A trading account with FxPro

The same register checks applied to the broker itself

Before opening an account with any broker, apply the same checks this site teaches: find the legal entity named in the client agreement, the regulator it names, and search that regulator's own register. FxPro operates through several regulated entities: authorised by the FCA in the United Kingdom, by CySEC in Cyprus and by the Securities Commission of The Bahamas. Which entity serves a client depends on the country of residence and is named in the client agreement. The regulator's register will show the entity's status and the activities it is permitted to carry on.

This site is not the broker, is not a regulator and takes no money from the reader. The link on this site is an affiliate link, and the account is opened with FxPro directly. No statement on this page is a recommendation or a promise of profit. CFDs are leveraged and carry a high risk of losing the money deposited. A reader should read the client agreement and the risk warning and ask the broker questions before depositing anything.

The difference between a Pakistani commodity exchange broker and an overseas CFD provider

A broker registered with the Pakistan Mercantile Exchange has a relationship with that exchange and may deal in the commodity contracts the exchange lists. That registration covers dealing on that exchange only. An overseas CFD provider such as FxPro is not registered with that exchange, and its products are different: a CFD is an agreement on a price movement, so no asset is delivered and nothing is registered in the client's name. The two registers answer different questions, and a firm on one list is not automatically on the other.

When a Pakistani reader sees an offer for gold or forex-style trading, the commodity exchange list is one check. An overseas CFD provider may be regulated in its home country but not licensed by the SECP or the State Bank for those activities in Pakistan. The reader should check the provider's legal entity and home regulator, and ask whether the provider accepts clients from Pakistan and under which entity. The client agreement will name the entity and its regulator.

What to read in the client agreement and the risk warning before an account is opened from Pakistan

The client agreement names the legal entity that will serve the client and the regulator that authorises it. It also states the terms for deposits, withdrawals, margin, and negative balance protection. FxPro states that negative balance protection applies to all clients, and that client money is held separately from the company's own funds. Retail leverage limits differ by regulating entity, so the agreement will state the limits that apply to the client's account.

The risk warning states that CFDs are leveraged and carry a high risk of losing the money deposited. A reader should read that warning in full and consider whether the risk is acceptable. The platforms offered are MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, a browser platform and a mobile app, and a practice account exists. Before opening a live account, a reader can use the practice account to understand the mechanics without risking money. No practice account can remove the risk of a live account, but it can show how the platform works.

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan has not licensed FxPro. The account sits with a group company regulated abroad, by the FCA in the United Kingdom and CySEC in Cyprus, which means a Pakistani resident deals with a foreign firm without the protections a locally licensed broker owes. Money sent out of Pakistan for trading is subject to the State Bank of Pakistan's foreign exchange rules. This site gives no investment advice.