WikiFX Fraud Alert: Do not trust Trade245!!!

Trade245 (trade245.com) has been attracting the attention of investors recently. It is presented as a South African forex brokerage offering trading in forex and CFDs on MetaTrader platforms. The trading conditions advertised on the website appear good, but WikiFX has doubts that this broker may be a clone, so we are going to investigate further. Read the review to see what WikiFX found out.

First let's search “Trade245” on WikiFX to take a look at the details page. WikiFX is an authoritative global inquiry platform providing basic information inquiry and regulatory license inquiry. WikiFX can evaluate the safety and reliability of more than 36,000 global forex brokers. WikiFX gives you a huge advantage while seeking the best forex brokers.

As you can see, based on information given on WikiFX (https://www.wikifx.com/en/dealer/2069266792.html), Trade245 is licensed by the South African financial regulator, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). However, the FSCA regulatory (license number: 46044) claimed by this broker is a suspicious clone, and it has been given by WikiFX a low rating of 1.84/10. WikiFX gives brokers a score from 0 to 10. The higher the score is, the more reliable the broker is.

According to the broker's website, Trade245 is allegedly a trading name of Red Pine Capital (PTY) LTD – a company based in Johannesburg, South Africa, and regulated by the local Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).

WikiFX did check in the online registry of the FSCA and found out that the company is indeed authorized as a financial services provider.

However, several other brokerage brands – ProvidentTrade and ZumaMarkets – use the same license number and claim to be operated by the same company. This inclines WikiFX to suspect that some (or all) of them might be clone firms – one that illegally use the details of regulated entities with which they arent related in any way. Of course, the scammers do that with the sole purpose to lure investors into depositing and swindle them out of their money.

Moreover, the South African license isnt as trustworthy as the Australian or the European ones. FSCA imposes no capital adequacy requirements or strict internal procedures brokers have to follow and maintains no deposit insurance funds. The lack of adequate protection certainly makes traders vulnerable, so WikiFX generally does not nominate businesses licensed by the South African regulator.

WikiFX paid a visit to the broker's website to find out more. Trade245 offers MetaTrader4 and MetaTrader5, both of which considered the best in the retail FX industry. The trading software offered is definitely a plus for the broker.

However, Trade245 claims to provide spreads starting from 0.0 pips, but that‘s questionable because WikiFX encountered a much wider Buy/Sell difference- 2.5 pips. That’s no longer a favourable spread, so the trading conditions are not as good as described on the website, which once again undermines Trade245‘s credibility. The spread forms some of the trading costs, so lower rates benefit traders and actually show whether the broker is good to trade with or not. The FX market is highly competitive, and it’s easy to find reputable companies offering quotes difference of 1 pip and below.

The maximum allowed leverage is 1:500, a ratio overly risky for traders. This level significantly improves profit potential, but it can cause heavy losses very quickly if not sensibly used. In fact, leverage is so risky that many financial authorities enforced regulations to restrict its usage. As a result, EU, British and Australian brokers are limited to 1:30 for FX majors, while the Canadian brokers and the US brokers cant offer more than 1:50 for retail clients. Most of the brokers providing higher leverage are poorly regulated businesses, so be cautious.

WikiFX also did some research on the brokers activity on social media. As of August 8th, 2022, Trade245 does have official accounts on major social websites - Facebook & Instagram.

Many investors have made negative comments, complaining about profits not being paid and saying Trade245 is a scam:

In addition, on the WikiFX Exposure section, traders have given unfavorable feedback regarding Trade245, complaining about being unable to withdraw:

Another trader complained about severe slippage problem:

Source: https://www.wikifx.com/en/exposure/exposure/2069266792.html

WikiFX also found negative comments made by investors on Trustpilot:

Source: https://www.trustpilot.com/review/trade245.com

In a nutshell, it's not wise to invest in Trade245. WikiFX reminds you that forex scam is everywhere, you'd better check the broker's information and user reviews on WikiFX before investing.

You can also expose forex scams on WikiFX. WikiFX will do everything in its power to help you and expose scams, warn others not to be scammed. In addition, scam victims are advised to seek help directly from the local police or a lawyer.

Don't trust individuals or organizations who claim to be able to get your money back - they may be selling hope and scamming you again. This is especially true if they ask you to pay in advance, which is a “recovery scam”.