GCMASia Review – Is gcmasia.com scam or safe forex broker?

GCMASia IS AN OFFSHORE BROKER. YOUR MONEY IS NOT SAFE.

Trading accounts

GCMAsia offers one type of live trading account with relatively average conditions, plus a free demo account with free $100 000.

There is also the option to open a VIP account by depositing $100 000. It comes with benefits like professional trading courses, risk analysis and investment advice from the brokers experts.

Besides forex and CFDs, GCMAsia offers trading in gold, oil, commodities and stock indices.

The company. Security of funds

GCMAsia operates as a “marketing affiliate” of Fortrade Ltd – a UK forex broker regulated by the country‘s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). As per Fortrade’s affiliate program site, it offers CPA fees or flexible payment plans, commissions, marketing support, etc.

According to its site, the brand GCMAsia is owned and operated both by GCMAsia and Fortrade. The broker is mostly aimed at clients in the Asia Pacific region and is based in Hong Kong. Our check, however, revealed that it does not have a license with Hong Kong‘s Securities and Exchange Commission. This means the broker cannot offer its services in Hong Kong and it explicitly says it doesn’t.

On its website GCMAsia says that as per the FCA requirements, it keeps the client funds in segregated bank accounts. Furthermore, eligible claimants claimants are entitled to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) to seek compensation.

Those claims suggest that GCMAsia is a stable and relatively safe broker, despite the lack of own regulation and license, but we could not verify them.

Trading Platforms

Unlike Fortrade, which offers its proprietary trading platform Fortrader and nothing else, GCMAsia makes a safe bet and offers the eternally popular MetaTrader 4 (MT4). There is also the Sirix Webtrader

One of the main reasons for the popularity of MT4 is that it is stable and reliable, has many functions, offers API connectivity, supports PAMM and MAMM functionality and has a wide selection of technical analysis and charting tools. It is also user-friendly and supports Expert Advisors and automated trading.

On the other hand, Sirix Webtrader does not require installation and offers roughly the same funciotnalities as the MetaTraders. It also has a social trading option.

Methods of payment

GCMAsia accepts client deposits through credit/debit cards, bank transfer and the electronic payment systems Neteller and Skrill. The funding options of the broker are the same as that of its partner Fortrade.

Conclusion

GCMAsia does not have its own license and is not regulated as an entity, but claims to offer the same protection as the license of its partner, the UK broker Fortrade. This definitely does not mean that GCMAsia can offer its services in Europe under the MiFID passporting rules, but it does not seem to seek clients from Europe anyway. Judging by the language options on the site, its main targets are China, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Nevertheless, the potential clients of GCMAsia could benefit from the safety provided by the FCA license, as its requirements impose strict rules on client money segregation, membership in compensation schemes, capital requirements, etc.

GCMAsia offers relatively average trading conditions, even though the max leverage of 1:200 is relatively low.