HotForex Broker Review (HFM)

In this HotForex Broker Review, we give you an in-depth, unbiased overview of the trading conditions, safety, accounts and platforms, and instruments offered by them and give an honest opinion of trading with them.

HotForex (HFM/HF Markets) is a regulated Forex broker that was founded in 2010 and provides a variety of trading instruments in global markets to almost 200 countries. Account types are flexible and compatible with MetaTrader, offering advanced tools and features, and competitive pricing.

HotForex is a Forex and commodities broker in South Africa offering both institutional and retail investors the ability to trade Forex and Derivatives online.

HotForex offers market-maker execution over a variety of account types that vary in commissions, spreads and margin rates.

Founded in 2010, HotForex operates under the HF Markets Group of companies that have regulatory status in South Africa, Europe, Seychelles, Mauritius, and St. Vincent and The Grenadines.

HotForex is a safe broker (average-risk) for Forex and CFDs trading.

 

 

HotForex is one of the best MetaTrader 4 brokers and social copy trading brokers.

 

Overview of HotForex

Time to open an account	Immediate
Bonus	Yes
Publicly traded – listed on the stock exchange	No
Country of regulation	South Africa, Europe, Seychelles, Mauritius, St. Vincent, the Grenadines, Dubai, UK,
Trust score	83
Platforms	MetaTrader 4, Metatrader 5
Mobile App	iPhone, iPad, Android
Copy Trading	Yes
Islamic account	Yes
Demo account	Yes
Base currencies	USD, EUR, ZAR
Ave spread EUR/USD	From 0.1
Leverage	Up to 1:1000
Trading fees (low, average, high)	Low
Minimum deposit	$50
Withdrawal fee	No
Currency pairs	49
Cryptocurrency trading	Yes as CFD
Deposit with electronic wallet	Yes

 

So, what are the pros and cons of trading with HotForex?

 

HotForex Pros and Cons 

✔️Pros	❌Cons
Allows EAs, scalping and hedging	Not the lowest pricing
Segregated accounts for clients	Not available in the US
Fast response from the service team	Withdrawals can take longer than 48 hours
Negative balance protection	Only use MetaTrader platform
Premium trader tools
Pricing better than the industry standard
Excellent range of markets

 

Regulations

The safety of a Forex broker can be established by the regulated authorities that a broker like HotForex is beholden to.

 

Having a regulatory authority in your country of trade is important if there are ever problems or irregularities, you can seek help from the relevant authority.

• HotForex Markets (SV) Ltd is registered in St. Vincent & the Grenadine as an International Business Company with the registration number 22747 IBC 2015.
• HotForex Markets (Europe) Ltd – authorized by CySEC (Cyprus) registration no. 183/12
• HotForex Markets (UK) Limited – authorized by FCA (UK) registration no. 801701
• HotForex Markets (DIFC) Ltd – authorized (Dubai) registration no. F004885
• HotForex Markets (SV) Ltd – authorized by FSA SVG registration no. 22747 IBC 2015
• HotForex Markets (SV) Ltd – authorized by FSC (Mauritius) registration no. C110008214
• HotForex Markets SA (PTY) Ltd – authorized by FSCA (South Africa) registration no. 46632
• HotForex Markets (Seychelles) Ltd – authorized by FSA (Seychelles) registration no. SD015
• HotForex Markets (UK) Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under firm reference number 801701.
• HotForex Markets (DIFC) Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) under license number F004885.
• HotForex Markets SA (PTY) Ltd is authorized and regulated as a Financial Service Provider (FSP) from the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa, under the license number 46632.
• HotForex Markets (Seychelles) Ltd is incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Seychelles with registration number 8419176-1, regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA) under Securities Dealer License number SD015.

 

What we really respect about HotForex is the broker’s attitude to reassure its clients of its safety and its risk management measures.

This includes only using the major banks, top insurance up to €5,000,000, negative balance protection and segregated bank accounts for its clients.

 

Leverage

Leverage is in essence “borrowing from the broker” to make larger trades in the market. There are pros and cons to both high and low leverage, with consensus being the lower the better for a beginner Forex trader.

While high leverage has the potential to result in big profits, it can also result in big losses.

What is great about HotForex is you can choose to fix your leverage or use floating leverage, particularly if you are trading smaller size lots.

South African residents can get leverage up to 1:200.

ESMA regulation, states that leverage is capped at 1:30 for Forex instruments and 1:25 for Spot Metals.

 

HotForex Account Types

HotForex offers a variety of account types to suit the requirements of different Forex traders such as accounts for scalpers, EA traders and automated copy trading.

 

Here are the most popular accounts:

HotForex Micro Account:

• This account is great for small volume traders and beginners.
• The Micro account is good for beginner traders and those that trade in smaller volumes.
• This account has a lower initial deposit of $5, spreads from 1 pip, simultaneous open orders up to 160 and zero commission.
• The leverage on the Micro account is high 1:1000, compared to other accounts although we do not recommend going higher than 1:50 if you are a newbie.

 

HotForex Premium Account:

• This account is ideal for experienced retail traders.
• On the Premium account the average spreads are 1.2 pips with margin

 

HotForex Zero Spread Account:

• On this account typical spreads are 0.3 pips on the EUR/USD and incur a commission of about 0.6 pips per trade, so your all-in cost is 0.9 pips.
• While the costs are lower than other accounts, the margin requirements are higher than a Premium account.

 

HotForex Auto Account:

• The auto account allows social copy trading for beginner traders access to free and paid trading signals from the MQL5 trading community, allowing you to copy the signals of any Signal Provider.
• With spreads from 1 pip, a maximum leverage of 1:500, and a $200 minimum deposit the auto account is definitely worth looking at.

 

Market Instruments

HotForex offers seventeen trading tools and over 150 trading products; the company also offers Cryptocurrencies traded as CFD including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple and more.

Product	HotForex
Currency pairs in total	49
CFDs offered	104
Financial Instruments	Forex, indices, metals, energies, shares, commodities, bonds
Cryptocurrencies	Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ripple, Ethereum and others

 

Fee Structure

Different fee structures are transparently set out for different account types depending on the country you are trading from, spreads and margins.

They do not charge commissions or have any hidden fees, so you get total transparency going into your trades.

HotForex ’s broker fees are competitive with very attractive spreads and the company’s only charge to you is in the spread, which is the difference between the bid and ask price.

 

 

HotForex does have two other charges to consider and that is a rollover charge to hold your trade open to the next day and a no activity fee after six months of no trading.

 

Deposits and Withdrawals

HotForex has a variety of methods for you to fund your trading account:

• Major credit and debit cards
• e-wallets, including cryptocurrency
• Wire transfers and domestic transfers available (depending on region)
• HotForex MasterCard

 

The minimum deposit depends on which payment method you use, and withdrawals do not incur any fees. Note that wire transfers may incur some fees.

 

Trading Platforms

HotForex is a MetaTrader only broker, offering MetaTrader4 and MetaTrader 5 as its trading platform.

The popular MetaTrader platform is served over web, desktop and mobile devices through the HotForex Mobile app to provide excellent trading experiences.

If you are a beginner you will be assured of using an award-winning platform, and if you are an experienced trader already using the MetaTrader platform you will 100% at home with HotForex.

 

How to open a HotForex Account

How to Set up your demo account:

1. Go to the client area, Click My HF
2. Insert your username and password that was emailed to you on signup
3. At the top of the navigation Click on My accounts
4. Click on Open Demo Account
5. Choose your trading platform
6. Log in to your platform of choice with the MT4 Login and Account Password
7. Voila, you are in!

 

Customer Support

We were impressed with HotForex’s customer service response to an email query we left asking for help with the signup.

It turned out to be a simple user error on our side, but they get a thumbs up for making a fast and personal telephonic follow-up in South Africa. The person we spoke to was South African which is a big bonus in our books.

It is important to trade with a broker who will give you fast, effective support, especially if you are just starting out in Forex trading.

HotForex provides support in 27 languages and they can be reached via email, live chat or on the telephone.

 

Educational Resources

Forex education is one of the most important steps when deciding to become a Forex trader, HotForex has a wealth of information available once you have signed up.

You will have access to HotForex’s exclusive analysis, live webinars, tutorials, news and market outlooks, all intended to make your trading experience an informed and profitable one.

Their copy trading platform called HF Copy also features automated trading, and the ability to copy the trades of some of the most successful professional Forex traders.

 

Research Tools

Having access to research and the analytical tools that come along with it is critical in Forex trading.

You must become familiar with technical analysis tools; charts need to become your new best bud, and you need to arm yourself with all the best trading strategies.

With HotForex you will get an excellent range of analytical and research tools.

HotForex has some really great Premium tools as well as a Virtual Private Server (VPS) which is free when you deposit $5000 or more.

 

Accolades

HotForex has accumulated more than 30 awards over the years, including:

• Top 100 Companies – World Finance Magazine
• Best Client Funds Security Global – Global Brands Magazine
• Best Global Forex Copy Trading Platform – Global Forex Awards 2019
• Best Forex Customer Service Provider Latin America – Global Banking & Finance Review Awards
• Beyond Success Award – World Confederation of Business
• Best Partners Program Middle East – Egypt Investment Expo 2019
• Fastest Growing Forex Broker Mena 2019 – International Business Magazine
• Best Forex Broker Asia 2019 – International Business Magazine
• Best Forex & Commodities Broker – Latin America – International Finance Awards 2019
• Best Forex Affiliate Program 2019 – International Finance Awards 2019
• Best Forex Mobile Application – Forex Awards
• Most Reliable Online Trading Platform 2019 – International Business Magazine

 

Conclusion

When it comes to trust and credibility HotForex shines. Making the list of top 100 companies in World Finance Magazine deserves a five-star rating in our book.

But a broker is more than its awards and we are glad to say that HotForex also shines on this front; it is well regulated, provides excellent service and some of the best trading conditions in the market.

 

 

HotForex’s pricing is also very competitive and their risk management practices make them one of the best choices in South Africa, Africa and the other regions where they operate.

We hope that this HotForex Broker Review helps you find a broker that aligns with your trading goals.

Good luck with your trading!

 

Disclaimer

Remember, 75% of retail investors lose money when trading CFDs and there is a high risk of losing your capital in the forex markets.

The information on this website is in no way intended to be used as financial advice and opening an account with any broker is done at your own discretion and risk.