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Best Broker for Canadians from Alberta

  • #1
  • First Post: Mar 31, 2015 9:45pm Mar 31, 2015 9:45pm
I am looking for some feedback if you are in somewhat the same position. I am from Alberta, Canada.

I am currently trading with Vantage FX in Sydney, Australia. I like everything about them except for the fact that they are regulated by ASIC which offers no protection if the company goes down.

I lost a little money with Alpari so this question is important for me as it may happen with everybroker I believe.

I want to open an account and start trading with a second broker and if it is a protected broker and I like what I see I might switch to them completely.
I was trading with Oanda at some point and I liked it but they don’t open accounts for Albertans any more. Same with some others.

US brokers do not open accounts for Canadians any more and I do not like their rules anyways with FIFO and margin requirements. Canadian brokers, which are very few, do not open accounts for Albertans. UK is a good option but what I found is that many brokers registered in London has nothing to do with UK, same Alpari is a good example. It was run by a Russian cowboy who lives in Cyprus and likes driving expensive cars per his own words, so it ended up where it is now. Bunch of other UK based companies are of the same origin which you don’t see if you don’t do a good research before you start trading with them.

Swiss registered brokers seem to be protected but they are not even answering my emails so far, so they failed the initial test and there is no point of going any further with them. Other parts of Western Europe maybe?

Obviously no Russian, Cyprus, Panama etc brokers so the choice is really limited then.

I am back to square one looking at Australia as the best place or the lesser evil if you will. Peppersone or Axitrader seem to be a really good choice but again, there is no protection from ASIC which they are under…

The way I trade I need microlots and may have dozens of open trades at the same time, not always but maybe as it is a slow moving system. Also I am trading only CHF pairs, unfortunately after the CHF fall. I almost started trading with ActiveTrades in UK but their margin requirements for CHF pairs kills me so I cannot trade with them.

I can start in the 20,000 USD area and go up from there.

Anything rings the bell? Any suggestions if you are in more or less the same boat?
  • #2
  • Mar 31, 2015 10:24pm Mar 31, 2015 10:24pm
Try Interactive Brokers if you have $10K. They are regulated by IIROC and is a member of CIPF so your investment funds with them are protected in case anything happen to the broker. Below is the pro's and con's of this broker:

Pros: Fast execution with very little slippage, rarely widening of spread even during news time, fast and reliable deposit AND withdraws, one of the cheapest commission and TRUE ECN

Cons: Horrible trading platform (slow and user-unfriendly AND error-prone), absolutely out of market rollover interest rate, higher required margin at 33% for forex and almost non-existent customer service although Canadian customer service is MUCH better

The others that you can look at is Friedberg (a division of FXCM) and CMC if you don't mind trading with market maker model brokers. That's pretty much your choice for Canadians unless you want to go abroad, then all of the Australian brokers are available to you as well as pretty much all of the UK brokers except LMAX.

Good luck!
Make your losses in demo. Earn your profits live.
  • #3
  • Apr 1, 2015 10:47pm Apr 1, 2015 10:47pm
Forexia, thank you for your feedback, that's what i was looking for.

Contacted all 3 brokers that you suggested. 24 hours later there is no answer from any of them. In my book this is the first test that all of them failed. If they don't answer a potential client, how can I trust them with my money?

Hate to be with Australians again but they are good. Probably will go for Pepperstone if Europe does not kick in soon.
  • #4
  • Apr 2, 2015 12:07am Apr 2, 2015 12:07am
Quoting aa1
Forexia, thank you for your feedback, that's what i was looking for. Contacted all 3 brokers that you suggested. 24 hours later there is no answer from any of them. In my book this is the first test that all of them failed. If they don't answer a potential client, how can I trust them with my money? Hate to be with Australians again but they are good. Probably will go for Pepperstone if Europe does not kick in soon.
Hmmn really? I got an answer right away from all of them. Check your email and make sure their email is not sent to your Spam or Junk email box because sometimes they do.

Good luck!
Make your losses in demo. Earn your profits live.
  • #5
  • Apr 2, 2015 2:32am Apr 2, 2015 2:32am
You should have no problem with Dukascopy Switzerland or the European division. My second account is with Fin FX that I opened last week but have yet to fund it and trade with them to know how they are. They have NO regulation!! But, from what I have seen over the years, whether in Canada or abroad...regulation means jack shit to make a broker trustworthy. It does not matter to me if its regulated and you get your money back if they find ways to skim you on a daily basis and you can't trade properly.
  • #6
  • Apr 2, 2015 3:41am Apr 2, 2015 3:41am
Quoting aa1
I am looking for some feedback if you are in somewhat the same position. I am from Alberta, Canada. I am currently trading with Vantage FX in Sydney, Australia. I like everything about them except for the fact that they are regulated by ASIC which offers no protection if the company goes down. I lost a little money with Alpari so this question is important for me as it may happen with everybroker I believe. I want to open an account and start trading with a second broker and if it is a protected broker and I like what I see I might switch to them...
Hi aa,

i'm trading with FXPrimus, opened my trading account in february of this year with them... in my view they offer the most protection because they are the ONLY broker with whom you can open a trading account and then for $50 they will open a trust account for u with in Barclays bank as the custodian of that trust...so all your whole trading account plus profits have an additional layer of protection.
  • #7
  • Edited 4:21am Apr 2, 2015 3:48am | Edited 4:21am
o ! and try and diversify your monetary holdings away from the currency in which the vast majority of your assets are in, by that i mean... try to deposit into another currency other than your local CAD or your neighbours USD, i suggest AUD or SGD, i chose AUD.

ONE MORE THING... FXPrimus offers a credit card that u can use anywhere in the world to withdraw or buy something.. i'm just thinking another way to by-pass the Revenue "Services" of one's own country, read local Revenue extortionist gangsters, that will grab a cut from your earnings although your winnings has NOT been earned locally.

and...they will deliver that credit card to your door, all included in the $50 charge.

i quite like this credit card option...
  • #8
  • Apr 2, 2015 6:04am Apr 2, 2015 6:04am
Quoting sunshine
o ! and try and diversify your monetary holdings away from the currency in which the vast majority of your assets are in, by that i mean... try to deposit into another currency other than your local CAD or your neighbours USD, i suggest AUD or SGD, i chose AUD. ONE MORE THING... FXPrimus offers a credit card that u can use anywhere in the world to withdraw or buy something.. i'm just thinking another way to by-pass the Revenue "Services" of one's own country, read local Revenue extortionist gangsters, that will grab a cut from your earnings although...
Very useful card to have and works very well.
  • #9
  • Apr 2, 2015 6:15am Apr 2, 2015 6:15am
Quoting duderoo1
{quote} Very useful card to have and works very well.

hey duderoo,

i send u a sms...what happened ?

u can also contact me via watsapp if u like.
it's really an uphill battle so far to establish a few runners that will stick to a new trend.
  • #10
  • Apr 2, 2015 12:29pm Apr 2, 2015 12:29pm
Thank you all, nice feedback. It looks like we have a little Alberta club here.

I will check Primus, sounds interesting so far.

Last week I contacted Dukas - just received an answer which looks good so far so will explore them a bit more. Another Swiss company, I think Swissquote said they cannot open account for Canadians...

Here is a link I found which looks like the most complete list so far http://www.bestonlineforexbrokers.com/Online-Forex-Brokers/Forex-Broker-Country-Lists/Forex-Brokers-by-Countries-Pg21.html so I am just working my way through it.

Overall, I look at answering my initial email as the first test as I said. If they don't want to talk to me then I don't want to trade with them. It should be a reciprocal love...
  • #11
  • Edited 2:29pm Apr 2, 2015 12:47pm | Edited 2:29pm
Quoting bigsteely101
You should have no problem with Dukascopy Switzerland or the European division. My second account is with Fin FX that I opened last week but have yet to fund it and trade with them to know how they are. They have NO regulation!! But, from what I have seen over the years, whether in Canada or abroad...regulation means jack shit to make a broker trustworthy. It does not matter to me if its regulated and you get your money back if they find ways to skim you on a daily basis and you can't trade properly.

bigsteely, and how do you like trading with Dukascopy?

sunshine, I will stay away from mauritius broker. whatever they say I don't trust them.
  • #12
  • Apr 2, 2015 2:31pm Apr 2, 2015 2:31pm
I live in Alberta. I agree with Forexia that Interactive Brokers is the best choice for Canadians. I have been using them for years with no issues. Particular to Canada, your deposit is protected by the Canadian Investor Protection Fund. You don't get this protection with brokers outside of Canada. Some other countries may have an equivalent, but you may have administrative difficulties as a foreigner getting your money back, or the protection may simply not extend to foreigners. Their platform has improved a lot over the years and I find no errors as long as I follow their advice to log off daily. I find them very responsive. Refer to their "tips for best service (https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/index.php?f=customerService&p=tips)" page:

"Email: Free format email communications are no longer supported due to the proliferation of spam, phishing, and other forms of fraudulent communications. If you do not already have an IB account, we kindly ask you submit your inquiry using the form available on our website: http://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/general/contact/newContact/contact.php (https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/general/contact/newContact/contact.php)."

They recommend you contact them by phone or chat for new account application questions.

bigsteely101 makes a good point about the merits of regulation. Most forex brokers, even regulated ones, break the rules (http://www.forexscamalerts.com/united-states-forex-broker-reviews). Interactive Brokers is no exception, but generally not for issues that would concern a retail trader. Oanda is the best in this regard, but that is too bad they don't open accounts with Albertans. I got my account with them years ago when I lived in Nova Scotia.

An interesting new development for Interactive Brokers is that they have just started opening RRSP accounts. Not sure if you can trade forex within them, but you are allowed to carry USD balances, which implies forex trading, at least for USD/CAD. Would be interesting to see if your forex profits could be taxed sheltered, but I haven't checked into that yet.
  • #13
  • Apr 2, 2015 3:58pm Apr 2, 2015 3:58pm
Thank you Ian. Well, I will try them again - the form you linked to here is the one I filled in, now, probably 2 days back. Still nothing from them.

I saw something about RRSP too and agree that if it is the new development than it gets really interesting. Will research more.

Also, so far all that Ducas said sounds good. They said that the foreigners still are protected for 100,000 by Swiss government. I will look at details for both, IB and Ducas. I also agree that what they all claim may not be true when the real trouble comes, look how Alpari story develops.

There is always a small print somewhere where we did not see it which triggers things we never expected to be there.

When you say you are using them for years, did you withdraw some decent money, say 4-5 zeroes? How they handled errors, misquotes etc?
  • #14
  • Apr 2, 2015 4:29pm Apr 2, 2015 4:29pm
From what I understand, Dukascopy is a decent broker, and their spreads on some pairs are hard to beat. I'm not sure if this still works, but you used to be able to get substantial discounts on Dukascopy commissions if you signed up through one of the forex cash back sites. Might be worth researching that on Google. Interactive Brokers has no such equivalent, just a client referral incentive for existing clients.

I have withdrawn 5 figure amounts from Interactive Brokers with no issues, as has one of my friends.
  • #15
  • Edited 4:53pm Apr 2, 2015 4:41pm | Edited 4:53pm
Well, I just sent IB another request with few questions. Let's see. Long weekend is coming although I am not sure where they are and if it applies to them. If I sign up with them I will use you as a reference so you will get free coffee from them or whatever they offer. Why not? I will PM you if it happens.

Meanwhile finally received an answer from CMC recommended by Forexia. The answer is if you are from Alberta you have to be an accredited investor which I am not. So, no CMC for me.

Also just chatted with Friedberg from Forexia again. Same answer - I have to be an accredited investor. Did something change or you did not know that, Forexia?
  • #16
  • Apr 2, 2015 8:44pm Apr 2, 2015 8:44pm
Quoting Ian_Lavoie
An interesting new development for Interactive Brokers is that they have just started opening RRSP accounts. Not sure if you can trade forex within them, but you are allowed to carry USD balances, which implies forex trading, at least for USD/CAD. Would be interesting to see if your forex profits could be taxed sheltered, but I haven't checked into that yet.
That IS good development BUT there are limitations. 1) You can't do HBP withdrawals from it and 2) They don't accept transfers of any kind from another cash or margin accounts from either IB or elsewhere. And not only that they have TFSA now too. https://www.interactivebrokers.ca/en/index.php?f=11792

BUT I don't think you can do forex trading in RRSP as it's not an eligible investment for RRSP. You can only hold investments that's allowed in RRSP which is the usual stuff, cash, stocks, mutual funds, bonds and etc.

Thanks for letting us know Ian.
Make your losses in demo. Earn your profits live.
  • #17
  • Edited 10:21pm Apr 2, 2015 10:11pm | Edited 10:21pm
Quoting aa1
Well, I just sent IB another request with few questions. Let's see. Long weekend is coming although I am not sure where they are and if it applies to them. If I sign up with them I will use you as a reference so you will get free coffee from them or whatever they offer. Why not? I will PM you if it happens. Meanwhile finally received an answer from CMC recommended by Forexia. The answer is if you are from Alberta you have to be an accredited investor which I am not. So, no CMC for me. Also just chatted with Friedberg from Forexia again. Same answer...
I dunno about Alberta but accredited investor usually just means you have to 1) be Loaded with like several hundred K's of assets (which makes you wonder if we really have that much assets, WHY would we want to invest with brokers like CMC? No offence but there are BETTER brokers than CMC when you have that much assets or even lower than that LOL) 2) have tons of years of experience usually at least 5 years of experiencing trading in the investment that you want to trade with the broker (which we all have) 3) A financial institution like a bank or 4) a licensed and/or certified professional pertaining to investment and that can be any designation or certification or license, Mutual Fund license, CPA, CIM, CFP, Series 7...

Details may vary but this is pretty much the general idea. Out of all 10 provinces, I find Alberta and British Columbia have the most draconian financial regulations against investors that is almost humiliating to investors basically treating investors as if we are idiots. That is so unfair to people who live in these two provinces.

Good luck and Happy Easter everyone!
Make your losses in demo. Earn your profits live.
  • #18
  • Apr 3, 2015 12:14am Apr 3, 2015 12:14am
the requirements for accredited investor are tougher than what you mentioned, but it does not matter after all.

so far i installed ducas demo and played with it, also talked to their support. i like what i see although the spread could be smaller, my Vantage has consistently better spread. will try IB to compare and then will make a choice between the two probably. IB still has not answered, it is 3 days now...
  • #19
  • Apr 3, 2015 12:22am Apr 3, 2015 12:22am
I'm from Canada too. After alpari I'm trying to find a reliable broker, it's a bit tough. Now I'm looking at Globalprime, can anyone share experience? Could not find much info about them. I would really appreciate.
  • #20
  • Apr 3, 2015 6:40am Apr 3, 2015 6:40am
Quoting aa1
the requirements for accredited investor are tougher than what you mentioned, but it does not matter after all. so far i installed ducas demo and played with it, also talked to their support. i like what i see although the spread could be smaller, my Vantage has consistently better spread. will try IB to compare and then will make a choice between the two probably. IB still has not answered, it is 3 days now...
Well I have been handed the criteria for "accredited investor" before but like I said, details do vary. IB's spread is very good. You will see.
Make your losses in demo. Earn your profits live.
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