PROS:
✅ Multiple account types
CONS:
❌ Short broker lifespan
❌ Absence of regulation
❌ Lack of trading terminals
LQDFX Review
LQDFX is a broker offering Forex and CFD for trading and according to their website, it was launched in 2015. It should be noted that their headquarter is located in the Marshall Islands. It means that no governmental authority regulates them. The company claims itself as an Electronic Communications Network (ECN) / Straight Through Processing (STP) brokerage but it is very discussable for brokers that are registered in an offshore.
Regulation
The company registration number on the Marshall Islands is MH96960. While the financial services provided by LQD Limited. We are reminding our customers that opening an account with a non-regulated broker is highly risky. It means that the clients’ funds and own funds of the offshore company are not split, so there is a potential financial breach in terms of a broker using clients’ money.
In our brokers’ reviews, we have made a lot of reviews of brokers with trustable regulations, and some of them sometimes even compensation funds if a broker collapses. Among these regulations, there are the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). They definitely add a security layer when it comes to brokerage services.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| Foundation year | 2015 |
| Publicly Traded on Exchange | ❌ |
| Licenses | ❌ |
Instruments
The broker offers various asset types such as Forex pairs, indices, metals, and energies. Though their overall number is not large and so far equals 90.
Among the forex pairs, there are majors, minors, and exotic pairs and it is the largest class of instruments with 71 symbols. There are also 12 most popular indices like Dow Jones, DAX30, CAC40, EuroStoxx, S&P500, and others provided though for all of them the swaps are negative so investing in them using CFD is hardly possible.
Regarding the other commodities like Oil, Copper, and Natural Gas, there are very few of them. Shares that are known to the investors as the most popular asset class are not provided either. There are also no cryptocurrencies available though this asset class has gained big popularity recently and is interesting even for big hedge funds and banks that are allocating their capitals for crypto as well.
Eventually, it will be very hard to create a diversified portfolio or to try some trading strategy on various assets. Especially in comparison to the other brokers from our reviews some of which have thousands of instruments.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| Major forex pairs | ✅ |
| Minor forex pairs | ✅ |
| Exotic forex pairs | ✅ |
| Cryptocurrencies | ❌ |
| CFD | |
| Metals | ✅ |
| Energies | ✅ |
| Agricultural | ✅ |
| Shares | |
| UK shares | ❌ |
| US shares | ❌ |
| German shares | ❌ |
| French shares | ❌ |
Trading platforms
LQDFX has decided to provide its customers with only one trading platform-MetaTrader4. Considering the platform diversity of other brokers (including MetaTrader 5, cTrader, or some proprietary platforms), the number of terminals in LQDFX is very small.
Although MetaTrader 4 is the most popular trading platform at the same time, it certainly has some major advantages. There are many third-party indicators, robots, and scripts that can provide trading advantages. They can be downloaded from the MetaTrader provider’s MQL5.com website (MetaQuotes) or directly from the “Market” tab of the terminal itself.
MetaTrader 4 has a history of more than 10 years, and is quite stable, with good performance and an easy-to-use simple interface. There are many teaching materials and other guides for quick explanations for customers who have never used it.
LQDFX provides its customers with mobile versions available of MT4 on Android and iOS operating systems. They are not much different between brokers offering this platform, which is why the functions are the same. Users can send orders, monitor balances and open positions, view charts, and get messages from desktop terminals.
LQDFX also provides WebTerminal from MetaQuotes. It is not as rich as the desktop version, but it has the same functionality as the mobile version and can also be used for trading without any major limitations. The terminal can be accessed from a browser, so users can use it on macOS and Windows platforms without installing any software on the PC.
While the cessation of updates for MetaTrader 4 and focus on MetaTrader 5 were announced several years ago by MetaQuotes, it is obviously a safer option to find brokers among our reviews of other brokers who have a range of terminals available and use the platform that is constantly being modified.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| MetaTrader 4 | ✅ |
| MetaTrader 5 | ❌ |
| MetaTrader 4 iOS/Android | ✅ |
| Proprietary Mobile Application | ❌ |
| MetaTrader 4 Web Terminal | ✅ |
| cTrader | ❌ |
Account types and conditions
In LQDFX there are offered 5 account types that differ from each other by leverage, maximum lots, spreads, and minimum required deposits. All the accounts have Market Execution type and do not have requotes. The presence of maximum lots whose value is also not that high is evidence that the company is not an STP broker and might act as traders’ counter-party. True STP brokers have very lot limitations that are ten times larger or even do not have limits at all.
The first account type is Micro with leverage equal to 1:500, its maximum trade size is equal to 5 and the minimum deposit is equal to 20$. The Gold account’s leverage is lower and is limited at 1:300, while the max lots are higher and equal to 40. The ECN account has the same settings as the Gold one but the difference is in spreads and presence of commissions. VIP account is for the clients that can afford to deposit at least $25,000 as stated in the comparison table of the broker. There is no limitation of the max trade size and the leverage is equal to 1:100.
There also exists an Islamic account type. An Islamic foreign exchange account is a halal trading account provided to customers who respect the Quran and want to invest in the Islamic stock market in accordance with Islamic financial principles. Islamic trade accounts are also called swap-free accounts, which are different from conventional foreign exchange accounts in and on which it is impossible to earn money on swaps.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| Demo account | ✅ |
| Micro account | ✅ |
| ECN account | ✅ |
| VIP account | ✅ |
| VIP account | ✅ |
Commissions and spreads
The account types could be divided into two groups: the ones that have both commissions and spreads, and the others where commissions are nominally zero though they are included in spreads.
Micro, Gold, and Islamic accounts are commission-free while the spreads on Micro accounts start from 1.0, Gold and Islamic accounts have spreads starting from 0.7. ECN accounts have commissions starting from 3.50 USD/EUR per 100,000 contract size, while VIP accounts have 2.50 USD/EUR per 100,000. On both accounts, the spreads start from 0.1.
In comparison to other brokers, the trading conditions of LQDFX are fairly competitive and could be considered as average.
Deposits and Withdrawals
Among the payment methods available at LQDFX there are multiple ones that give alternative options of funding. Bank transfer is the one that is usually used for large amounts of money, the minimum deposit is equal to 250 EUR/USD and the transfer usually takes 2-7 days to be credited to the inner wallet of the broker.
Credit/Debit cards of Visa/MasterCard systems are also in the list of methods. There are no fees charged for this payment type while the minimum deposit amount is 20 USD and the maximum is 2,000 USD per transaction and 15,000 USD per card.
There are also various payment systems like Skrill, Neteller, FasaPay, and vLoad that are instant and do not have additional deposit charges from LQDFX.
Cryptocurrencies are as well presented in the funding methods being a popular way of funding for forex trading accounts. The speed of transaction from the client’s wallet to the broker’s account depends on the blockchain and chosen blockchain fee as well.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| Bank wire | ✅ |
| Debit/Credit cards | ✅ |
| Skrill | ✅ |
| Neteller | ✅ |
| Paypal | ❌ |
| WebMoney | ❌ |
| Cryptocurrencies | ✅ |
Customer Support
There are available 3 support methods for end-users:
- Live chat
- Phone
They are pretty common for the majority of the brokers and are useful in terms of getting help. The Live Chat works 24/5 and the managers there can answer some basic questions.
The phone support is available in English and only during business hours. It is also pretty quick in terms of receiving help if some questions rise up.
The email is a conventional method and the response time is average because it may take up to several days to get it.
| Feature | Condition |
|---|---|
| Live Chat | ✅ |
| ✅ | |
| Phone | ✅ |
LQDFX Review. Key points
Finally, LQDFX is a below-average broker and the main reason for it is the absence of the license. In our brokers’ reviews we have plenty of companies that have licenses received from FCA, CySEC, ASIC, and other regulators being very trustable.
The number of instruments is pretty low in comparison to others having hundreds or even thousands of them. There are also several asset classes that have not been provided to traders by the broker.
There is also only one trading terminal available in LQDFX. Though MetaTrader 4 is still popular, there exist a lot of other terminals that many brokers provide.
Funding methods number is on a good level though still some payment systems are not supplied. Customer support is acceptable and helpful so on this part, there are no negative aspects.