How To Perform A Broker Background Check (Scam Check)

It is always best to perform your own background check of any financial institution for your own piece of mind. Our tips, show you how.

We thoroughly check the background of any brokers, software, or service providers we recommend. We only recommend reputable, trustworthy brokers with a good third-party rating from consumers.

However, sometimes brokers are investigated by the regulatory authorities and may have charges bought against them.

7 Steps To Perform a Forex, CFD or Stock Broker Background Check

  1. Understand which broker you are interested in using.
  2. Decide where you want to open an account.  Even if you reside in the U.K., some brokers allow you to open accounts in other regions, for example, Australia.
  3. If you want an Australian account, you can check is that the broker is regulated in Australia using the table below.
  4. Perform a search on the company name.
  5. If you cannot find the name that is usually a red flag.
  6. Check the warning list; each authority provides a list of scam brokers or unregulated entities.
  7. If you are being approached by a company claiming to be regulated and you find it that it isn’t, please flag it to the relevant authority, using the links below.

Table 1: List of Main Financial Regulators Globally

Regulator Country
NFA – National Futures Association U.S.A.
CFTC – Commodities Futures Trading Commission U.S.A.
CySEC – Cyprus Security & Exchange Commission Cyprus – Europe
F.C.A – Financial Conduct Authority U.K.
IFSC – International Financial Services Commission Belize
DFSA – Dubai Financial Services Authority U.A.E.
ASIC – Australian Securities & Investments Commission Australia
FSCA – Financial Sector Conduct Authority South Africa
ESMA and MiFID – European Securities & Markets Authority E.U.

 

Tips For Testing A Broker You Want To Use.

  1. After opening an account, you must verify your identification.  If they do not ask for a copy of your I.D. / Passport and a recent utility bill, this is a red flag.
  2. Do not transfer your life savings to the broker; start with a small cash transfer to fund your account, a few hundred or a thousand dollars or euros.
  3. Make a few test trades understand how the commissions/spread, leverage works.
  4. Try to withdraw your money to test the process.  You must use the same account or card as you used in depositing the money, they cannot refund to another location; this is against anti-money laundering legislation.
  5. Call customer support or your account representative and ask them some questions to see if they are responsive.

If you are very happy with the service, leave them a positive rating.

Following any recommendation, from any website or person is at your own risk, ensure to do your research before signing up with a broker.

LiberatedStockTrader.com accepts no responsibility for your experience with any broker.

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