Exness Review

Our Take on Exness

Based in Limassol, Cyprus, Exness is a multi-asset broker that has made a significant impact since its inception in 2008. With a robust global presence, Exness offers an extensive range of trading opportunities.

Clients of Exness can trade CFDs on various assets, including currencies, indices, commodities, shares, and cryptocurrencies. They can do this using MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, the proprietary Exness Terminal platform, and the Exness Trade App.

Exness stands out in several key areas compared to its competitors. It offers the largest selection of tradable currency pairs of any broker I've tested. The broker also minimizes account-related fees and provides raw spreads through its professional account types.

Furthermore, Exness excels with additional features such as third-party research from Trading Central and free VPS hosting, ensuring a comprehensive and competitive trading experience.

Exness Highlights of 2024

Multiple Regulatory Licenses: Exness is overseen by several prestigious financial authorities, ensuring strong safety and compliance standards in regulated regions. However, its offshore entities face lighter regulatory scrutiny.

Diverse Instrument Selection: Traders benefit from an extensive array of instruments, including over 90 forex pairs and 10 cryptocurrencies, offering a broad spectrum of trading opportunities.

Mixed Spreads: Spreads on the Standard account can vary, with some being quite tight while others are wider. For tighter spreads, the Professional account types are available.

Advanced Trading Platforms: Exness provides access to its proprietary Exness Terminal platform, alongside MT4 and MT5, catering to both manual and algorithmic traders.

Extensive Tools: Traders can utilize a comprehensive suite of tools, such as Trading Central WebTV, VPS hosting, and a detailed archive of historical tick data.

Social Trading: The Social Trading platform enables clients to follow and copy other successful traders' strategies, or enhance their own income by sharing their trading insights.

Who is Exness For?

Exness caters to a diverse range of traders with its various account types, platforms, and features. It is particularly well-suited for scalpers, day traders, and algo traders, thanks to its 1-click trading functionality.

The broker’s free VPS hosting enables traders to run automated trading strategies seamlessly, independent of their personal desktop or internet connectivity issues.

Social trading adds an extra dimension to the platform, allowing clients to either invest in the strategies of other traders or generate income by sharing their own trading strategies.

Exness is designed to accommodate both novice and experienced traders. Beginners can take advantage of the Cent account, which provides access to the intuitive Trading Terminal platform and helps manage risk in the live market.

Experienced traders benefit from the advanced MetaTrader platforms, a variety of sophisticated trading tools, and the possibility of leveraging high amounts through the offshore entity regulated by the FSA Seychelles.

What Sets Exness Apart?

Exness stands out by keeping client costs low. The broker does not charge deposit or withdrawal fees, though some payment providers might impose their own fees. Additionally, swap fees are typically waived, and transparent price history, including tick-level data for all instruments, is readily accessible.

A key differentiator is Exness' exceptionally wide range of instruments, particularly in forex and cryptocurrencies. The proprietary Exness Terminal platform combines user-friendliness with advanced features, such as Trading Central analysis and price alerts, to elevate the trading experience.

Exness Regulators

• Exness (UK) Ltd. is regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with registration number 730729. The FCA is considered a Tier-1 regulator.
• Exness (Cy) Ltd. is overseen by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), holding license number 178/12. CySEC is classified as a Tier-1 regulator.
• Exness (KE) Ltd. is authorized by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in Kenya, with license number 162. The CMA is rated as a Tier-2 regulator.
• Exness (SC) Ltd. is regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA) with license number SD025. The FSA is a Tier-3 regulator.
• Exness (VG) Ltd. is licensed by the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (FSC), with registration number 2032226 and investment business license number SIBA/L/20/1133. The BVI FSC is rated as a Tier-3 regulator.
• Exness B.V. is regulated by the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, holding license number 0003LSI. The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten is classified as a Tier-3 regulator.
• Exness ZA (PTY) Ltd. is authorized by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) in South Africa, with Financial Service Provider (FSP) number 51024. The FSCA is considered a Tier-2 regulator.

Why It’s Important to Know Where Your Broker Subsidiary (Entity) is Regulated

Brokers often operate through multiple regional entities to serve clients worldwide. However, the level of client protection provided by regulators can vary significantly across regions. Here’s what to look for regarding your broker’s regional entities:

Segregation of Client Funds: To prevent misuse, client funds should be kept separate from a broker’s operating capital. This ensures that traders’ funds are not used for operational expenses or speculative activities. At Exness, client funds are held in segregated accounts, separate from the company’s own funds.

Negative Balance Protection: This feature ensures that clients cannot lose more than their account balance, even in extreme market conditions. Exness provides negative balance protection across all its entities.

Compensation Scheme: Exness is a member of the Financial Commission, which offers compensation of up to €20,000 per complaint, providing an additional layer of protection for clients.

Maximum Leverage: Leverage levels affect the risk traders can take. Higher leverage offers the potential for greater profits but also larger losses. For example, the Seychelles entity of Exness offers a default maximum leverage of 1:2000.

The table below details the client protections offered by each Exness entity:

Stability and Transparency

In our assessment of the Trust category, we examine factors related to stability and financial strength, including the broker’s industry experience, company size, and transparency.

Exness has been operating since 2008, establishing itself as a well-experienced CFD broker with a long history in the industry. According to the broker's LinkedIn profile, it employs between 1,001 and 5,000 staff members, indicating a substantial brokerage firm.

Exness demonstrates high transparency regarding its regulatory status, prominently listing its regulators in the footer of its website.

The broker clearly outlines trading costs on the Fees page of its website. For more detailed information, traders can access the Customer Agreement on the Legal Documents page.

Is Exness Safe to Trade With?

Exness operates through seven entities, with two regulated by top-tier authorities, providing relatively high account security. The other entities are overseen by second or third-tier regulators, resulting in varying levels of protection.

For example, clients trading with the UK entity benefit from rigorous regulatory oversight and are covered by a compensation scheme in case of broker insolvency. In contrast, Exness' offshore entities are subject to different regulatory standards.

Exness is also a member of the Financial Commission, an independent self-regulatory organization specializing in Forex, which provides additional protection. Clients are covered by the Commission’s Compensation Fund for up to €20,000.

In summary, Exness is considered moderately trustworthy and stable, supported by:

• A 16-year operating history
• Status as a multi-asset broker
• Segregation of client funds across all entities
• Provision of negative balance protection across all entities
• Membership in the Financial Commission

Fees

How Did We Test the Broker's Fees and Commissions?

Understanding broker fees and commissions can be complex. To simplify this, we thoroughly reviewed all fee-related documentation and presented it clearly. Additionally, we conducted practical tests on spreads and commissions for commonly traded instruments during both the London and New York trading sessions. We then compared these real-time results to industry benchmarks based on our extensive experience.

Exness Trading Fees

Spreads

I assessed Exness spreads across various markets during peak liquidity periods—namely, the London and New York opens. These times typically feature the tightest spreads due to high market liquidity.

Our tests indicated that Exness offers competitive spreads on gold and oil, though spreads on forex crosses like GBP/JPY are relatively wide. Data was recorded on March 6, 2024.

Exness Swap Fees

Exness generally does not charge swap fees for most instruments, including major forex pairs, cryptocurrencies, indices, and gold.

Exness Non-Trading Fees

Exness does not impose fees for deposits or withdrawals, although some payment providers may apply their own fees. An inactivity fee may apply under certain conditions.

Are Exness Fees Competitive?

I rate Exness' fees as average due to:

• Variable spreads
• No swap fees on most instruments (terms and conditions apply)
• No deposit or withdrawal fees (some payment providers may charge their own fees)

Platforms and Tools

How Did We Test the Broker's Trading Platforms?

Understanding the critical role of trading platforms, we dedicated extensive time to evaluating Exness' web, desktop, and mobile platforms. Our testing covered usability, functionality, and overall performance. We assessed various features, including different order types, execution speeds, charting tools, and other functionalities. This thorough examination was conducted based on our trading expertise to provide you with a comprehensive overview.

Platforms Overview

Exness excels in the platform category by offering:

• Exness Terminal: A well-designed, user-friendly platform that integrates advanced features.
• MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5: Classic platforms known for their robust functionality, including algorithmic trading capabilities.

Our tests confirmed that Exness provides a strong selection of trading platforms, catering to diverse trading needs and preferences.

Exness Terminal Platform

General Ease of Use

In this review, I evaluated the Exness Terminal platform, which features a clean and straightforward interface that is user-friendly for beginners. While customization options are somewhat limited, users can enhance their experience by enlarging the chart area by hiding the watchlist and trade panels.

The platform supports 17 languages, including Arabic, Bengali, Burmese, Simplified Chinese, English, French, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Lao, Portuguese, Spanish, Swahili, Thai, and Vietnamese.

Key Features of the Exness Terminal Platform

Here are the key features of the Exness Terminal platform:

• Watchlists: Organize your assets into watchlists by asset class, popular instruments, and top movers.
• Charting: Access robust charting tools from TradingView, integrated directly into the platform.
• Standard Orders: Place market, limit, and stop-loss orders with ease.
• Position Tracking: Monitor your open positions, pending orders, and closed trades, with real-time updates on profit and loss.
• One-Click Trading: Execute orders with a single click and no additional confirmation, ideal for fast-paced trading and day traders.
• Price Alerts: Set alerts to be notified when prices reach your pre-defined levels.

Exness Terminal Charts

The Exness Terminal platform offers high-quality TradingView charts with the following features:

• 100+ Technical Indicators: Includes a wide range of classic trend indicators, volume indicators, and oscillators.
• 50+ Drawing Tools: Offers various tools such as trend lines, channels, Gann, and Fibonacci tools.
• 9 Time Frames: Provides nine time frames, ranging from one minute to one month.
• 12 Chart Types: Supports various chart types, including popular Bar charts, Japanese Candlesticks, and more unique options like Heikin Ashi charts.

Orders

Exness Terminal Order Entry

The Exness Terminal platform supports standard order types, including market orders, limit orders, and stop-loss orders. However, it does not offer trailing stop-loss orders or the ability to apply time-in-force conditions to orders.

My Key Takeaways After Testing the Exness Terminal Platform

After several weeks of testing, I found the Exness Terminal platform to be intuitive, well-designed, and highly user-friendly. Features such as one-click trading and trading from the chart are particularly beneficial for active traders. The integration of Trading Central and price alerts adds significant value.

However, the platform does have limitations, such as the inability to create custom watchlists, the lack of advanced order types, and limited layout customization options.

Exness Mobile App

Available for iOS and Android, the Exness Trade app provides access to over 200 instruments and features a user-friendly interface tailored for beginners. The app supports instant deposits and withdrawals and offers 24/7 customer support.

Charting within the app includes 12 chart types (line and candle), nine timeframes (M1, M5, M15, M30, H1, H4, D1, W1, MN1), and various indicators like Moving Averages, Bollinger Bands, and Parabolic SAR.

Order types available in the app include market orders and pending orders, such as limit orders and stop-loss orders. The app also features an economic calendar, market news, and trade ideas from Trading Central.

Social Trading

Social Trading

Within the client portal, traders have access to the Social Trading platform. This feature allows users to copy the trades of successful traders (strategy providers) and share their own trading strategies.

Social Trading Profile

Both the trade copier and the strategy provider have the opportunity to earn from profitable trades. The trade copier can select a strategy provider to follow, while the strategy provider earns a commission ranging from 0% to 50% based on the profits generated from their trades.

Exness Order Execution Model

Exness operates as a non-dealing desk broker. This means it either takes the opposite side of the client’s trade or routes orders for execution to a third party through a model known as Straight Through Processing (STP).

Tradable Instruments

How Did We Test the Broker's Tradable Instruments?

To evaluate Exness' range of tradable instruments, we examined the variety and depth of available asset classes. We used our proprietary database to compare these findings with those of other brokers. This thorough analysis helps determine if Exness offers the specific instruments and trading options you're seeking.

Tradable Instruments Overview

Exness excels in providing a diverse selection of tradable instruments, including currency pairs, commodities, indices, shares, and cryptocurrencies. The broker offers CFDs in both spot and futures markets, with a particularly strong selection of forex options.

Exness performs exceptionally well across most asset classes, though there is potential for improvement in its selection of shares.

What are CFDs?

A Contract for Difference (CFD) is an agreement between a buyer and a seller to exchange the difference between the current value of an asset and its value at the time the contract was initiated. CFDs allow traders to speculate on price movements without owning the underlying asset, similar to futures and other derivative financial instruments.

What Can You Trade with Exness?

Exness offers a diverse range of CFD instruments. Below is a selection highlighting the variety available:

My Key Takeaways After Exploring Exness Tradable Instruments

Exness provides a robust selection of tradable instruments, excelling in forex, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies. This variety allows clients to explore a broad range of markets. However, the range of CFDs on shares is somewhat limited, and it would be beneficial to see more global exchanges included.

Customer Support

How Did We Test the Broker's Customer Support?

Customer support is crucial, especially during critical moments. We thoroughly tested Exness' customer support through all available channels, including chat, phone, and email. Our evaluation assessed the accessibility of live agents, and the quality and professionalism of their responses, providing a comprehensive view of how effectively the broker supports its clients.

Customer Support Overview

Exness offers 24/7 customer support via live chat, phone, and email. From my experience with dozens of inquiries, the support quality was mixed. While I encountered issues reaching support by phone, the live chat service was reliable, and email responses were received within 24 hours. Overall, I rate Exness' customer support as average.

Exness Customer Support Test

Customer support is crucial for brokers, whether you're a novice needing platform guidance or an experienced trader requiring swift assistance during technical issues.

I tested Exness' customer support over a two-week period. The live chat typically responded within a minute, and email replies were also prompt.

I posed a range of inquiries, from basic questions about fees to more detailed queries about platforms, tools, and regulations. My experience was generally positive, with support providing satisfactory answers to most of my questions through both chat and email.

Deposit and Withdrawal

How Did We Test the Broker's Deposit and Withdrawal Process?

Depositing and withdrawing funds can often come with hidden fees or unexpected delays. To evaluate Exness' process, we examined their deposit and withdrawal options, conditions, and times. We compared these findings with those of other brokers using our proprietary database.

Deposit Methods at Exness

Exness supports a wide array of deposit methods, including bank transfers, credit/debit cards, and digital wallets. Processing times are industry-leading, and both deposits and withdrawals are free of charge. Here's a look at the deposit options:

Withdrawal Methods at Exness

Exness also offers a strong range of withdrawal methods with fast processing times and no charges for withdrawals (although some payment providers may apply their own fees):

Exness' deposit and withdrawal process is notably efficient and cost-effective, outperforming many brokers in terms of speed and fee structure.

Account Types and Terms

How Did We Test the Broker's Account Types and Terms?

Selecting the right trading account is crucial for achieving your trading goals. To evaluate Exness' account offerings, we personally opened an account to experience the process firsthand and assess its efficiency. We also conducted a detailed analysis of the various account types and features, such as spreads, maximum leverage, and minimum deposits. For a thorough comparison, we used our proprietary database to see how Exness' account options measure up against other brokers.

Exness Account Types

Exness provides five primary account types, including two Standard accounts and three Professional accounts. Additionally, Demo and swap-free Islamic accounts are available. The account opening process is entirely digital and can be completed on the website in under 10 minutes.

Exness Account Types and Their Benefits

Exness offers a range of account types tailored to different trading needs:

Standard Accounts

Professional Accounts

Account Opening Process

• Process: Opening a live account with Exness is straightforward. Prospective clients need to provide their region of residence and confirm their email address and phone number. The process is quick and usually completed in less than 10 minutes.

What is CFD Leverage?

Leverage in forex and CFD trading allows traders to amplify their position sizes by borrowing funds. This means you can control a larger position with a smaller amount of your own money. For example, with a leverage of 1:2000 offered by Exness’s Seychelles entity, a $1,000 account can control positions worth up to $2,000,000.

However, leverage is a double-edged sword—it can significantly magnify both profits and losses. Traders need to be cautious as it can lead to substantial financial risk if not managed properly.

Leverage Details at Exness

The maximum leverage available at the Seychelles entity of Exness varies depending on your account equity:

Maximum Leverage by Asset Class

Leverage varies by asset class, with higher leverage available for forex and commodities compared to shares:

Demo Account

Exness offers demo accounts for both the Trading Terminal platform and MetaTrader 4/5. These demo accounts provide live market conditions for practicing trading strategies without risking real money. They mirror real market conditions across various assets, including forex and CFDs on commodities, indices, and stocks. Once traders are familiar with the demo account, transitioning to a live account is straightforward.

Islamic Account

Exness offers swap-free Islamic accounts exclusively for residents of Islamic countries. These accounts comply with Sharia law, which prohibits earning or paying interest.

Restricted Countries

Exness does not accept clients from the following regions:

• United States of America
• American insular areas
• European countries
• United Kingdom
• Vatican City

Research

How Did We Test the Broker's Research Tools?

Research tools can significantly impact a trader's success by providing valuable insights and analysis. To evaluate Exness's research capabilities, we explored both proprietary and third-party research tools and content. This included fundamental and technical analysis, market news, educational videos, and webinars. Our assessment was based on the quality and availability of these resources compared to industry benchmarks.

Exness Research Tools

• Exness Blog
  The Exness blog offers market analysis, news, and insights through concise articles. These provide valuable ideas and highlight active assets in the market.
• Trading Central WebTV
  Available on the Exness website, Trading Central WebTV features daily videos with commentary, trading ideas, and updates directly from the New York Stock Exchange floor.
• Trading Central Analysis
  Within the client portal, clients can access Trading Central's analysis, which includes actionable advice, specific price forecasts, and support and resistance levels.
• Market News
  The Market News section in the client portal offers a real-time feed of market updates and news, sourced from the FXStreet team.

Education

How Did We Test the Broker's Education Offering?

Understanding financial markets is crucial for trading success. To evaluate Exness's educational resources, we assessed the quality and relevance of their content for both novice and experienced traders. This involved exploring the variety of materials available, including articles, videos, webinars, and courses. We examined the volume, update frequency, and overall quality of the content and compared it with industry standards.

Exness Educational Resources

• Educational Articles
  The Exness blog includes an educational section with articles on trading strategies and platform features. While the range is somewhat limited, it includes both beginner and advanced topics. Notable advanced content includes an introduction to algorithmic trading using Python and MT5, and detailed explanations of classic tools like Fibonacci retracements.
• Platform Tutorial Videos
  The Exness YouTube channel offers a variety of tutorial videos. While primarily focused on market analysis, it also provides platform tutorials for Exness Terminal and MetaTrader. These videos cover basic setup to advanced topics, including connecting to Exness VPS.

The Bottom Line

Exness stands out as a prominent CFD broker with a distinctive offering. The broker provides an extensive range of tradable instruments, with a particularly impressive selection of currency and cryptocurrency pairs.

Deposits and withdrawals are processed swiftly, supported by a broad array of payment methods. The user-friendly Terminal platform, 24/7 customer support, and micro-lot trading options make Exness an attractive choice for newcomers to trading.

For more seasoned traders, Exness offers substantial leverage, tight spreads, and advanced trading tools. Scalpers, day traders, and algorithmic traders will find the platform well-suited to their needs.

However, it's important to note that accounts with offshore entities are subject to limited regulatory oversight.

While Standard Account spreads may not be exceptional, Professional account types provide access to spreads starting from 0.0 pips. Additionally, minimal swap fees and the option for social trading further enhance the appeal for traders seeking flexibility and advanced features.