Selecting the right broker is an important element of beginning your trading on the FOREX market. The right broker can be the difference between risky investments and safe investments, and utilizing the market for profit or losing money. The right broker is just as important a part as knowing how to read the charts and graphs and trends. So what are some of the best ways of determining a good foreign exchange broker?
Professional website
As incredibly superficial as this sounds, there is reason and rationale behind it. A professional website is how a broker or firm chooses to present themselves to potential clients. It is not merely enough that they have a brokerage license or work for a brokerage firm, but rather seeing how they present themselves, whether they keep the site updated, whether it functions smoothly and regularly, and whether it looks and is a professionally-made site can all give you telling clues about the manner in which they conduct their business. A shoddy and poorly made site that is difficult to navigate and unprofessional looking denotes the type and character of individuals who are running the business. Whereas a highly capable, beautiful, modern site shows that they are willing to invest their own money to ensure the ease and demonstrate respect for potential clients.
Are they regulated?
One of the other incredibly important things for you to do is to minimize any potential risk on your part by ensuring that the brokerage firm you’ve selected is a regulated firm. If you chose a firm in the United States, for instance, they are required by law to be regulated by the National Futures Association. An unregulated firm in the United States can be a potentially huge financial liability for you. A major benefit to a brokerage firm that is regulated by the National Futures Association is that you can go to the NFA website and see any disciplinary actions or problems with a potential firm with which you are interested in investing. This can let you know whether they have been disciplined for shoddy practices in the past, how people view them, and give you an overall better understanding of the potential brokerage firm you’re interested in.
Availability
One of the most important things to check before committing to a particular broker is to remember that trading occurs all day and night. A 24-hour market requires 24 hour customer service. Ensuring that your brokerage firm is available at any time of the day or night to meet your calls, address concerns, or conduct trades is an important aspect of a firm operating in this type of business. Just as we want our emergency responders to answer the phones at any time, so, too, should a brokerage firm be prepared to answer calls for those late-night investors keeping apprised of markets in Asia.
This availability does not only stem from their hours but also the availability of agents during those hours. Checking to see what their average wait times are, how many agents are on, and the speed at which they’re able to get you information or details are all important considerations.