CM Trading is an FSCA (Financial Sector Conduct Authority) regulated CFD and Forex broker licensed in South Africa. Although they are an Israeli owned company by origin, they claim to be the biggest brand in Africa. This is deba yet not coming as a surprise. They are well established and well known within the industry as a brokerage. They are proud winners of the best financial broker Africa 2020.
Established in 2012, they are a brand name of Global Capital Markets Trading (South Africa (Pty) Ltd). Although they have a locally registered company, payments are processed in Cyprus. This takes away the local factor, yet they still accept OZOW, which allows for easy and instant local account funding within South Arica.
CM Trading is well known for its 4 account types, Bronze to Premium, each with higher minimum deposits but more benefits offered to the trader. An interesting business model compared to some brokers who offer the same benefits across all account types. Islamic accounts are a big motivating factor for those that require it, yet it is not applicable to ECN accounts.
Although CM Trading offers the popular MetaTrader 4 (MT4), they also have two additional platforms. Their CopyKat and Web Trader, called SIRIX, platforms are extremely popular among traders. We are all about user-friendly platforms in our reviews. We will discuss each in detail throughout this transparent and honest review.
You can find our transparent CM Trading review below. Broker reviews are updated frequently!
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>CM Trading Regulation
As mentioned in the introduction, CM Trading is only regulated in South Africa by the FSCA. This excludes them as a multi-Regulated broker. Luckily the FSCA is one of the more trustworthy and established regulatory entities. Strangely enough, their license is under Blackstone Marketing SA (Pty) Ltd, with no relationship to Blackstone Futures. Clients’ accounts are held in segregated accounts, keeping funds safe and secure.
- South Africa (Financial Sector Conduct Authority) – FSP No 38783
Feel free to do an FSCA FSP Seach to verify their or any broker’s license within South Africa.
Although only being regulated by one regulatory body, since it is the FSCA, we put them ahead of a CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission) only broker. This should come as no surprise if you have been within the industry for some time. CM Trading does not accept US clients and focuses on African countries due to the license they hold. It is always a promising idea to double-check with them to see if your countries are accepted as such lists can change frequently. They get our vote of trust in this department.
>CM Trading Broker Type
CM Trading is a B-book broker know as a market maker. Should this concern you at all? If you experience broker related price manipulation, constant refills, or slippage, yes, you should be. Luckily, this is not what we experience testing out their brokerage on their MetaTrader 4 trading platform. We open an account anonymously, unknowing it was TradeFX, as any normal trader would, getting no special treatment.
Although they have an ECN option, they simply lower or eliminate the spread in exchange for a commission. It does not give you true direct access to deep third-party liquidity. 99% of ECN brokers operate the exact same way. As long as stop-hunts are at bay, you have nothing to worry about as some entities always take the opposite side of your trade. It is all about fair trading conditions, which we experienced with this broker.
>Execution
Although your orders and executions are done internally, it is fast and without slippage/requotes (most of the time). This mostly, and possibly happens when there are spikes or drops in the market due to news events etc. Spreads are slightly higher than what we hoped to see on their standard commission-free accounts. Spreads are lower on the “ECN” accounts but come with commissions per round trip (the opening and closing of a trade).
No guaranteed stops are available. It is something most brokers do not offer their traders. Overall, we experienced nothing out of the ordinary and was happy with the trading experience and execution.
>Forex Trading Education
CM Trading focuses a lot on educating their clients, sadly it is based on their account type. We would have loved to see all clients treated equally in this regard. As a Bronze member, you receive access to an E-book, online webinar access and a VOD: Introduction. Every new client gets a market specialist for a period of 2 weeks, where you’d need to upgrade your account status with a higher deposit to get a full-time resolute account manager Every new client does get 1 on 1 time with the appointed specialist. Depositing bigger amounts and moving up the account ladder, enables you more education and features.
Instead of providing education, they follow the, let us do it for you, with trading signals, some from third-party providers such as Trading Central. Something we do not endorse, more so, not from a broker you trade with! A big negative in our view. These are also not regulator approved signals. Their CopyKat platform and functionality make more sense as you can follow or copy other traders. A fairer solution that is not impacted by your broker.
Brokers giving signals is a massive conflict of interest, especially when they are a marker maker orientated broker. Read third party education, such as our Forex Trading Education. If their signals were that profi, they would be the most popular broker in the world.
>CM Trading Support
CM Trading offers its website in 3 different languages, English, Arabic and Russian. Their support runs 24/5, Monday to Friday. This means whenever the market is open you have support at your disposal. Their live chat agents are not the friendliest or most helpful at times. We were slightly disappointed!
How can you get in touch?
- Live Chat via their website
- Email Support
- Telephonically to their Offices
- Social Media Channels
- The contact form on their website
>CM Trading Deposits and Withdrawals
They have a wide range of deposit options some instant for South African traders, which include:
- Credit/Debit Card (Instant)
- Neteller
- M-Pesa
- Fasapay
- Bank Wire Transfer
- OZOW (Instant)
- EFT (Netbank, Instant)
- ATM (Netbank, Instant)
They primarily work with Netbank and Standard bank within South Africa.
CM Trading is offering up to 100% bonus as well as up to 3 risk-free trades. They are all subjected to terms and conditions that can be found on their promotions page. These offers can change multiple times a year depending on their promotional offers throughout.
Withdrawals take longer than the industry standard 24 hours processing time. CM Trading’s withdrawal turnaround time can take up to 3 business days. Ensuring your documentation is in order can ensure the 3-business day estimate is met. Again, certain account, such as the premium account, offers same-day withdrawals.
Let’s talk fees. Again, a negative in our view, as no client wants to pay away a portion of their profits when withdrawing, no matter how small.
- Bank Wire: CM Trading pays out at a rate – 2% on such withdrawals.
- Cryptocurrencies: Withdrawals using this method sees occurs a -4% fee.
- Credit/Debit Card: a whopping 4% is charged when withdrawing using this method.
We understand what they are trying to achieve by adding fees. Less frequent withdrawals from their traders. This means more money in the bank and higher trading volume. Smart but not entirely fair to the client. All withdrawals are processed via Cyprus and South Africa, thus the possible reason for fees and long ETAs. The minimum withdrawal amount is USD 20.
>CM Trading Conditions
Trading conditions are fair enough to give it our approval. Despite being a market maker, they provide clients with good execution and minimal slippage on stop losses in normal conditions. Sadly, clients are treated according to their account balance and net worth.
No mention of negative balance protection, something all traders would appreciate. We experienced no obvious price manipulation which clients will consider when before opening an account.
>Demo Account
CM Trading offers demo accounts on all account types, which is good to see. We do not see any requirements to open the demo account nor that you need to verify your account beforehand. We assume the demo account expires within 30 days or when it becomes inactive.
>Leverage
Leverage of up to 1:200 is offered to all clients. We highly support the lower leverage for responsible trading and better risk management. It is possible, upon request, to ask for higher leverage up to 1:400. We do not recommend using leverage higher than this.
>Spreads and Lot Sizes
The minimum lot sizes are micro lot sizes, 0.01 which is equivalent to USD 0.10 per pip on currencies. On Euro accounts, it will be slightly different depending on what currency you are trading.
Average Spreads on Majors
- EUR/USD: 1.6
- GBP/USD: 2.1
- USD/JPY: 2
- AUD/USD: 2.1
Their spreads are floating and not fixed, even with the “ECN” account but require a USD 50,000 deposit. They do offer much lower spreads but you’d pay commissions.
4 Account types are offered by CM Trading. in two different currencies, USD and EUR.
- Bronze Account – USD 250 – USD 900
- Silver Account – USD 1,000 – USD 9,999
- Gold Account – USD 10,000 – USD 99,999
- Premium Account – USD 100,000+
Each account type comes with different benefits and perks but at a premium of a higher deposit.
>CM Trading Trading Platforms
They offer 3 premium platforms to their traders. All platforms are available on mobile.
- CM Trading CopyKat – Available on Mobile
- MetaTrader 4 – Available on Mobile
- Web Trader (STRIX) – Available as web-based and Mobile App
A Mac version of MetaTrader 4 can be download from the MetaQuotes website directly.
>CM Trading IB Affiliate Program
CM Trading offers an IB (Introducing Broker) and Affiliate Program. They offer very competitive rates with excellent managers to help you along the way. The reporting is in real-time and always up to date. Account approval happens almost instantly, followed by a friendly call to welcome you to their program.
Join the Cm Trading IB Affiliate Program: Join Now & Earn
>CM Trading South Africa
What does CM Trading South Africa bring to the SA marketplace? One highlight that sums it up as a South African trader.
They are a respec FSCA regulated broker within SA. Well established and trusted by traders.
>CM Trading Review Summary
CM Trading is unique in its own way with an account structure tailored to clients’ deposit value. They have a lot of resources such as webinars and E-books which are offered across all accounts. We are happy that their leverage is controlled and set at a responsible rate. This shows they are trying to enforce good risk management and avoid over-leveraging.
Because of their single FSCA regulation but mostly serving African clients, we do not see it as a negative. Your funds will be safe and secure although the slow withdrawal times unless you have a premium account, is a downside. We would love to see them speed things up and process all payments same day. Sadly, due to this, they lost some points in the rating process.
We value your feedback: Rate this broker by leaving a comment and rating below this review.
>Broker FAQ
Thinking of Trading with CM Trading?
Which type of assets can I trade with CM Trading?
Forex
Equities
Indices
Commodities
Futures
Cryptocurrency
What platforms does CM Trading support?
MetaTrader 4 (MT4), CM Trading CopyKat and STRIX.
Are CM Trading platforms mobile friendly?
Yes, they are available on Android and IOS.
What leverage does CM Trading offer?
CM Trading offers maximum leverage of 1:200.
What is the lowest spread I can expect with CM Trading?
The lowest spread is typically on the EUR/USD at 1.6 pips.
Does CM Trading offer commission-free trading?
Yes. No commissions are charged upon trade execution.
Is CM Trading FSCA Regulated?
Yes. CM Trading is FSCA regulated. FSP#38783.
What is the minimum deposit to open a CM Trading account?
CM TRading has a minimum deposit of USD 250 as a first-time deposit.
When was CM Trading founded?
2012
What account currencies does CM Trading offer?
USD, EUR
Which deposit options does CM Trading offer?
Credit/Debit Card, Neteller, M-Pesa, Fasapay, Bank Wire Transfer, OZOW, EFT, ATM
