Honesty - dbFX

I was going to open up another FX account with only the biggest FX related bank but it made me pause after this...

The more concern I have is the honesty.


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You are now chatting with 'dbFX Sales and Client Services'
dbFX Sales and Client Services: Welcome to dbFX Instant Messenger. How may I help you?
L: hi, I am considering opening an account with you guys, but I need a clarification on something. What is dbFX's affiliation with FXCM?
dbFX Sales and Client Services: no affiliation at all
L: none?
dbFX Sales and Client Services: db licensed the platform FXCM uses
dbFX Sales and Client Services: all prices.. spreads.. back office.. protection of funds
L: where do the live and demo software connect to?
dbFX Sales and Client Services: are provided by DB directly
dbFX Sales and Client Services: yes
dbFX Sales and Client Services: just the interface.. the front end of the platform
dbFX Sales and Client Services: FXCM is a broker.. DB is a bank
dbFX Sales and Client Services: and dbFX is a product od DB
dbFX Sales and Client Services: of*
L: well, as an IT Engineer, I just ran a trace and the connections are connecting to dbfx.fxcorporate.com
L: meaning, it is connecting to their servers on their IP address at their location
L: so how is that not connected or affiliated with fxcm.com? care to explain.
L: hello?
L: did I scare you?
dbFX Sales and Client Services: not at all
L: i need clarification hence i ask
dbFX Sales and Client Services: this is not the first time we have that question
L: well the proof is in the connection
dbFX Sales and Client Services: we licensed the software from FXCM
L: it is very obvious and the fact that you say there is no affiliation is very "concerning"
dbFX Sales and Client Services: you are more than welcome to come and visit us at DB
L: i know about software, but the feed and connection goes to their locations and ip
dbFX Sales and Client Services: and prove yourself that
dbFX Sales and Client Services: the feed is provided by DB directly
L: not sure what's more problematic, the fact you guys lie and not fully disclose it or the blatant continued plea of ignorance
L: thank you for you time...
dbFX Sales and Client Services: you are welcome.. there is no lie here
L: you never explained why it connected to dbfx.fxcorporate.com...why...that has nothing to do with the interface...the interface connected to the backend
L: you clearly stated that there was NO affiliation at all...that's the problem

Check the CFTC website and FXCM's comment in the FXCM Discussion thread here at FF. Sounds like, if you are in the US, we'll most likely have to trade thru a US sanctioned broker.

Welcome to the free market!

dbFX licensed the use of FXCM's FXTS2 platform. dbFX uses the FXTS2 platform and feeds their own prices and market into it. They don't use FXCM's feed.

This is a common practice in many industries of business. For example, did you know that the Volkswagen Routan minivan wasn't made by VW at all? It's actually just a rebadged Dodge Caravan that they licensed to use from Daimler-Chrysler. VW didn't want to spend all those hours and money on research to develop their own minivan. Similar situation with dbFX and their use of FXCM's software.

However, the mainframe to the FXTS2 platform is at FXCM's servers, fxcorporate.com. I see this as convenient for me because I don't need to have two different copies of FXTS2 to log in to either one of my FXCM or dbFX demo accounts. I can just log in to either, on the same copy, with the change of a setting.

If we were to compare FXCM and DBFX only, which one would you choose ?

DBFX, of course. Their share in FX market is 20-25%. Even Goldman Sachs falls short of 12%.

Absolutely DBFX.

can anyone point me to the thread that proved dbfx and fxcm servers were the same.

either with IP verification or the thread where traders at FXCM DBFX reported server outages at the same time??

the internet is filled with too much BS now adays and its hard to find anything.

thanks a million pips

There is no such proof. FXCM provided infrastructure (servers/software and so on) for DB's retail operation. DB's own stuff wasnt fit for that, since its a completely different target audience. Does someone here honestly believe DB needs assistance for making FX markets from a lowly peasant like fxcm? They did stream their own prices, they had different spreads, different swaps and even different currency pairs than FXCM.

Agree with it. Moving forward, let's keep searching for DBFX replacement.

cheers

This is my point. Fxcm is providing software and servers for DBFX retail operation.

Therefore when FXCM servers were down, DBFX servers were down at the same time.

I remember reading this on Forex Factory in 2009. Are you saying that the thread is no longer here?

this is kinda interesting link below, but it still isn't what I am looking for

http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showth...hreadid=169495

DBFX is now out of business as it's selling retail business to Gain Capital aka Forex.com.

Check their website.

i have often wondered why brokers tend to be dishonest? they make their money from the spreads. they can never lose. what more do they want?

More Capital Gains for the cheaters - http://www.nfa.futures.org/news/news...ArticleID=3676


so, no one can find the thread with traders that experienced server outages at fxcm and dbfx at the same time?

I had an account at fxcm and experienced the problem first hand.

Actually, there was plenty of proof for those who wanted to open their eyes to it. I had an account with dbFX and I ran a Demo account with FXCM for comparison purposes. On every single occasion when dbFX went down, FXCM servers were down for precisely the same amount of time. I can understand maybe one coincidence, but not every single time over the course of a few years.

Second, anyone with any networking trouble-shooting skills whatsoever, could easily trace the IP of dbFX back to an FXCM host machine with an FXCM IP address. Many people have already done this and for years, I've seen the same kind of Chat Session Transcript posted on several different sites, where dbFX claims no shared hardware standing with FXCM, when the truth was 180-degrees in the opposite direction. The network tracing prove the physical connection between the two entities.

Third, if the data feed was truly differentiated between dbFX and FXCM, then when the FXCM host goes down, the dbFX "host" should continue providing its own streaming data. That was not the case with any outage that I've personally experienced with dbFX.

Fourth and the most important, when I opened my dbFX account, I asked for the number to the trading desk in case of a network outage on my end, facilitating the need for me to close a position by phone. I was given a toll free number, but I never called that number until years later. When I called that number for the very first time, years later, the phone was answered with the words: "Trading Desk..." They don't say good morning, good evening, or good afternoon, just "Trading Desk...".

I then immediately asked to speak with Client Services about some account details. I was told to "Hold, I'll transfer your call now." When my call was transferred, the person who answered the phone did so with: FXCM Client Services how may I help you?

I said, What? Did you just say: "FXCM Client Services?" I thought I was calling dbFX Client Services. The line went dead for several seconds. I said, Hello? Are you still there? The persons voice on the other end said, "Sir, this is FXCM Client Services - maybe you dialed the wrong number." I said, I'm dialing the number for the very first time in years and the number was given to me directly from Alejandro at dbFX when I originally opened my dbFX account. So, I can't possibly have the wrong number. The representative said: "I don't know what to say, Sir. This is FXCM Client Services." I said thank you very much and hung up.

I then called back on the exact same number which had been put into my cell phone the day I opened my dbFX trading account. The representative answered with the same: "Trading Desk..." I said, I'm trying to get to Client Services, can you help me? The rep. said, "Please hold." My call was transferred again. This time a different voice answered the call with: "FXCM Client Services, how can I help you?"

I played along this time....

I gave the FXCM rep my dbFX account number. Without hesitation, the representative said, "I'll have to transfer your call, please hold." I waited, and the next voice answered with: "Client Services, how can I help you?" I gave that person my dbFX account number and they pulled up my account information.

So, why didn't the FXCM Client Services representative tell me that I had the wrong number? Instead, that person transferred my call. How on earth can you transfer a call from one company to another company, when both companies are separate entities? That's like calling Volkswagen and getting internally transferred directly to Ferrari. Won't happen in a million years. Now, if I called Volkswagen and got transferred over to Bugatti, then I might be able to understand that.

I called a dbFX number. I got an FXCM representative who took my dbFX account number and I then get transferred internally on the same line, back to dbFX, who then pulls up my account information.

That entire circle of sorted affairs made no sense whatsoever. Even if I did (which I did not) dial the wrong number after all these years, how was an FXCM Client Services representative able to make an internal phone transfer to a completely different company! Not possible, unless they were sharing the exact same building, hardware, phone lines and computer systems.

Thus, dbFX = FXCM. At least until 13 May 2011.

What a joke played on the trusting customers of dbFX.

The number that was given to me by Alejandro from dbFX was: 1-866-600-3926. I was told that the number was the DBFX Trading Desk. I never used that number until I closed my dbFX account, but that was years later. And, I never had the need to have an FXCM Trading Desk number because my account was not with FXCM. So, why would dbFX give out an FXCM Trading Desk number, that was capable of being internally transferred to a dbFX phone.

Bizarre, freaky, technical anomaly? Or, just the way the dbFX/FXCM game was played on unsuspecting customers all those years?

"Oh, no! We are not affiliated with or connected to FXCM at all, except the fact that we used a licensed version of their platform." AND, you were able to make internally transferred phone calls happen on non-existent phone lines AND you had FXCM answering your phone calls for you on toll free numbers that just happened to be shared by both FXCM and dbFX for years, apparently.

I asked to speak with Alejandro at dbFX in Operations. He no longer works at dbFX, so he was unavailable to comment. But, I do have an email from Alejandro, with his name on electronic correspondence sent to my email account that I used for all dbFX correspondence.

What a joke.

thank you thank you..

Finally someone that doesn't have their head stuck in the sand.

Thanks for coming across this tiny little thread and shedding some light.