Table of Contents
What you need to know about XTB Broker
XTB is one of the most modern Forex / CFD brokers you can find on the market. The review you found is very long and extensive, so we have prepared a summary of the most important information in case you do not want to read everything. If you are interested in more details, use the table of contents above.
🗺️ Regulated in: | UK, Poland, Cyprus, Spain, Belize, Dubai |
💰 Trading fees | Low |
💰 Inactivity fee | Yes |
💰 Withdrawal fee | $0 |
💰 Minimum deposit | $0 |
🕖 Time to open an account | 1 day |
💳 Deposit with credit card | Available |
👛 Depositing with e-wallets | Available |
💱 Number of base currencies supported | 5 |
🎮 Demo account | Yes 73% of retail CFD accounts lose money |
🛍️ Instruments Offered | Real stocks and ETFs (only for some European clients), CFD (forex, equity, indices, crypto, commodity) |
A few words about XTB
XTB is one of the world’s largest Forex & CFD brokers. The broker is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The trading platform offers you instant access to markets from all over the world. The broker is famous for its xStation trading platform, which has a lot of modern solutions and user-friendly design. Below is a short history of how the broker has developed from the very beginning to the present day:
2002 – Establishment of X-Trade Brokers
2004 – X-Trade Brokers becomes XTB and adjusts to the regulations on the Polish market
2005 – XTB receives a license from the Polish regulator of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority. XTB currently employs 11 people
2005 – XTB receives the award for the best broker in Europe from the Money Markets Journal.
2007 – The broker becomes a member of the Warsaw Stock Exchange and the National Clearing House
2007 – the first foreign branch is established in the Czech Republic.
2010 – branches are opened in such countries as: Hungary, Italy, France and Portugal
2013 – the revolutionary xStation 3 platform is created
2014 – the first xStation mobile application for Android is created
2016 – XTB starts cooperation with Mads Mikkelsen, who joins XTB as a brand ambassador.
2018 – XTB Africa is established, based in South Africa
At the moment, XTB is one of the largest brokers in Europe and Latin America, they have 12 offices around the world, over 400 employees, and XTB offers over 500 instruments. I must admit that it all makes a great impression.
XTB Trading Platform (xStation)
I must admit that I have always liked the xStation platform a lot. It is a very easy-to-use platform for both beginners and advanced traders. There used to be an alternative to Meta Trader 5 on offer, but unfortunately this is no longer available. If you like the xStation platform, you will surely be satisfied with the use of the broker’s services. xStation is available in the most popular web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari and even Internet Explorer.
There are downsides to having your own platform, unfortunately. XTB does not allow you to upload any non-standard indicators to the platform. You can only use tools that have been prepared by XTB developers. The list of indicators is extensive, but if someone is looking for non-standard solutions, they may be disappointed. Now let’s move on to a detailed description of the functionality on the xStation 5 platform.
On the left side is an asset selector. You can choose the instrument you want to trade here. It is possible to sort the table according to the variability from the last 24 hours or alphabetically. You have the option of adding assets to your favorites and changing the type of instrument.
Below there are two tabs that allow you to check the currently open positions or view the pending trades. At the very bottom of the platform, there is information about your current account balance. Brief explanation of all values:
Balance – it is the sum of closed transactions
Account Value – it is the sum of closed transactions + open positions are added
Margin – This is the total amount invested at the moment
Free Margin – This is the remaining amount that you can invest, taking into account the losses and profits for the currently open positions.
Profit – in the lower right corner of the screen you can see a summary of all your closed trades. You can see here whether you are profit or loss in the long run.
In the upper right corner of the screen there is a button that allows you to change the trading account. From the customer panel, you can add several real trading accounts or several demo accounts. Please note that the demo accounts are only active for 30 days, then they expire and you need to submit new ones.
Right next to it there are buttons responsible for changing the platform layout, price alerts, notifications and the current connection status with the platform. The more bars the symbol shows, the better the connection and the lower the delay. It is worth paying attention to this if you are interested in dynamic trading.
In the middle of the platform there are buttons that allow you to quickly check the currently enabled chart, read industry news, and market analysis. There is also an educational tab where you will find all the necessary information to start your adventure with trading. I really like the wide range of educational content.
The chart itself has very standard configuration options nowadays. There is a nice chart design, possibility to add drawing tools and indicators. There are about 20 indicators in the database. To add indicators, click on the f (x) symbol on the bar on the left side of the graph.
To open your first position, right-click on the chart and then select “new order”. The order configurator will appear, all functionalities of which will be described below:
Instant Execution – an order that will be opened immediately after approval
Pending Order – An order that will not be opened until the market is opened or the requested price is reached
Volume – transaction size in lots
Contract Value – the size of the transaction multiplied by the available leverage
Margin – The value of your account that will be invested
Spread – the difference between the buying and selling rates. This is, in a way, a commission for the broker
Commission – commission charged on transactions
Pip Value – the value of one pip
Daily Swap – this is the amount of commission that the platform will charge for holding the transaction overnight.
Stop Loss – this is an optional setting that allows you to specify when to close a lossy trade.
Take Profit – This is an optional setting that allows you to specify when to close a profitable trade.
Sell – Opening a sell position (earning on declines)
Buy – Opening a buy position (earning on increases)
Summarizing the trading platform of the XTB broker (xStation). I really like the design, ease of use and speed of the platform. Orders are processed very quickly and the position size calculator in the order configurator is very helpful.
The “Education” tab deserves a lot of praise, as it contains a lot of useful information, just right for beginner traders. The only drawback is the small number of indicators and the inability to upload your own tools to the platform. Unfortunately, this is the charm of brokers who use their own solutions.
Mobile App Trading
Of course, XTB has its own mobile application, which it is very proud of. On most promotional materials, we can see an ambassador holding a phone with the XTB application turned on. The truth is, the broker has a lot to brag about because it is rare for an application to be so well made and include most of the features of the full browser version. The application is available on both Android and iOS phones.
Demo Account
Every broker these days must offer easy access to a demo account. Without it, it’s hard to get a client and convince him to make a first deposit. Of course, XTB has a demo account with a virtual $ 10,000 account. Unfortunately, the demo account is time-limited and only valid for 30 days. After 30 days, the account will expire and can only be deleted. From the customer panel, you can open a new demo account and try your hand again. It cannot be denied that the broker forces you to switch from a demo to a real account as quickly as possible. This is a bit of a pain.
For my part, I would like to add that investing on a demo account is not the best solution. There are known cases where brokers manipulated the price rates so that the client made a large deposit faster. I didn’t catch XTB practicing like this, but you know that this sort of thing is happening in this industry. Therefore, in my opinion, it is best to make a small deposit and try your hand at a real account. This way you will avoid price manipulation by the broker.
To open a demo account, use the button below. You will be taken to the registration form where you will have to provide basic information about yourself and verify your investing knowledge. This is standard procedure for every broker in Europe that has been imposed by ESMA.
Education
I really like the educational offer of the XTB broker. Depending on the country you live in, the content of the tab will be slightly different. In Poland, you will find tabs with courses prepared by well-known experts in the industry and a package of 20 recordings from the XTB Investing Masterclass series. The total number of hours of classes is over 170! It is a lot and it is definitely something to watch. I don’t know of any broker that can compete with XTB in terms of the amount of content. Every beginner will be delighted!
Commissions & Fees
The fees and commissions charged by the XTB broker are low compared to other brokers. There are of course cheaper alternatives, but usually they have less regulation or no negative balance protection. For the standard account, the minimum spreads are 0.5, and for the Pro account only 0.1. However, for the Pro account, a commission is charged for opening a position of $3.5 per lot. One lot is 100,000 units of the base currency.
According to XTB, the average spread on EURUSD is 0.43 for Pro accounts and 1.02 for standard accounts. In the case of Pro accounts, the commission for opening a position that I mentioned earlier is not included here. With commission added, the average spread is 0.78 for Pro accounts. This is one of the best results in the industry.
Please note that XTB charges a commission for account maintenance if you are not active for 365 days or no deposit is made within 90 days. The fee is $ 10. The broker also imposes fees for withdrawals below the values set by XTB. There are no fees for depositing or withdrawing using your bank account or closing your account.
XTB does not have a minimum deposit amount, but considering that in most of the countries where XTB operates, the maximum leverage is 1:30, our suggested deposit is $400-500. This is the amount that is enough at the very beginning to open dozens of positions without over-reimbursement.
Regulations & Security
XTB places great emphasis on customer safety and solid regulation. The broker has many licenses all over the world and has negative balance protection. This means that you cannot lose more money than you have deposited into the broker’s account. For comparison – if you open an account with a regulated broker in Australia, where there is no negative balance protection, there is a possibility that you will lose more money than you have deposited and will have to settle the account. At the moment, XTB does not have a two-step verification, but according to the information I obtained in the Support, it is in progress. Below is the full list of regulations that the XTB broker has:
- XTB U.K. is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under license number 522157.
- XTB Europe is regulated by CySEC under license number 169/12 as of 2018.
- XTB International is regulated by the Belize International Financial Services Commission under license number IFSC/60/413/TS/19.
- X-Trade Brokers DM SA is authorized by the Polish Securities and Exchange Commission under license number DDM-M-4021-57-1/2005 and supervised by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego).
- XTB Spain is regulated by the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores under license number 40.
- XTB South Africa is awaiting license approval as of this review.
Is XTB a scam? Trader’s Opinons
No, XTB is definitely a scam. The broker has licenses all over the world, is on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and has been on the forex & CFD market since 2002. It is one of the most reliable brokers you can find on the market.
It is worth remembering that XTB, like all other brokers in Europe, is a Market Maker. This means that by investing with this broker you are not placing real orders on a real exchange. You invest inside the platform and your profit is the broker’s loss. If you lose money, the broker will earn on your loss. In this case, the broker is not just an intermediary, but your opponent. The broker doesn’t want you to earn money.
Of course, this does not mean that the broker is manipulating the charts. It can’t do this because it’s heavily regulated, but it’s worth keeping in the back of your mind that the broker is not going to be your friend.Below are some of the opinions found by our experts. We have tried to select the most credible reviews that were posted on independent review sites.
I am very pleased with the platform and the ETF selection. The commissions and the spreads are also good for long term investments. I am going to change my review to 5* as soon there is the possibility to buy fractions
Bogdan Luca
It´s an excellent company. your platform is very easy to use. Your fees es very cheper. What else can I tell you? Every day you receive an email with the operations carried out as well as advice on how to invest.
Rafael Guillermo Diaz Gongora
Good , helpful customer service , great information and great hints for possible trade positions.. The desktop app is great and useful , full of news and an economic calendar.. So far it is very good for me 🙂
David Zsebi
Had a phone call with Renato from xtb today and the information given was more than I expected. Totally professional and very helpful. I did not expect xtb to reach out and help so early on the my process of finding out how to platform works. I deducted a star as I am still new to this platform and need to try it out more before I give it my full 5 stars.
Alison Scerri
On Trustpilot, the average rating of the XTB broker is 3.8. Many comments, both positive and negative, appear to be false. Often times, people issuing one star describe features that are not on the platform or suggest that the account manager suggested investing in an asset that ultimately resulted in a loss. This is clearly not true because XTB consultants do not contact clients for investment advice.
Summary on XTB
In my opinion, it is a very good broker for beginner traders. An easy-to-use platform, a lot of assets, negative balance protection and quick contact with support is the perfect proposition for most beginners. I do not like the limitations in adding indicators on the xStation 5 platform and the lack of an alternative in the form of Meta Trader 5. The commissions and fees are very good, but you know it could always be cheaper. If you are looking for a broker for beginners, it will be hard for you to find another alternative. If you want to open a free demo account, use the button below.
Video Review
The Review
XTB
I think it's one of the best platforms for beginner traders. If this broker is available in your country, try your hand at a demo account by opening an account using one of the green buttons on our website.
PROS
- Easy to use platform
- Lots of regulations
- Negative Balance Protection
- Free $10,000 demo account
CONS
- It is not possible to add your own indicators
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-Hvala na ovakvom opisu
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