Who's you favourite for live MT4 broker? | Forex Factory

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Who's you favourite for live MT4 broker?

  • #1
  • First Post: Nov 15, 2006 5:06am Nov 15, 2006 5:06am
Question is quite simple ... I wanted for a while now to open up a couple of accounts with some MT4 brokers. Have been doing some demo testing but I think that it's time to jump in with some real money.

So, who is your favourite broker? for live trading of course!

Maybe, I'll gather a list of brokers that are being used and we can do a poll later?
Just my 2 pips worth
  • #2
  • Nov 15, 2006 7:47am Nov 15, 2006 7:47am
MIG is the best MT4 based broker: very tight spreads, Swiss (no tax), excellent customer service.
  • #3
  • Nov 15, 2006 8:17am Nov 15, 2006 8:17am
I thought MIG requotes like crazy? That was just my impression from the posts I've read.

Also I don't get the Swiss No Tax thing. Aren't most (all?) MT4 brokers based in countries that don't tax your profits (if you live in another country) ?

Quoting WTB
MIG is the best MT4 based broker: very tight spreads, Swiss (no tax), excellent customer service.
  • #4
  • Nov 15, 2006 8:22am Nov 15, 2006 8:22am
ycomp,

The tax issue is a bit tricky. I think MIG has been misleading traders into thinking that taxes are not required and that they don't report to the IRS, so, you don't have to pay. In reality, you have to pay taxes regardless of the country. However, the Swiss's financial laws are very tight about enabling firms to not have to report a client's finances to a foreign (e.g. IRS) entity. That's not necessarily the case in another country.

Beware of anyone telling you that just because the broker is in a foreign country that you don't have to pay taxes. If the IRS ever suspected anything, they could subpoena the records and send a trader to jail for tax evasion. That's my take, anyway.

stockwet

Quoting ycomp
I thought MIG requotes like crazy? That was just my impression from the posts I've read.

Also I don't get the Swiss No Tax thing. Aren't most (all?) MT4 brokers based in countries that don't tax your profits (if you live in another country) ?
  • #5
  • Nov 16, 2006 3:19am Nov 16, 2006 3:19am
I think that taxes are a matter of your personal conscience. Chances are that once you set-up a broker AND you have profit then it is up to you to report that as income in your country of residence (where you pay taxes).

How that get's treated depends so much on your personal situation and so much on the country you reside in that it is a such a HUGE bucket of issues that I don't think anybody here really wants to address.

I was more interested in the idea of requotes, trading, stop loss hunting, etc... These things do not change regardless of your tax situation.
Just my 2 pips worth
  • #6
  • Nov 16, 2006 6:53am Nov 16, 2006 6:53am
what I mean is that by them saying Swiss No Tax means there is no witholding tax or anything like that. But I thought that MT4 brokers are pretty much all based in countries like that. I mean if I open a US MT4 broker account, they won't tax me or hold any taxes. I will just have to pay taxes in my country of residence.

So that is why I don't understand why all the Swiss brokers advertise there are no taxes on foreign exchange. I mean I guess if you live in Switzerland then that's different. But I don't see what it matters where the broker is based... I mean if you live in Switzerland and there are no taxes on FX profits there and your broker is in the US then I guess you don't pay tax either.
  • #7
  • Nov 16, 2006 7:19am Nov 16, 2006 7:19am
MIG does requote you like crazy but only during news. Forget news trading with MIG.
  • #8
  • Nov 16, 2006 9:31am Nov 16, 2006 9:31am
I'm an MIG client since July 2006. No major problems so far. However, I prefer no to recommend a broker.
  • #9
  • Nov 16, 2006 9:41am Nov 16, 2006 9:41am
To ycomp's point, I don't know of any brokers that will withhold taxes. I'm not even sure it's legal. But, many will report a 1099 to the IRS. Others may not, but, their local laws may make it easy for the IRS to see that you have an account with them and get further information. The swiss neither report that you are a client or that you have any gains or losses with them. They seem to have pretty tight laws around confidentiality, which is why they claim the "no tax" issue. I think what they're trying to say is that there is little probability of the IRS ever finding out, from them, that you have a brokerage account with gains and losses.


Quoting ycomp
what I mean is that by them saying Swiss No Tax means there is no witholding tax or anything like that. But I thought that MT4 brokers are pretty much all based in countries like that. I mean if I open a US MT4 broker account, they won't tax me or hold any taxes. I will just have to pay taxes in my country of residence.

So that is why I don't understand why all the Swiss brokers advertise there are no taxes on foreign exchange. I mean I guess if you live in Switzerland then that's different. But I don't see what it matters where the broker is based... I mean if you live in Switzerland and there are no taxes on FX profits there and your broker is in the US then I guess you don't pay tax either.
  • #10
  • Nov 16, 2006 9:44am Nov 16, 2006 9:44am
First, I want to clarify that the tax issue I brought is relative to US residents.

Second, I don't believe that it's not a matter of personal conscience. Well, I guess it is. It's a matter of whether one is willing to break the law and accept whatever consequences follow. All US residents are obligated to pay taxes on any sources of income, whether foreign or domestic. If your personal conscience allows for tax evasion, knock yourself out. But, I think that Swiss brokers, MIG specifically, are doing a disservice to the trader community by implying that it isn't necessary to pay taxes.

I'm not trying to argue against or in favor either way. However, I did want to clear up the misconception that it's legal to not pay taxes on earnings from your Swiss brokerage account. Rest assured, if you're ever audited by the IRS and they see your fat bank accounts with that new BMW you bought and you haven't reported any income in the past couple years, they'll find out where the money is coming from. Or, maybe, I'm just a tad bit paranoid.


Quoting saltcafe
I think that taxes are a matter of your personal conscience. Chances are that once you set-up a broker AND you have profit then it is up to you to report that as income in your country of residence (where you pay taxes).

How that get's treated depends so much on your personal situation and so much on the country you reside in that it is a such a HUGE bucket of issues that I don't think anybody here really wants to address.

I was more interested in the idea of requotes, trading, stop loss hunting, etc... These things do not change regardless of your tax situation.
  • #11
  • Nov 16, 2006 12:38pm Nov 16, 2006 12:38pm
ok, thanks Stockwet. I think I understand. Enough on taxes though, let's get this thread back on track... I am also curious to find out which are people's favorite MT4 brokers and why.
  • #12
  • Nov 18, 2006 5:56pm Nov 18, 2006 5:56pm
I apologize for asking such a newbie question but I have downloaded mt4, now I want to sign up with EFX, how does it connect with the platform? Not sure how this work? All i see in the StrategyBuilderFX site is the forex.com account signup. Am I missing something?
  • #13
  • Nov 18, 2006 6:33pm Nov 18, 2006 6:33pm
Quoting torero
I apologize for asking such a newbie question but I have downloaded mt4, now I want to sign up with EFX, how does it connect with the platform? Not sure how this work? All i see in the StrategyBuilderFX site is the forex.com account signup. Am I missing something?
To make sure that you are connected to a specific broker you need to download the platform from their website only. For example if you want to use EFX you need to download MT4 from EFX website.
  • #14
  • Nov 18, 2006 7:38pm Nov 18, 2006 7:38pm
I am using FXDD only for a little while now. All of the technology works... most of the time. Occassionally the feed cuts out... its not my connection... but it normally comes back on in a few seconds. I had a little difficulty getting my accout set up right and it cost me some money in spreads on trades that I had to exit. But... for now... I am sticking with them because after I contacted all the brokers recommended by FF, only a few of them had feeds for MT4.
  • #15
  • Nov 18, 2006 10:03pm Nov 18, 2006 10:03pm
Honestly, I'm not really happy with any of them. I've tried IBFX, FXDD, CFG Trader and CoesFX all on a live account. CoesFX was, by far, the best of the bunch. But, the company is too unstable for me to ever trust my money with them again. I'm thinking that most MT4 brokers are best when trading higher time frames.

I've heard some interesting things about FXLQ, but, the founder has quite a history with the CFTC and NFA, which, makes me nervous.
  • #16
  • Nov 18, 2006 10:32pm Nov 18, 2006 10:32pm
IBFX, you can even get a debit card attached to your trading account
  • #17
  • Nov 19, 2006 2:49am Nov 19, 2006 2:49am
Quoting aicccia
IBFX, you can even get a debit card attached to your trading account
This only goes to show how efficient they are in getting retailers to play more and lose faster. 3 pips is way too high for me unless the strategy is 15min chart or greater.
  • #18
  • Nov 20, 2006 9:04am Nov 20, 2006 9:04am
Quoting torero
This only goes to show how efficient they are in getting retailers to play more and lose faster. 3 pips is way too high for me unless the strategy is 15min chart or greater.
Sounds like your trading approach is what most brokers would call scalping? (not necessarilly welcome in all places)
Just my 2 pips worth
  • #19
  • Nov 20, 2006 9:06am Nov 20, 2006 9:06am
Quoting stockwet
I'm not trying to argue against or in favor either way. However, I did want to clear up the misconception that it's legal to not pay taxes on earnings from your Swiss brokerage account. Rest assured, if you're ever audited by the IRS and they see your fat bank accounts with that new BMW you bought and you haven't reported any income in the past couple years, they'll find out where the money is coming from. Or, maybe, I'm just a tad bit paranoid.
I think that people should realise that for years now any transaction over USD10,000 has always been reported to FBI, so if they want to trace it they will. Since the problems that occured a couple of years ago with money laundering and terrorism, I think that you will find that even smaller transaction are audited by some goverment body, even if they won't admint to it.
Just my 2 pips worth
  • #20
  • Nov 20, 2006 10:42am Nov 20, 2006 10:42am
Quoting saltcafe
I think that people should realise that for years now any transaction over USD10,000 has always been reported to FBI, so if they want to trace it they will. Since the problems that occured a couple of years ago with money laundering and terrorism, I think that you will find that even smaller transaction are audited by some goverment body, even if they won't admint to it.
This is true also i heard the u.s. govermant has lower that transaction to $3000 since 911 so if you withdraw 3,000 in cash from your bank they must report that right away. also if you do this severeal times in a week don't be surprise if you get a knock on your door. friend of mines told me he knew a guy who took out $10,000 in cash 3 times in a week and got a call from the f.b.i asking him was he ok thay wanted to make sure he wasn't being force to withdraw this money he has no tax problems and had no history of this kind of withdrawl that's the reason they was checking. thats what they say. so that goes to tell you they monitor all bank accounts.
If I Go Broke Trying Then I Will die happy.
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