CM Trading Review

Home » Reviews » CM Trading Review

CM Trading are a South African online broker providing you with access to trade a wide range of Forex and CFD instruments on powerful and user-friendly trading platforms. You can get quick and easy market access from your desktop, web browser and mobile devices. I found the broker to have very competitive trading conditions such as low spreads and cheap fees. If you are a beginner and new to trading online, you will find a good selection of useful educational materials. You can also open a free demo account to practice trading and build confidence. I like that they provide regular market analysis to inspire trade ideas and assist you with your daily trading activities. There are also a variety of account types for all your trading strategies and convenient funding options including digital wallets. If you don’t have the time or knowledge to trade by yourself, you could consider the CopyKat and Sirix social platforms available. However, the minimum deposit requirement of $250 is not the lowest I have come across and leverage is capped at 1:200.

Summary

CM Trading is an established broker that provides online trading services to clients around the globe with financial instruments across multiple markets including Forex, Commodities, Cryptocurrency, Stocks, Shares, Indices, Metals, Energies & CFDs. Whatever your interests, there is something for everyone to trade.

I like that they have a selection of industry leading trading platforms, including MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and Sirix. This makes sure you can access the markets and conduct your day to day trading activities with minimal fuss. There is a large range of quality trading tools for assisting with your market analysis and trade management. They cater to traders of all backgrounds with free educational material and global support available 24 hours day. I really appreciate that the same high standard of service and support is given to everyone, regardless of your investment size.

Using the latest technologies, they strive to make trading as simple and enjoyable as possible whilst continually innovating and improving their services to help you reach your financial goals. From my experience, I feel that they go above and beyond to ensure that this happens.

Our #1 Broker 2023

AvaTrade is an award-winning and multi-regulated broker offering a great selection of trading instruments including Forex, Cryptos, Stocks and Commodities. You can trade on all of your devices via user-friendly platforms with excellent trading conditions and no commission fees.

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

TradeTrade

Regulation

Integrity and honesty are core values according to the broker, operating in a transparent manner with client safety and security being of paramount importance. I can trade in confidence knowing that they are regulated and therefore should operate in an honest manner.

CM Trading is the Brand name of Global Capital Markets Trading and BLACKSTONE Marketing SA(PTY)LTD (GCMT SA). CM Trading are regulated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and Financial Services Board (FSB) in South Africa. The FSCA is an independent institution that monitors financial services in South Africa to ensure consumer protection and market conduct.

Funds

In addition to these regulations, they hold client funds in segregated accounts to ensure they are not used for any other purpose, only for clients trading. Funds must be accessible at all times for clients to withdraw as and when they wish. They also incorporate SSL security systems to add further levels of protection.

Countries

Whilst they welcome clients from all over the world, there are some exclusions due to regulations including USA, some EU countries, Hong Kong, Israel and some third-world countries. If your country is on the list of those they cannot accept traders from, please feel free to have a look at our broker reviews for alternative options.

Platforms

The broker has a solid choice of powerful trading platforms suitable for different levels and needs of traders. The popular MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform is available for desktop (Windows / Mac), web and mobile (iPhone / iPad / Android / Tablet). They also have their very own CopyKat platform for signal copying and the Sirix WebTrader social trading platform.

CM Trading Platforms

MetaTrader 4

MetaTrader 4 (MT4) is one of the most popular platforms when it comes to forex and CFD trading. MT4 was released in 2005 and developed by MetaQuotes Software Corp, a trading software company who license the platform to over 500 banks and brokers worldwide. It allows retail traders like us to get convenient access to trade on real-time prices across a range of different financial instruments and markets.

The MT4 platform is widely known for its user-friendly interface, ease of use, quick learning curve and numerous built-in features including one click execution, multiple order types, real-time quotes, technical indicators, news and other tools. The CM Trading MT4 platform is free to use, including enhanced features and support.

I feel that MT4 is suitable for all levels of traders, it has basic functions for beginners and advanced technical analysis charting for the more experienced traders. It is fully customisable with the capability of using the vast range of built-in technical indicators for analysing charts on multiple timeframes to assist with trading decisions.

You can create your own custom indicators and automated trading systems (Expert Advisors) using the MQL4 programming language within MetaEditor. There is also a large online MQL4 community for accessing more trading tools to use within the platform.

I am an avid user of MT4, primarily due to its automated trading capabilities. I have used it for many years to develop, test and run expert advisors on many brokers. It is still my favourite platform for manual and automated trading. I have never felt the need to change, especially considering it is available through most trading brokers.

If you wish to trade on the go, the MT4 mobile platform is available for download on both Android and iOS. Using the mobile platform enables you to access and manage your account from anywhere in the world with an internet connection. I often find myself checking the trading app to see how my trades are doing and what is happening in the markets.

MetaTrader 4 (MT4) Platform

Sirix WebTrader

Sirix WebTrader is the online version of the popular Sirix platform. It was developed by Leverate and is an all in one social trading platform available in 18 languages. You can easily execute trades from your web browser without needing to install any software. I like that it runs in the browser as this means it can be accessed from any device and is always up to date.

The WebTrader supports pre-configuration for frequent trading functions such as lot size and order types, thus making trading more efficient. There are multiple built in indicators and charting options to choose from to help with market analysis. I really like how the integrated news feed and economic calendar enables you to keep up to date with the latest market news. This saves me from needing to checking an external economic calendar.

Sirix Webtrader

The social trading integration enables you to follow other traders in an active online community to increase your knowledge and copy other traders (CopyKat Trading). Just make sure that you are aware of the risks involved when copying other traders. I personally prefer to conduct my own market analysis before making a trade decision.

Sirix Social Trading App

Other notable features include 24/7 user updates, backup options, encrypted services, multiple account management, forecasts, real-time trading tips and much more. WebTrader is available for Windows, Mac, Android and iOS.

CopyKat Trading

CopyKat Trading is accessed via the Sirix Webtrader platform and allows you to easily watch, study and copy strategies used by other traders. You can quickly search and filter strategies based on performance. If you want to copy trades from a particular strategy, you can at the click of a button and every time they trade, the same trades will automatically be placed on your account. It should be strongly noted that past performance is by no means any guarantee of future performance. You may add or remove from signals that you are copying at any time. I found there to be some decent looking strategies but I would probably only copy them onto a demo account to see how they perform moving forward.

Tools

I like how the broker has a good choice of trading tools that can be used to improve trading efficiency and generate trade ideas. I think this is another area in which they really excel and standout from some of their competitors. It emphasises the fact that they care about traders and them making informed decisions based on good education and detailed analysis. Of course, if you are already experienced, then you are free to trade as you please. It is just nice to see traders given so much choice.

Education & Tools

Smart Communication System

The Smart Communication System is offered to clients free of charge and aims to help you get the best out of your trading by keeping you up to date with direct messages regarding signals, analysis and automated feedback on your trading activity.

Flexi Signals

The flexi signals area of the brokers website shares regularly updated chart analysis that can give ideas for potential trade opportunities. I found some interesting analysis that made me more aware of price action and possible market movement.

Daily Market Analysis

CM Trading provide a free daily market review video that covers a range of different markets and gives highlights of the day with detailed technical chart analysis. You can subscribe to their YouTube channel to keep up to date with the latest videos or get them directly from the website. If you want some more market analysis, Rockfort Markets are worth a look.

Economic Calendar

The economic calendar displays the latest financial news events that can affect the markets. Each news release has a date/time, rating in terms of the anticipated impact and forecasted/actual/previous results. This calendar can be very useful for conducting fundamental analysis to find potential trading opportunities or which markets to avoid. I am often checking the calendar to see what is happen across the markets which can help me make informed decisions.

Education

The broker has a wide variety of free training videos, technical analysis tutorials, webinars and eBooks. The educational material is vast and suitable for traders of all experience levels with topics covered from the very basic to more advanced subjects. They are certainly one of my top brokers when it comes to education, I would put them up there with FXTM in this aspect.

eBooks

You can browse through a plentiful range of insightful eBooks. I had a look through and believe that the materials will help beginners to understand some of the key trading concepts whilst those of you who already have some experience can further increased your trading knowledge and skills. Amongst the wide variety of topics covered include an introduction to the financial markets, strategies, psychology, money management and technical analysis.

Trading eBooks

Training Videos

In addition to eBooks, the broker also provides a good selection of detailed training videos that come in 2 separate sections, beginner courses and in-depth courses. There is plenty of trading knowledge to gain from these well explained videos. Subjects include trading platforms, trading tools and social trading.

Training Video Tutorials

Webinars

Although infrequent, the broker does conduct some free webinars from time to time that you can register for. The webinars include interesting discussions with other traders that I feel can help to further improve your trading knowledge. Past webinars are also available on the website which makes it convenient to follow up if you are not available at the date/time the webinar is on.

Chart Analysis

There is a dedicated chart analysis section of the website that shows real-time chart analysis including stop loss and take profit levels across different instruments. The trade buttons next to the chart will launch the Sirix WebTrader platform and open the relevant chart. This is a great feature as you not only get the market analysis but you can take action all from one intuitive interface. This is certainly a unique feature that I haven’t seen any other broker provide as of yet.

Video Analysis

The video analysis is similar to the chart analysis with the information displayed and explained in an easy to digest yet detailed video. This again further emphasises the sheer quantity of educational content that the broker provides. Whether you prefer to learn by reading, watching or listening, there is content for everyone.

Markets

CM Trading have an excellent range of trading instruments from various markets including Forex, Commodities, Cryptocurrency, Stocks, Shares, Indices, Metals, Energies & CFDs. I certainly didn’t find them to be short on choice. You will find everything from major currency pairs, to popular cryptos and stocks of major companies. If you like to diversify as much as possible, Swissquote also have a great selection of assets you can trade with favourable conditions.

Forex Trading

The foreign exchange (forex) market is the worlds largest decentralised global market where all the world’s currencies are traded. Forex trading is comprised of trading 2 combined currencies and is influenced by a variety of different factors including inflation, interest rates, government policy, employment figures and demand for imports and exports. The broker has an impressive 45+ major, minor and exotic currency pairs to forex traders.

CFD Trading

Contracts for Differences (CFDs) allow traders to speculate on if securities will rise or fall without needing to actually own them. There is a generous selection of over 200+ CFD products including currencies, metals, commodities and indices.

Commodities Trading

Commodities are often viewed as a way of diversifying a portfolio over the short and long term. Commodities play a role in everyone’s life and the broker has some of the most popular options for you to trade such as crude oil (WTI, Brent), natural gas, coffee, corn, sugar and wheat.

Metals Trading

Metals are classed as commodity assets that are mined from the earth and for hundreds of years have been used by governments as indicators of value and mediums of exchange. They have some of the most popular metals for trading such as gold, silver, platinum and copper.

Indices Trading

Indices trading allows you to trade a variety of assets from a specific segment that the index comprises of, in one transaction. You can trade on some of the world’s leading indices including Dow Jones, FTSE, DAX, JSE and more. Indices are often used as a way of further diversifying a portfolio.

Crypto Trading

Cryptocurrency is a decentralised virtual currency which uses complex mathematical algortihms to secure and verify transactions. They are one of a few brokers I have come across who have a great choice of popular cryptos for trading such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Accounts

I really like how there is a good variety of account types to choose from depending on your needs. You can choose accounts with lower spreads and a commission fee or no commission fee and higher spreads. It really depends on your trading strategy and what matter the most to you. Generally speaking, the more you deposit the better conditions and more features you can gain access to.

There are floating spreads, which means that they are not always the same as they fluctuate with the market. At times, spreads can also widen when the market opens, or when there is a market event creating high volatility. I found the spreads to be very reasonable and on par with what I would expect from a broker.

The leverage is capped at 1:200 for those who qualify. If you need more leverage, then Traders Way go up to 1:1000. Just make sure you are aware of the risks involved when trading leveraged positions. The minimum deposit of $250 is not the lowest, TD365 for example have a $1 deposit requirement.

Mini Account

The mini account requires a minimum $250 deposit and has flexible leverage of up to 1:200. Mini accounts have access to daily/weekly analysis and eBooks. There is no commission charge on this account type. I would say this account could be a good place for beginners to start learning more about trading online and get some hands on experience.

Classic Account

The classic account requires a minimum $1,000 deposit and has flexible leverage of up to 1:200. The classic account has a regular spread. There is no commission charge on this account type.

Executive Account

The executive account requires a minimum $10,000 deposit and has flexible leverage of up to 1:200. Spreads are tighter on the executive account. There is no commission charge on this account type.

Premium Account

The premium account requires a minimum $25,000 deposit and has flexible leverage of up to 1:200. Spreads are more competitive on this account type whilst there are free trading strategies included. There is no commission charge on this account type. If you can afford it, this account has the best conditions in my opinion – especially if you are a scalper. If the minimum deposit is unattainable, XM Group have a similar account with a much lower deposit needed.

Demo Account

Demo accounts are available to test the different trading platforms and conditions before opening a real account. I always test a broker on a demo account at first to see how things go before making a commitment.

Islamic Account

There are also Islamic swap-free accounts that comply with Sharia law. It is great that they provide this account for Muslim traders who cannot pay interest due to their religious beliefs.

Account Signup

There is a very short online form to for you to complete if you want to register for an account with CM Trading. Once you have completed the form you need to verify your email address and upload verification documents for KYC purposes. This will be a form of identification such as a passport and proof of address which can be a utility bill. After the accounts team have verified your documents and approved your account, you can then fund your account and commence trading. The whole process if quite straightforward and completely online.

Support

Customer support is provided to you via online chat, email and various international telephone numbers. I found them to be prompt and efficient with their responses. The online chat option is most convenient as you can get an answer to your question right away.

Funding

There is a good variety of different deposit and withdrawal options including, bank wire, credit card and some online payment processors such as Neteller. Bitcoin funding is also available, something that you won’t find with many brokers. If you do want crypto funding, Hugo’s Way is another option to consider. I personally use digital wallets as I find this to be the quickest way to deposit funds which is important for me as I sometimes need to try and take advantage of a market move and don’t want to be waiting around for my funds to clear.

Some fees may be charged when using certain payment methods. Bank transfers may take a few business days to clear. Accounts can be opened in USD, EUR, GBP. The different currency options are beneficial as currency conversion fees do not apply when using an account in your own currency.

Conclusion

Overall, I am extremely impressed with the trading products and services that CM Trading have. I like that they put great emphasis on providing you with powerful yet easy to use platforms along with plenty of trading tools for conducting in-depth market analysis. You can really setup the trading environment to be as simplistic or complex as you need it to be.

I feel that his broker can be a good choice for beginners due to the vast amount of educational materials they have. You also get detailed daily market analysis that can help inspire trading ideas and contribute towards your trading success. There are social trading platforms where you can copy signals and learn from other traders at the same time.

They have a good selection of flexible account types and convenient payment options to choose from. You will find plenty of trading assets from the most important markets, with tight spreads and low fees.

It would be great if they could lower the minimum deposit requirement, especially considering that the trading account with the best conditions requires a much larger deposit. Other than that, I wouldn’t hesitate using them for my day trading. They make me feel secure knowing that they are regulated and provide exceptional support.

$250

CM Trading are South Africa’s largest online broker providing traders across the globe access to trade a wide range of Forex and CFD instruments on popular trading platforms with a good selection of educational materials and regular market analysis for inspiration.

Between 74-89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider.

TradeTrade

About the Author

Trading Brokers
Trading Brokers is dedicated to bringing you unbiased broker reviews, the latest broker news and trading guides to help you along your trading journey. We have over 20 years of experience when it comes to trading online so we know what to look for.