wallets, the withdrawal amount cant exceed the amount you deposited using the same instrument. Therefore, your trading profits can be withdrawn only via bank transfer.


How do I withdraw from XM Account?

TO withdraw funds from your XM trading account you should simply follow next steps, also never hesitate to contact customer service in case of any questions or terms.

Withdraw money step by step

1. Login to your account

2. Select on Withdraw Funds’ at the menu tab

3. Enter the withdrawn amount

4. Choose the withdrawal method

5. Complete the electronic request with necessary requirements

6. Confirm withdrawal information and Submit

7. Check the current status of withdrawal through your Dashboard


How long does XM Withdrawal take?

While the XM Accounting team process withdrawal requests quite quickly within 1-3 business days it depends on the country the money is sent to, as variously rules and policies apply. The standard bank within the EU will take around 3 working days for the money to be available on your account, yet some methods or institutions may process almost instantly or take longer, all depending on the payment method you use.


Customer Support

As for the customer support and service, as we see XM globally covers trading needs while the customer service team available in international locations and speaks more than 25 languages including Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Arabic, Portuguese, Thai, Tagalog and more languages.

Customer service available 24h 5 days a week and available for your concerns and answers either through email, phone or live chat. Also, we found that service is a good quality with reliable answers, which confirms again XM’s client oriented policy.

XM Review

Pros Cons
  • Quick response
  • Relevant answers
  • Availability of Live Chat
  • No 24/7 customer support

Research Education

There is a library of free educational materials for XM users including the likes of week interactive webinars and video tutorials. They always have the latest news from the world of forex as well as providing regular market analysis from the team of experts at the platform. They also have a range of tools and calculators that provide everything a trader needs when making certain calculations.
XM Review

Pros Cons
  • Professional Education Center covering international interest
  • Multilingual education
  • Demo Account available
  • Educational Videos
  • Live Webinars and regular Forex Seminars
  • None

Conclusion

XM is a broker that has been around since 2009 and is regulated by several authorities globally, including the top-tier ASIC. They have a diverse offering of instruments, which caters for the needs of their users in an adequate manner.

As they are reliant on MetaTrader for the trading software, you are not going to be surprised by anything on this front. Promotion available at: https://www.xmglobal.com/promotions.
*Not available for clients registered under the EU and ASIC regulated entities of the Group.

They have a wide ranging section for education, including free weekly webinars that are interactive. It is an ideal learning ground for beginner traders and with three different account types, they cater for all kinds of traders depending on what their specific needs may be.

If you are looking for a platform that is easy and straightforward to use and that looks after their users, XM could be the right option for you.

Thank you for rating.