InstaForex Broker Review

Is InstaForex Safe?

InstaForex Group has been operating since 2007 and has built a reputation as a dependable broker for its many clients in Asia and around the world.

While InstaForex is not currently regulated by the Malaysian Securities Commission, it operates across the Asia-Pacific region via its subsidiary Instant Trading Ltd, which carries a licence and full authorisation from the British Virgin Islands FSC (License Number: SIBA/L/14/1082)

In the EU and UK, InstaForex’s European subsidiary Instant Trading EU Ltd is regulated by both CySEC (Licence Number 266/15) and the FCA (licence 728735). The firm is a member of the Investor Compensation Fund, a scheme which serves to protect eligible retail clients by paying compensation in the event that a company fails to reimburse funds and/ or financial instruments due to liquidity issues.

InstaForex has received many awards over the years, recent highlights include the Award for Best Broker in Asia 2019 (Le Fonti Awards) Best Forex Cryptocurrency Trading Platform 2018 (UK Forex Awards) and Best ECN Broker Asia 2018 (International Business Magazine).

Trading Conditions

Trading conditions at InstaForex vary slightly across five different account types, but all accounts have instant execution and relatively high trading costs.

All accounts also have a maximum leverage of 1:1000, which is very high compared to most brokers. Spreads are always fixed and two of the accounts are commission-based.

Account currencies are limited to USD and EUR, and InstaForex offers CFD trading on stocks, indices, metals, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.

Account Types

InstaForex offers both 4 standard live accounts and an Islamic account.

Scroll for more details

The four live account types include Insta.Standard, Insta.Eurica, Cent.Standard, and Cent.Eurica:

• Insta.Standard: This account offers commission-free trading on all asset types and spreads start at 3 pips on the EUR/USD. This account is further divided into three tiers depending on minimum deposit:
  • Micro Account. With a minimum deposit of 1-10 USD traders will access to micro-lot trading.
  • With a minimum deposit of 100-1000 USD traders will have access to Mini Lot trading
  • With a minimum deposit of 1000 USD or over, traders will have access to Standard Lot trading.
• Insta.Eurica: This account requires a minimum deposit of 1 USD and instead of the spread, charges a mark-up fee – starting at 3 pips on the EUR/USD .
• Cent.Standard: This account types has the same trading terms as the Insta.Standard Account, except – as the name suggests – all trades are denominated in currency cents (1/100^th of a currency unit). As risk is so low, this account is a decent practice account.
• Cent.Eurica: This account types has the same trading terms as the Insta.Eurica Account, except – as the name suggests – all trades are denominated in currency cents (1/100^th of a currency unit). As risk is so low, this account is a decent practice account.
• Islamic Account: All InstaForex accounts are available as Islamic Accounts, this option can be selected at account opening.

Spreads and Commission

Spreads on the Insta.Standard and Cent.Standard Accounts are wide, starting at 3 pips on the EUR/USD – these spreads combined with the low minimum deposits and high leverage offered by InstaForex are dangerous for beginner traders and increase the risk of account wipeouts.

Similarly, the mark-up commission (3 pips on the EUR/USD) on the Eurica.Standard and Cent Accounts are also high when compared to other brokers. Other brokers usually charge a flat rate commission per lot traded, which makes it easier to calculate trading costs.

Deposit and Withdrawal Fees

While InstaForex offers free and fast deposits by a variety of methods, most withdrawal methods are slow, and all withdrawal methods have fees attached – usually between 0.5 – 2% of the transaction. For instance, bank wires withdrawals have a 2% fee and take 2-4 days to process.

Malaysian traders can make both deposits and withdrawals via local Malaysian banks, though banking fees will be charged, and costs will vary depending on the bank.

Bonuses

InstaForex offers a variety of bonuses to its retail traders. Remember to read the fine print for all bonuses for agreeing to them. Current InstaForex bonuses available in Malaysia include:

• 100% First Deposit Bonus
• 55% Bonus on Every Deposit
• 30% Bonus on Every Deposit
• Club bonus for traders with an InstaForex club card (1% for deposits of 500 USD up to 10% for deposits of 15,000 USD)

InstaForex for Beginners

While InstaForex does offer two Cent Accounts targeted at beginner traders, it is not a welcoming environment for those with little trading experience. A structured trading course is only made available once a live account has been opened and the freely available education is limited in scope and poorly presented.

Market analysis, on the other hand, is updated daily by the InstaForex team. It is detailed and precise and presented in both video and text format. While market research is not as frequent or as detailed as other large market makers, it is much better than the educational content presented.

Customer service available in 18 languages, including Bahasa Melayu and English, and is available via email, live chat, Skype, and a responsive call-back service. Technical support is also available via several messaging services such as WhatsApp, Telegram and Viber.

Technical support is available 24/5, while client relations is available from 08:00-17:00 (UTC +00).

Trading Platforms

Alongside InstaForex’s two proprietary web-based platforms, it also offers support for MT4 and MT5, the two most popular trading platforms in the Forex industry.

InstaForex WebTrader: Designed by InstaForex, the WebTrader trading platform is available only to the broker’s clients. WebTrader enables investors to trade directly in a web browser, so there is no need to download and install any software. This platform offers access to all the latest Forex news and analysis and synchronises with all other InstaForex platforms, allowing for multi-platform trading.

InstaTick Trader: InstaTick Trader is an in-house trading platform developed by InstaForex, its key advantage is 6-digit quotes. Most platforms only offer 5-digit quotes, so the InstaTick platform provides traders with an even more detailed overview of the tiny fluctuations in the Forex market. InstaTick is available in a web browser with no downloads required.

MetaTrader 4 – The MT4 trading platform is the most widely used Forex trading platform and can also be used to trade other instruments like commodities, cryptocurrency, stock index, and stock CFDs. Though it is now showing its age, MT4 is still immensely popular for its auto trading features that enable algorithmic trading and strategy backtesting with expert advisors (trading robots).

MetaTrader 5 – The MT5 trading platform is being adopted by more Forex brokers all the time, it has a more modern interface, allows for an unlimited number of charts to be used, shows Depth of Market, and has a built-in Economic Calendar. It also has a larger number of pending order types than MT4 and features an embedded chat system. In addition, the MQL5 scripting language is more efficient than its precursor and MT5 has more advanced charting tools than MT4.

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 InstaForex product 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.

Risk Statement

Trading Forex is risky, and each broker is required to detail how risky the trading of Forex CFDs is to clients. InstaForex would like you to know that: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 78.24% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Overview

InstaForex is a BVI-regulated market maker broker with low minimum deposits, high leverage and high trading costs. In comparison to many other brokers with a focus on Asia, InstaForex has poor trading conditions and little educational support.

Both MT4 and MT5 are supported, alongside two proprietary platforms, and tradeable CFDs include stocks, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies. Deposits are fast and free, but withdrawals are generally slow and expensive.