Finexo Review

I had heard some really good things about Saxo Bank and had been looking at opening an account when i came across Finexo. Finexo is a white-label partner of Saxo, and as such I didn't really expect to get anything from them that I couldn't already get at Saxo. To my surprise though, I found that Finexo offers up tighter spreads on EUR/USD (because they give up a bit of their commission, as I found out later). They offer a few other advantages over Saxo, most of which translate into better trading conditions for many retail traders. For those of you who have traded Saxo, you know that there is a learning curve to the platform. It is powerful, but difficult - with great power come great headaches. Finexo gives you a much easier-to-use platform, and it's browser based so even you Mac guys out there can play. The downside is that it doesn't offer all the reliability of SaxoTrader.

Along with all that they also accept more payment methods for those of you who use PayPal instead of a private bank in the Cayman Islands. I found the trading conditions to be quite good since they tap Saxo's liquidity. Overall, it feels like a small brokerage but with the backing of a large institution when it comes to liquidity and financial stability.

NOTE: Although I had some doubts in my mind about their connection to the British Virgin Islands, the fact that they are backed by a well-known broker alleviated most of my concerns. My hunch was correct, and all my deposits and withdrawals went without a hitch.

PROS:
Wide variety of deposit/withdrawal methods;
Decent spreads;
Scalping is allowed;
Easy to use platform;
Mac-compatible platform;
Deep liquidity (Goldman Sachs, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, Deutsche Bank, Marex Financial);
and UBS.;
Orders are processed through an automated dealing desk according to the "Best Execution Policy";
Server-side trailing stops;
OCO and if/then orders available;

CONS:
Platform reliability is questionable;
No automated trading;
Registered in the British Virgin Islands - a bit shady;
No Islamic swap-free accounts;
No oil, gold, or exotic currencies;

Quick Facts:
Finexo is a white-label partner for Saxo Bank;
Registered in British Virgin Islands and Germany;
Regulated by BaFin (Germany) with ID 108861;
In business since 2003;

For more detailed information, you can visit this Finexo Review, or visit their website here.

Oanda Review

As one of the most respected retail forex brokers out there, Oanda is certainly worth a look for most serious traders. While trading short-term with Oanda, I found that the execution was excellent during all market conditions. Having said that, however, Oanda does seem to "massage" their spreads into getting wider than most during news times. I am not particularly fond of news trading however, so this is not a big deal for me. I would not recommend Oanda to any news traders out there though. Short-term trading is also hindered by the fact that many intraday moves tend to be technical in nature, and technical analysis is made difficult by Oanda's poor charting capabilities. An external charting package is highly recommended.

Swing trading is what this broker was made for. By paying hourly swap instead of daily, and by giving smaller account holders the flexibility of trading single units, there is really not much more a swing trader could ask for. I would still recommend some external charts, but most professional traders would opt for that anyway, no matter who their broker is.

The platform itself has its ups and downs, with reliability being the main complaint. It can crash at times and become disconnected from the server more often than some more robust platforms. On the upside, it runs in your browser so it is completely Mac-compatible. Very detailed reporting is also available. Traders can easily calculate their exposure to each currency in their portfolio, for example.

PROS:
Single unit trade sizes allow for flexible position sizing and precise money management;
Browser-based platform works on any operating system;
Low spreads during normal market conditions;
Pays interest on account balance;
Server-side trailing stops;
Hourly swap payout;
Well capitalized;
NFA regulated;

CONS:
Poor charting;
Not many pairs to trade;
Very wide spreads at news times;
Questionable platform stability;

Quick Facts:
Headquarters in Toronto, Canada;
NFA member since 2003 (ID 0325821);
Over $170 million in capital as reported to the CFTC;
Target spread on EUR/USD 0.9 pips (0.00009);
Server-side trailing stops allow for them to be honored even when platform is closed;
50:1 maximum leverage (in most cases, this is not a bad thing);

For more information, please visit this full Oanda review.