Forte Securities

General Information

ProfitsTrade is an offshore broker that offers trading in Forex, Stocks, Commodities, Indices and Cryptocurrencies. The broker asserts to be licensed in Dominica, a Caribbean nation. Even if this could be the case, it's important to remember that Dominica, an offshore nation, does not regulate forex trading or, for that matter, any other financial investment services.

We quickly searched the internet and found that on July 31, 2020, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) had warned about ProfitsTrade and had listed it as an unauthorised business in their Financial Services Register.

Regarding licenses or restrictions for forex, nothing is stated in the Terms and Conditions. On a website devoted to security, we can read phrases concerning “Enhanced Risk Controls,” “Credible Liquidity Provider,” and “Minimum Capital Reserve.” Though there is no actual information on the size of this minimal capital, the identity of the liquidity source, or the nature of the risk controls, these are merely vague assertions.

Regulated brokers would show evidence of their registration by a reputable regulator, such as the FCA or the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and would reference some of the rules these organizations have surrounding forex brokers in order to win investors' trust. These include Negative Balance Protection, which states that traders may not lose more than the money they initially invested, Minimum Capital Requirements of €730 000 to ensure good financial standing, Client Account Segregation to guarantee that clients' funds are kept separate from the broker's operating funds and that the latter does not have access to them. The brokerages also have to be part of Compensation Schemes providing additional guarantee to clients funds up to a certain amount (85,000 GBP in the UK and 20,000 EUR in the EU).

ProfitsTrade, however, is not licensed by any respected regulatory organization, so we warn our readers that investing money with this broker is not safe!

ProfitsTrade Trading Software

Although “MT4/MT5 online trading platforms” are briefly mentioned in the Terms and Conditions, neither the website nor the client area provide any download links for these or any other well-known trading platforms. In terms of style and functions, the latter appears to be relatively simple. It has a Trade button that launches a web-based platform and an interface for financial operations, which we shall investigate later.

This program is really amateurish; it has few capabilities, and the Account Settings, such language or Dark/Light theme, are completely inoperable.

Over 80% of customers prefer the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform, which is the most popular in the world. It has an easy-to-use interface, sophisticated charting and analytical capabilities, copy and auto-trade options, and more. Its replacement, MetaTrader 5 (MT5), has certain benefits but has yet to become widely used. For example, it gives traders the ability to conduct transactions on many financial markets using a single account and offers a hedging option. There are desktop and mobile (iOS and Android) applications for both platforms.

SPREAD

On the website the broker claims to offer “low spreads from 0.1 pips”, but as we see in the screenshot the EURUSD spread in the platform is 1.7 pips. Such wide spread for the most traded currency pair will not make any return on the trader‘s investment, but will guarantee hefty profits on the broker’s part.

LEVERAGES

Leverage is not discussed at all by ProfitsTrade. Unregulated brokers typically promise large profits to unwary customers by advertising excessive leverage. Leveraged trading has the potential to provide large gains, but it may also result in enormous losses—in some cases, losses that exceed original investments. Leverage limits are imposed by other regulatory bodies for non-professional traders. In the USA, they are 1:50, while they are 1:30 for brokers licensed by the CySEC in the EU or the FCA in the UK. Regulated markets, like as Australia, do not have leverage restrictions.

PAYMENT OPTIONS

On the broker's website, there are no logos or written advertisements for any payment options. The client “may fill his/her account by credit or debit cards, SEPA transfers, wire transfers, and e-wallets in fiat,” according to the refund policy. Only three deposit alternatives were available in the customer area, and two of those were bitcoin. Bitcoin is fully untraceable and anonymous, which makes it a popular means of scam brokers, unlike traditional payment methods where one may apply for a chargeback with their bank institution.

The Praxis Cashier system, an unregulated Cypriot payment processor that we frequently encounter with scam artists, is used by the Credit/Debit card option. Regarding the minimum deposit, there is a lot of discrepancy. In one area, it says “No minimum deposit,” yet in the Accounts, we can see that there is a $250 minimum.

There is a $50 minimum for withdrawals “unless the Company determines differently in its sole discretion.” The “Company has the right to charge any withdrawal with a fee in the amount of $30,” we further read. Additionally, there is a 0.1 percent administrative fee for hedging positions as well as additional fees that the broker may alter “from time to time by announcing them on the Website.” The website has nothing particular published, as might be expected.

ACCOUNT TYPES

They have five account types to choose from starting from a minimum deposit of $250 to $10,000, and 20% to 50% bonus. They also advertise an Islamic, or swap-free, account.