Go Markets Broker Review

Is GO Markets Safe?

Founded in 2006  and headquartered in Melbourne, GO Markets is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC),  the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA), and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of Mauritius. 

• GO Markets Pty Ltd is authorised and regulated by ASIC, licence: 254963.
• GO Markets Pty Ltd (MU) is a Global Business Company (Company No.170969), authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of Mauritius as an Investment Dealer (Discount Broker) Licence No.GB 19024896.
• GO Markets is authorised and regulated by CySEC, Licence Number: 322/17
• GO Markets is authorized and regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority, Securities Dealer Licence Number SD043.

Malaysian traders fall under the FSC Mauritius regulation, and as such, all client funds are held in separate trust accounts.

GO Markets has won numerous awards, including Best Customer Service 2019 (Investment Trends), and Best Educational Materials/Programs 2019 (Investment Trends).

With offices in Melbourne, London, Taipei, Hong Kong and customers in over 150 countries, GO Markets is a safe and established global broker.

Trading conditions

A market maker with ECN account options, GO Markets, offers trading on over 350 instruments, including Forex, shares, indices, metals, and commodities.  It offers two live accounts with minimum deposits of 200 USD.  Minimum trade sizes are 0.01 lots, leverage is up to 500:1, and commissions are only charged on the GO Plus account.  Variable spreads start at 0.0 pips, and full support is offered for the MT4 and MT5 platforms in addition to an extensive range of trading tools.  GO Markets allows hedging and scalping, but not copy trading.  Unfortunately, GO Markets does not offer Islamic swap-free accounts.

Account Types

GO Markets offers two separate live accounts in addition to the demo account.  The accounts can be funded in 9 different currencies (USD, AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, NZD, and SGD). 

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Both live accounts offer: 

• A dedicated account manager
• A free VPS service
• Expert advisors

Standard Account

The Standard Account is the dealing desk, commission-free account option, created with the beginner in mind. Spreads start at 1.20 pips on this account, and it requires a minimum deposit of 200 USD.  

GO Plus+ Account

The GO Plus+ account is designed for the professional trader and requires a minimum deposit of 200 USD. A commission of 6 USD round turn per lot is charged, and the spreads are tight, starting at 0.0 pips.

Spreads and Commissions

The spreads vary depending on your account type. Raw spreads are as low as 0.0 pips on the GO Plus+ account, and spreads start at 1.20 pips on the Standard account.  A commission of 6 USD round turn per lot is charged on the GO Plus+ Account.

Deposit & Withdrawal Fees

In line with Anti-Money Laundering policies, funds can only be returned to a bank account in the same name as your GO Markets account.  GO Markets does not charge any deposit or withdrawal fees, but withdrawals to non- Australian banking institutions may be subject to bank fees from any intermediary bank involved in the transaction.  Furthermore, withdrawal forms received before 1 pm AEST will be processed on the same day.  See below for more details on deposit and withdrawal methods:

• Visa/Mastercard: Zero transaction fees and transactions are processed instantly. Accounts are denominated in AUD, USD, GBP, EUR, NZD, SGD, CAD, CHF, and HKD.
• Skrill: Zero transaction fees and transactions are processed instantly. Accounts are denominated in AUD, USD, GBP, EUR, NZD, and SGD.
• Neteller: Zero transaction fees and transactions are processed instantly. Accounts are denominated in AUD, USD, GBP, EUR, and SGD.
• Bank/Wire Transfer: Zero transaction fees (but may be subject to fees from your banking institution), and transactions are processed in 1 – 3 business days. Accounts are denominated in AUD, USD, GBP, and EUR.
• Fasapay: Zero transaction fees and transactions are processed instantly. Accounts are denominated in USD.

GO Markets does not charge inactivity fees on dormant accounts.

GO Markets for Beginners

GO Markets provides a reasonable selection of basic education material, but better educational materials can be found at other ASIC-regulated ECN brokers.  GO Markets also provides a good selection of market analysis materials produced by a team of in-house market analysts. 

Note that registration is required to unlock the complete set of information and that neither the website nor the educational and market analysis materials are translated into Malay. 

Education Material

GO Markets offers downloadable handbooks, a structured Forex course, educational videos, and technical instructional videos to assist with the MetaTrader software.

GO Markets provides two downloadable handbooks covering Forex trading – one for beginners and another for more advanced traders. The beginner book covers basic terminology, chart reading, and trader psychology. The advanced eBook requires registration and covers technical analysis and trading strategies.

The handbooks complement the videos, and while few of the videos are available for public consumption, one will need to register an account to view its extensive video library.   

A two-part structured Forex course in the form of a webinar is open to the public and only requires that you register your name and email.

One of the courses covers the Forex market and trade entries and exits. The second course covers technical analysis, how to read charts, using technical indicators to understand data, developing a profitable trading plan, and advanced order types.

Lastly, there are also 18 technical MT4/MT5 videos to assist traders with everything from setting up charts and layout on the platform, to placing the first trade on the market.

Analysis Material

GO Markets regularly publishes news and analysis on its website.  These include a daily review at the close of the US markets, a weekly look at major talking points in the week ahead, frequent blog posts on important financial topics, tips for trading improvement, an interactive economic calendar, and a regular podcast featuring experts in the Forex market.

All of the analysis and news is available for free, even if you are not a registered customer of GO Markets.

Customer Support

Support is available 24/5, which is in line with the Forex trading week, via email, live chat, and phone (with local numbers in Australia, China, and the United Kingdom).  Note that support is not offered in Malay.  GO Markets also  has a Quick Support tool that allows their technical support team to remotely access your desktop and fix any issues with your platform/software.

For the purposes of this review, we found the customer service responsive, knowledgeable and polite.

Trading Platforms

GO Markets is a MetaTrader broker, offering full support for both MT4 and MT5.  As the first Australian broker to start using the MetaTrader suite of tools in 2017, GO Markets was recognised as the Best Forex Platform Australia at the FX & Broker Awards hosted by the Global Market Financial Review.

Metatrader 4

The MetaTrader 4 (MT4) trading platform has long been considered the industry standard for Forex traders worldwide.  Though it is now showing its age, MT4 is still very popular for its auto trading features that enables algorithmic trading and strategy backtesting with expert advisors (trading robots).  Features of MT4 allow traders to:

• View real-time pricing & execution
• Open & close positions
• Access the full range of Expert Advisors (EAs)
• Place buy/sell orders
• Access over 25 technical indicators
• Access the economic calendar

MetaTrader 5

MetaTrader 5 delivers a powerful trading platform with Market Depth and a separate system for accounting orders and trades. It supports both order accounting systems: the traditional netting system and the hedging option system. Four order execution modes are available to meet various trading objectives: Instant, Request, Market, and Exchange execution. The platform supports all types of trade orders, including market, pending, and stop orders, as well as trailing stops.  It allows you to open up to 100 charts in 21 time frames and access over 80 technical indicators and analytic tools.  

While MetaTrader is the industry favourite because it offers fast execution, advanced charting, expert advisors, and VPS options, GO Markets supports an additional add-on called MT4/MT5 Genesis. This add-on installs an extra set of trading tools that enhance specific features that already exist on the platform.

One of our favourite features is an advanced order management system that gives traders the ability to multi-task by keeping the trades active on the screen while doing other tasks. It is also possible to trade from the terminal view.

Mobile Apps

MT4 and MT5 are available on all mobile devices, including tablet applications for your Android or IOS device.  These platforms integrate with the broker in the same way as the desktop versions of the software, so all trading activity is synced.  

Trading Tools

GO Markets also offers a wide range of trading tools, including Metatrader Genesis, Autochartist, Myfxbook, and Trading Central.

Autochartist

Autochartist is one of the most widely used MT4 charting tools among the GO client base. Autochartist removes the complex and time-consuming process of analysing charts for patterns by scanning and monitoring the markets on your behalf.  It sends audio and visual alerts when emerging and completed patterns are identified.  Traders gain access to this chart pattern recognition software when opening and funding a live trading account with 500 USD or more.

Trading Central

Trading Central is a collection of programs that offer actionable investment support with 24-hour multi-asset coverage, technical and fundamental analysis, and back-tested trading strategies.  Actionable market news can be delivered to you through WebTV or email, and trading strategies can be built from within the platform. 

VPS

Using a Virtual Private Server for MT4 & MT5 (VPS) gives you the speed and continuous access vital to your trading. With your GO Markets VPS, you can optimise the MT4 & MT5 trading platforms’ features and capabilities.  A service fee of 30 USD will be charged for the service, but the fee will be waived should the client trade a minimum of 5 lots.

MetaTrader Genesis

MT4 & 5 Genesis is a comprehensive suite of MetaTrader trading tools to enhance the power of the  standard MetaTrader platform.  Benefits of using the MetaTrader Genesis tool include:

• Access to a professional suite of MetaTrader add-ons.
• Use of the sophisticated order management system.
• Access to trading alerts.

Myfxbook

Myfxbook is a cross-broker copy trading tool for traders of all experience levels and is used by 90,000 traders worldwide. It is similar to using EAs, but instead of following an algorithmic pattern, traders can mirror the trades of other Forex traders.  By connecting a GO Markets Standard Trading Account to Myfxbook, traders can take advantage of this system.  Myfxbook also provides its users with a broad range of statistics and analytics.

Mobile Trading Apps

GO Markets supports the mobile versions of MT4 and MT5.  These platforms integrate with the broker in the same way as the desktop versions of the software do, so all trading activity is synced.  

GO Markets Risk Statement

According to regulation, brokers are required to be transparent with Forex traders about the complexity of financial products and also disclose the extent to which traders can lose their money.  GO Markets wants you to know:  Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk, including the risk of losing substantially more than your initial investment. Also, you do not own or have any rights to the underlying assets. The effect of leverage is that both gains and losses are magnified. You should only trade if you can afford to carry these risks. Trading Derivatives may not be suitable for all type of investors, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved, and seek independent advice if necessary.

Evaluation Method

We value transparency and openness in the way we review the partners. To bring transparency to the forefront, we have published our review process that includes a detailed breakdown of the Go Markets offering. Central to that process is the evaluation of the reliability of the broker, the platform offering of the broker, and the trading conditions offered to clients, which are summarised in this review. Each one of these is graded, and an overall score is calculated and assigned to the broker.

Overview

GO Markets is a dependable and trustworthy market maker broker with an ECN account.  Offering trading on over 350 instruments, GO Markets only supports the MetaTrader platforms but provides an extensive set of trading tools.  Trading conditions are competitive, with tight spreads, high leverage, and reasonable minimum deposits.  Lastly, while its educational and market analysis materials are somewhat limited, the GO Markets customer service is polite, responsive, knowledgeable.