OANDA serves as a leading online trading platform in the financial industry and plays an important role in the world of forex and CFD trading. They provide users with a broad range of trading tools and resources, ensuring an enhanced trading experience.
In this article, we will explore the world of OANDA reviews, delving into their features, pros and cons, products, and experiences. By the end, readers will comprehensively understand OANDA and can be equipped to make informed decisions about their trading journey.
List of Contents
Overview: OANDA
Account Minimum: $0
Fees: $0 for a standard account, $35 – $40 for other accounts
In 1996, OANDA came into existence through the efforts of co-founders Dr. Michael Stumm and Dr. Richard Olsen. OANDA is popular through its comprehensive handling of all currencies. They provide a range of services, such as currency conversion, FX data services for businesses, and an online brokerage service for individual retail FX and CFD traders. The headquarters of OANDA is located in New York, United States.
OANDA delivers its services worldwide through five account types: Standard, Core, Swap-free, Premium, and Premium Core. They also offer a product portfolio encompassing a broad range of CFD and spreads betting options in multiple asset classes, but every offering is not accessible for all regions serviced by the company.
Apart from forex, they provide various trading products, including indices, metals, commodities, and bonds, to ensure a broad array of trading opportunities in the financial industry.
Customer Service
- They offer 24/7 service via email.
- Operating hours are from 4 p.m on Sunday to 6 p.m. on Friday
- The website provides multiple languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Bahasa, French, Chinese, and Thai.
- Live chat support in 6 languages, including English, Spanish, Chinese, Deutsch, French, and Italiano.
- U.S. clients can only trade with OANDA through the Forex section.
Products
OANDA provides a trader with multiple options to trade through the broker, which include:
- Forex
- Indices
- Metals
- Shares
- Commodities
- Cryptocurrencies
Pricing
Before trading, traders need to educate about all possible fees that they must pay the charge while trading with the broker. However, they can decide whether the broket’s offering suits their trading style. Some costs that traders need to consider before making a decision include spread, minimum deposit, and account fees.
Spread
OANDA comprises two pricing alternatives, including ‘spread only’ and ‘core pricing + commissions.’ Spread only refers to a method that brokers make money from client trades, which intersects the bid-ask spread. The core pricing plus commissions means traders must pay commissions on the raw spread.
However, the displayed spread may differ depending on account types. For example, the minimum EUR/USD spread for U.S. clients, who trade through a standard account, is 1.4 pips. In contrast, the core pricing + commission model exhibits a raw spread of 0.4 pips.
Minimum Deposit
The minimum deposit in an advance account ranges from $10,000 – $100,000, depending on trade volume. However, traders who cannot afford the minimum deposit to access an advance account can open a standard account with no minimum, but they will not acquire benefits such as dedicated relationship management and free wire transfer.
Account Fees
When traders need to hold an overnight order, they need to pay an overnight trading fee. Similarly to the account not opening a trade order for a year, they need to pay an account fee along with the deposit/withdrawal fee, bank wire transfer, and multiple debit card withdrawals.
Trade Experience
OANDA, a prominent trading platform, offers clients three methodologies to approach market trading. Their standout service is fxTrade, available through both web browsers and mobile applications. Furthermore, they provide a widely used MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5), downloadable on both desktop and mobile. It helps facilitate trading on mobile devices, and traders can trade anywhere.
The primary platform, fxTrade, is well-structured and gives users easy access to trading instruments, complex order types, and account analytics. The software has advanced charting features, including those from third-party provider TradingView. Additionally, it offers a wealth of resources and tools, like Dow Jones FX Select news and various calculators. Users also benefit from OANDA’s research products like MarketPulse and Autochartist, which open in a new browser window.
OANDA also enables clients to set trade defaults for each instrument based on a specific amount of base currency, a percentage of leveraged NAV, or an amount in the account’s currency. This feature enhances trading flexibility and assists in risk management.
Moreover, there are four fundamental order types supported by fxTrade’s platform, which include take-profit and/or stop-loss orders. Trailing stop-loss orders is another available option for trading. Furthermore, users can opt to set their stops and limits based on either price or pips.
Account and Research Amenities
The analysis tools of OANDA enable traders to validate their strategies using prevalent coding languages and to evaluate the impact of economic news directly on their charts. These functionalities primarily cater to seasoned traders who require sophisticated analytics and resources to create, examine, and manage trading strategies in real-time. Hence, it comes as no surprise that OANDA has received multiple Highest Customer Satisfaction awards, according to Investment Trends research.
However, the complexity of such a comprehensive array of tools and research requires significant education and training to fully leverage. While OANDA provides educational resources and assistance for most of its tools and features, the information is somewhat fragmented and challenging.
Security and Reliability
OANDA Corporation is a duly recognized retail foreign exchange dealer (RFED) by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), holding the status of a registered Forex Dealer Member (FDM) under the National Futures Association (NFA). However, OANDA is operating in Europe, which is authorized and meticulously supervised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
OANDA’s regulatory reach extends further. It is also subject to the rules and regulations of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC), the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), the Monetary Authority of Singapore, as well as the International Enterprise of Singapore.
While OANDA is indeed well-regulated, it’s important to note that protection offered per account in case of a default situation is limited and can fluctuate based on the geographical location of your account. To illustrate, OANDA Europe Limited provides negative balance protection as mandated by ESMA, while OANDA Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. offers guaranteed stop-loss orders. However, this is not applicable to U.S. clients as OANDA Corporation doesn’t provide such protections for their accounts.
Education
Both novices and seasoned investors have access to an assortment of instructive videos and articles. In addition, live webinars that delve into numerous subjects, from market scrutiny to platform familiarity, economic evaluation, and Q&A segments, are accessible.
However, there are certain inconveniences. For instance, media content, such as images and videos, appears on inconsistent platforms. There is also outdated information compared to the latest trading platform releases. The instructional content isn’t aggregated in one location, making navigation quite challenging. Consequently, newcomers to investing may need to exhibit patience while finding their way around the instructional resources. Beginner-focused material, although beneficial, is disordered. Clients wishing to establish a plan and monitor its progress might struggle to discern which part of the education is finished and what needs to be tackled next.
The OANDA classroom constitutes a series of webinars that predominantly address live market analysis. Nonetheless, it also provides ample fundamental platform guidance and analysis, effectively bridging the educational voids. Therefore, the majority of the advanced material is more specific tools rather than enhancing investment capabilities.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Available for U.S customers
- Provide popular platforms
- Offer exceptional research resources
- Registered under FCA and NFA
Cons
- Charge multiple supplemental
- Lack of account security for U.S customers
- Unable to engage single-stock CFDs (Only U.S. traders)
- No assured stop-losses for customers in U.S. or U.K.
Pros Explained
- OANDA stands out among online forex brokers worldwide due to its willingness to accept U.S. customers.
- The OANDA Corporation has acquired the status of a registered FDM and RFED, certified by the CFTC, and is also an active member of the NFA. Furthermore, OANDA Europe operates under the authorization and regulation of the FCA in the United Kingdom. U.K.-based clients receive a significant safety net in the form of asset protection up to £85,000. This protection, offered via the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), is in place in case the company goes bankrupt.
- OANDA’s fxTrade trading platform offers a wide array of relevant trading tools and resources. Among them are the Dow Jones FX Select news and a variety of calculators. Moreover, the integration of TradingView, a sophisticated financial visualization platform, into OANDA’s desktop and web-based platforms greatly enhances their value.
- OANDA stands out by providing extensive economic analysis materials, real-time news updates, event calendars, and advanced data analytics not commonly found in other retail trading platforms.
Cons Explained
- OANDA doesn’t provide U.S. customers with negative balance security. As a result, U.S. traders could potentially owe money to the broker when their account becomes negative.
- There are no options for guaranteed stop-loss orders (GSLO) available for U.S. and U.K. customers.
- U.S. customers cannot trade in individual stocks, ETFs, or CFDs, with over 70 currency pairs unavailable. However, they offer the opportunity to trade cryptocurrencies directly through an affiliated company.
- Aside from regular trading fees, OANDA also imposes a monthly inactivity charge. Additional charges apply for deposits/withdrawals, bank wire transfers, and instances where multiple debit card withdrawals are executed within the same month.
Is OANDA A Worth Broker to Get?
OANDA is widely recognized by seasoned forex market traders. Its unique platform, fxTrade, provides an exceptional desktop trading experience through a web browser. This platform, enriched with superior research and analysis capabilities, is perfectly suited to traders who have a deep understanding of the retail foreign exchange market’s nuances. The broker aims to distinguish itself through exceptional trade execution and transparency, a goal that the available data suggests it has achieved.
However, OANDA’s commitment to pricing transparency, innovative platform technology, and strict adherence to global regulatory standards should instill confidence in investors. For experienced traders seeking a well-structured web browser-based platform, OANDA can be the broker they’ve been searching for.
Conclusion
In conclusion, OANDA appears to be a reputable and reliable online trading platform, especially for seasoned forex traders. Despite some cons, it offers a robust trading experience and is compliant with several global regulatory standards. However, potential users should be aware of the extra charges and varying account protection depending on their geographical location.
FAQs
OANDA is a globally recognized forex and CFD broker that provides trading services to individual traders, businesses, and large financial institutions.
OANDA offers five main accounts: Standard, Core, Swap-free, Premium, and Premium Core.
OANDA does not have a strict minimum deposit policy for opening a standard trading account, meaning traders can start trading with any amount they are comfortable with.
OANDA is suitable for both beginners and seasoned traders because they are a well-regarded forex and CFD broker known for its flexible trade sizes and competitive spreads. The company offers a wide range of services and resources that cater to traders at all experience levels.
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