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OANDA is a prominent name in the trading universe. This trading broker has built a solid reputation since its foundation in 1996. Today, it’s a favorite to thousands of global traders, and for good reasons. To begin with, OANDA is regulated by renowned authorities and offers a robust, user-friendly trading platform.
Our team went on a fact-finding mission recently. We spent a great deal of time testing OANDA and what it offers. We visited the platform and checked the provided trading platforms, stipulated fees, and much more. We’ve summarized our findings in this review.
In This Guide
Why OANDA
We consider OANDA one of the best brokers because it’s authorized and governed by top authorities like the FCA, ASIC, and the FSA. Furthermore, this broker boasts outstanding customer support and diverse trading platforms, including TradingView and MT4/5. However, like most top-notch sites, trading with OANDA comes with a few shortcomings.
Below is a summary of the pros and cons we identified after testing and evaluating OANDA.
OANDA
✔No minimum deposit requirement
✔Free deposits
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Licensed and regulated by tier-one authorities, including the FCA and ASIC
- Popular platforms like TradingView, MT4, and MT5 are available
- No minimum deposit requirement
- Free deposits
- Excellent customer support services
Cons
- $10 monthly inactivity fees
- Investing in shares is limited to accounts in Europe
- Investor protection is only for Canadian customer accounts
Note: 76.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.
Security
OANDA claims to be dedicated to protecting the security and privacy of its customers, partners, and employees. Our team evaluated the OANDA trading platform to see if this claim is valid, and it is. Let’s focus on how the company protects its traders.
OANDA’s first line of defense is centered on the broker’s internal security team. This team consists of trained and skilled technicians who use various methods to ensure you receive optimum protection, including round-the-clock monitoring. These experts also conduct regular vulnerability tests and use advanced threat detection tools to identify and mitigate potential breaches before they compromise your account, funds, or data.
OANDA is also a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund. If this broker goes bust today, the CIPF will help you reclaim your assets. Please note that this is only for OANDA account holders in Canada.
We also checked OANDA’s licensing and regulation status since this aspect influences trader protection and security. We discovered that this platform is licensed and regulated by numerous first-class authorities, including:
- The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Firm reference number 542574
- The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), ABN 26 152 088 349, AFSL No. 412981
- The BVI Financial Services Commission (B.V.I FSC), number: SIBA/L/20/1130
- The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO)
- The National Futures Association (NFA), ID 0325821
- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
- The Financial Services Agency (FSA)
- The Polish Financial Supervision Authority (PFSA)
- The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
Platforms
Based on our exploration, OANDA has a fantastic web platform. It’s well-organized and designed with a dash of professionalism. We explored it without any hassles. From our experience, anyone can navigate the site seamlessly, from newbies to experienced traders.
OANDA has three trading platforms that we tested and evaluated. The first one is MetaTrader 4 (MT 4). This broker facilitates a powerful trading experience by allowing traders to combine their trading accounts with MT4’s robust charting and analysis capabilities. With MT4, you can trade various assets, including commodities CFDs, indices, and 48 currency pairs. You also test your skills on a demo account with MT4 before switching to live trading. MT4 is available for web, mobile, and desktop users.
The other trading platform that OANDA supports is MetaTrader 5. It’s available for web, mobile, and desktop users. This platform allows traders to start with demo trading before registering for a live account. It offers numerous impressive features, including built-in depth of market, a native economic calendar, 21 charting timeframes, and automated charting strategies. Compared to MT4, MT5 is a bit more advanced. It runs on the latest 64-bit multithread technology, which makes it faster and more efficient. We highly recommend it for multi-asset product suites.
Besides MT4 and MT5, OANDA boasts an award-winning mobile app called fxTrade. It’s specially designed for Android and iOS mobile users. Our team downloaded and tested this app. We applaud its speed and reliability. That aside, fxTrade has numerous features and functions you can use to take trading to the next level. They include a customizable interface, one-click trading, and multi-asset product suites.
Lastly, OANDA offers TradingView, a platform that allows traders to harness the power of supercharged technical tools and charts. It comes with a Paper Trading feature that you can use to practice different trading strategies. But TradingView is only accessible to traders from the European Union region. We highly recommend opening an OANDA demo account before trying a live platform. It will help you get an overall feel of what to expect before you commit.
Fees
When testing OANDA, we opened a live account and funded it. We didn’t encounter any OANDA minimum deposit requirements, which was a good thing. That allowed us to start with a few dollars. While preparing to fund our account, we noticed that this broker doesn’t charge deposit fees for cash transfers, credit cards, and debit cards. The same applies to e-wallets like Neteller, Skrill, and Wise. But withdrawals aren’t entirely free.
OANDA allows traders to make one free withdrawal per month to their debit or credit cards. Anyone who exceeds this threshold has to pay. The exact fees vary depending on account currency. On the other hand, all bank-related withdrawals incur charges. The fees you’ll pay while using a bank to withdraw funds from OANDA depend on the number of bank withdrawal transactions you’ve made in that calendar month and account currency.
We also noticed that OANDA has overtime financing charges. If you keep a position open after a trading day has ended, OANDA assumes you’ve held it overnight and either credits or charges your account. Visit OANDA’s Financing Costs page to learn more.
Lastly, OANDA charges a $10 monthly inactivity fee on accounts that have been dormant for 12 or more months. If OANDA deems your account legible for inactivity fees, the broker will levy it until you terminate the account, resume trading, or deplete your account balance.
Product Offerings
With OANDA, you can trade forex and a wide variety of CFDs. This platform also allows you to open a spread betting account and speculate on 100+ instruments, ranging from currency pairs to major global indices.
Finally, you can invest in stocks from major companies like Microsoft and buy, sell, and hold crypto with OANDA. To do the latter, you are required to open an account with the Paxo Trust Company, which is OANDA’s crypto services provider.
Before you explore or invest in the products that OANDA offers, note that trading and investing expose you to significant risks. Take CFD trading as an example. According to statistics, 62-82% of all retail CFD traders incur financial losses. Before diving into trading or becoming an investor, educate yourself and find a fitting strategy.
Here’s a list of OANDA’s product offerings:
- Forex: 48 currency pairs are available on OANDA’s trading platform, including EUR/USD, USD/JPY, and EUR/GBP.
- Indices: OANDA allows traders to take positions on popular indices like Germany 30, US Wall St 30, and UK 100.
- Metals: You can trade and profit from different metal-related CFDS through OANDA, including gold, copper, and silver.
- Shares: With OANDA, you can trade share CFDs from popular entities like Apple, Netflix, and Meta. The best part is CFD shares trading comes with 0 minimum commissions.
- Commodities: The OANDA trading platform offers numerous tradeable commodities, including natural gas, wheat, and Brent crude oil.
- Cryptocurrencies: If you are a crypto enthusiast, you can join OANDA today and trade popular digital currencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum.
Customer Service
You can contact the OANDA customer support team 24/7 via phone, live chat, or email. We highly recommend phone support for traders with urgent issues. We called this broker, and a technician answered within no time. They also addressed our questions skillfully and professionally. Check OANDA’s official page for the exact regional numbers.
If you cannot reach OANDA by phone, try live chat. You can chat with live agents in different languages, including English, Spanish, and Italian. We tested this function, and it was exceptional. An agent interacted with us almost instantly. You can also contact OANDA via email or fill out the contact form on the official website.
Not to forget, OANDA has numerous FAQ sections that provide comprehensive information on crucial topics like money conversion and FX data services. Check them out before contacting OANDA’s support team.
How to Sign up For an Account at OANDA
You can open an OANDA trading account within minutes; it’s quick and easy. We’ve discussed the entire process below. But be warned. Like other brokers, OANDA has to observe strict KYC and anti-laundering standards. Provide truthful information and relevant supporting documents to avoid issues like premature account suspension.
Step 1: Visit the OANDA official website
Step 2: Register
Step 3: Verify your identity and address
Step 4: Fund your account
Step 5: Trade
Go to OANDA’s official homepage and check if everything you need is provided. That includes your favorite trading platform, tradable products, and technical tools. If you like trading on the go, navigate to the bottom of the page and download the app.
Click the “Start Trading” button on the top right corner. Then, select your country of residence and read the documents suggested by OANDA, including the Appropriateness Statement. Click “confirm and continue.” Fill out the form that will pop up with your email address and a strong password. Read the conditions on the embedded documents, and if you agree with them, click “confirm and continue.” An application page will appear. Enter all the required information, including your name, address, and contact info.
Submit the necessary verification documents, including a copy of your driver’s license and a valid bank statement. Wait for OANDA to approve your account. It may take 1-2 working days. Check your email regularly.
Once your account has been approved, fund it. OANDA has a wide range of payment methods you can use, including debit/credit cards, wire transfers, PayPal, and Skrill. There is no minimum deposit requirement, so you can start with any amount you’re comfortable with.
Choose an instrument, and start trading. If you are a novice, start with a small stake and gauge your performance before risking larger sums. Also, practice risk management, set correct position sizes, and remain disciplined while trading.
Final Thoughts
Based on our experience, OANDA is an exceptional CFD and forex broker. We recommend it because it’s licensed and regulated by world-class authorities like ASIC and the FCA. This broker also gives you unmatched access to indispensable proprietary and third-party platforms, including the fxTrade app and MetaTrader.
But that is just our opinion. The ball is in your court now. Conduct in-depth research on this broker. Assess everything, from the company’s online reputation to the platform’s performance across different devices. And once you start trading, don’t risk more than you can afford to lose.
Invezty Rating:
✔No minimum deposit requirement
✔Free deposits
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Risk Warning
72% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with OANDA TMS Brokers S.A. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
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Customer Support
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Commissions & Fees
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Platforms & Tools
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Educational Resources