Oanda forex broker is one of the leading companies in the forex market. Founded in 1996 in the USA, the broker now has offices in many countries. Toronto, Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore, London, New York are some of these. We see that they also care about the service offered in these countries. Because they are regulated by the watchdogs of these countries.
Oanda is very popular in the US as one of the pioneer of forex brokers. The official website also has about 10 million visitors per month. A large part of this visit is from the USA. Is the Oanda safe? What needs to be known about Oanda account types, licenses, spreads and deposit & wihdrawal methods? In this Oanda review you will find the answer to these questions.
Regulation & Protection in Oanda
Oanda is regulated by 6 major watchdogs. Especially FCA in the UK and ASIC in the Australia are very high reputation among forex investors.
The company is also a member of the National Futures Association in the USA. NFA-registered brokers are expected to comply with strict rules. For example, hedging is not allowed in these brokers. Also, the leverage is not higher than 1.50.
Brokers should keep at least $20 million in capital in their bank account. This guarantees clients funding and provides extra security. The same security prevention is also available on FCA-regulated brokers. However, the net capital requirement on FCA regulated brokers is 730,000 euros.
Oanda Account Types
One of the disadvantages of Oanda compared to competing brokers is the limited number of account types. Oanda offers only two types of accounts: Standard and Premium.
The minimum deposit in the standard account is $ 1. Spreads are veriable and around 1.4 pips on EURUSD. ECN account type not found. So this is a disappointment for scalper investors. However, the leverage is limited to 1.50, which is not suitable for scalpers.
The nano account type is also not available. The nano account is missing, which is a suitable account type for investors who want to try trading strategies or forex robot.
In premium account type, the minimum deposit is $ 50,000 or equivalent. If you open a premium account, you can trade with tighter spreads than standard account. Oanda also offers dedicated relationship manager and custom trading support for premium clients. But still, I do not see an advantage worth $ 50,000. Competitor brokers offer these premium services for a lower minimum deposit than Oanda FX Broker.
The most important disadvantage of Oanda is leverage rates. Maximum leverage is 1:50 on major fx pairs and 1:20 for all others. This leverage ratio is very low compared to competitors.
Payment Methods
Oanda is not in the way we are accustomed to in terms of payment methods. Deposit and withdrawal methods are very limited. Also, processing time is longer than competitors. Also withdrawal fees are charged by Oanda. If you use a withdrawal method with a credit card or PayPal, the first withdrawal transaction is free every month. You pay a fee for additional transactions in that month.
