BDSwiss Review
Why BDSwiss Sucks In 50 Words
The owning company, BDSwiss Holding Plc. is regulated by CySEC under License number 199/13, by the British Financial Conduct Authority, and the other branches are also authorised and supervised by strong financial watchdogs such as the U.S. NFA. This gives us extra confidence that we are dealing with a trustworthy broker. Their website is well organized and always kept in tiptop condition, with updates and comprehensive info about trading conditions.
Why BDSwiss Does Not Suck In 50 Words
The owning company, BDSwiss Holding Plc. is regulated by CySEC under License number 199/13 and the other branches are also authorized and supervised by strong financial watchdogs such as the U.S. NFA. This gives us extra confidence that we are dealing with a trustworthy broker. Their website is well organized and always kept in tiptop condition, with updates and comprehensive info about trading conditions.
Is BDSwiss a Scam?
BDSwiss can be considered a broker with experience and a “long” career. The brokerage is regulated by more than one financial authority and as you can see from the section above, they are very transparent about their corporate structure. This is the first sign that the brokerage is not a scam and actually looking to do business in legit and fair conduct. But despite all this, there are a lot of BDSwiss clients that are complaining about delayed withdrawals, which makes us recommend caution but also to thoroughly read their Terms And Conditions.
Should I Open an Account with BDSwiss?
BDSwiss is a well-known and respected CFD/FX and Crypto broker owned by BDSwiss Holding PLC and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission CYSEC License No. 199/13. The company is also EEA Authorised by the British FCA with reference number 607761. Several other branches of BDSwiss Group are regulated by notable financial authorities, as follows:
-BDSwiss LLC is registered with the U.S. National Futures Association (NFA) ID: 0486419
-BDS Ltd is authorized and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) Seychelles under license number SD047
-BDS Markets is authorized and regulated as an Investment Dealer by the FSC on 06/12/2016 (License No. C116016172)
-BDSwiss GmbH (Registration No. HRB 160749B) is the BaFin-registered Tied Agent of BDSwiss Holding PLC in Germany.
More and more brokers are making the transition towards CFD, FX, and Cryptocurrencies and BDSwiss is one of those brokers. They have dropped option-trading completely and are now focusing on the above-mentioned products exclusively. The available trading platforms are Meta Trader 4, Meta Trader 5, BDSwiss WebTrader, and BDSwiss Mobile – good choices and a great mix between functionality, customizability, and user-friendliness.
Trading accounts start at $100 for Classic, $3,000 for VIP, and $5,000 for RAW. The main difference between them is the spread, which starts at 1.5 pips for Classic, 1.1 pips for VIP and 0.3 pips for RAW (however, in the latter case the client will have to pay a commission per round lot). Keep in mind the spreads are floating, which means they change according to market conditions.
BDSwiss’ Education section includes tons of information (glossary, training videos, webinars, economic calendar, economic news, etc.) and a Trading Academy where information is laid out in the form of Lessons. They also have a Daily Analysis section, which was actually updated daily at the time of our visit, as it’s supposed to be.
Other resources include an Economic Calendar, Webinars that cover a wide range of topics, Special Reports (focused on major events that take place in the market), and Live Education Webinars.
I must take a bit of time to talk about their status of being registered with the U.S. National Futures Association. That’s a pretty big deal because the NFA is known to be a watchdog that bites more than it barks. However, as a trading company, they don’t accept US clients. Make of that what you want, because I don’t really understand how it works. I mean, why register with the NFA if you are not doing business with U.S. clients?
BDSwiss registered address is Ioanni Stylianou 6, 2nd floor, Office 202, 2003 Nicosia, Cyprus. Headquarters are located at 23, Spyrou Kyprianou Avenue, Protopapas Building, 3rd Floor, Mesa Gitonia, CY-4001 Limassol, according to the CySEC official website.
BDSwiss looks like a solid brokerage, focused on client protection, good education, and fair trading conditions. And one thing is certain: in Europe, they are fully regulated and operating under the MiFID (EU Directive), so they definitely look like a good choice for your next online trading broker.
BDSwiss’ registered address is Apostolou Andrea Street 11 Hyper Tower 5th Floor 4007 Mesa Yeitonia Limassol Cyprus, according to the CySEC official website. On BDSwiss’ website, they also list the addresses Suite 3, Global Village, Jivan’s Complex, Mont Fleuri, Mahe, Seychelles. The broker can be contacted at email [email protected] and a few phone numbers (English: +44 2036705890).
BDSwiss Complaints
The main complaint, which resurfaces over and over again, is about delayed withdrawals. Some clients say their funds are kept for months for various reasons and to add more fuel to the fire, BDSwiss then charges inactivity fees on those accounts. BDSwiss reps have answered some of the complaints but their responses were along the general lines, saying they are investigating or that they are having problems with the payment processors and are looking to sort them out. Of course, take everything with a pinch of salt because we cannot know all the details of the cases, thus we cannot decide which party is in the wrong.
BDSwiss Regulatory Warnings And Announcements
23.01.2017: The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) announced that on 19/12/2016 they have reached a settlement of 150,000 Euros with Bdswiss Holding Plc for suspicion of possible violations of the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law of 2007 (the “Law”) and of the Directives issued pursuant to the Law. The settlement sum was fully paid. Source: CySEC Board Decision 23/01/2017
16.03.2016: The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) announced that on 14/12/2015 they have decided to impose an administrative fine of 5,000 Euros on the CIF BDSwiss Holding Ltd. for non-compliance with the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law of 2007 (the “Law”). Source: CySEC Board Decision 16/3/2016
BDSwiss Bonus
Since this is a CySEC regulated brokerage, they have to follow the guidelines of CySEC Circular No: C168, which states that Cypriot Investment Firms (CIFs) must avoid offering bonuses to their clients. As a result, BDSwiss doesn’t advertise a Bonus but upon speaking with one of their representatives, I was told that my account manager would talk to me about possible promotions.
BDSwiss Withdrawal
This broker doesn’t impose a minimum withdrawal sum but withdrawals below 2 EUR cannot be processed and a 10 EUR fee will be imposed to wire withdrawals below 100 EUR and any other withdrawals under 20 EUR. The methods are cards, bank wires, e-wallets (Skrill, Neteller, and more depending on your country of residence), and cryptocurrency (BTC/BCH/ETH). We recommend you carefully read the documentation that’s available on their website.
BDSwiss Extras
BDSwiss offers Real-Time Trading Alerts via Telegram. But while this could be a good resource and extra feature, please note that it’s available to VIP clients only. In other words, you will have to deposit $3,000 or more if you want to use it.
Trading Bitcoin With BDSwiss
In an attempt to align to the trend of cryptocurrency trading, BDSwiss now offers Contracts For Difference (CFD) on 20+ coins, including Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum. The minimum trade size is 0.1 lots and the maximum is 1 lot per position.
Trading is available 24/7 (yes, even on weekends) because Bitcoin and altcoins are not controlled by banks or any other entity and the maximum leverage is 2:1, which is not a lot but Bitcoin trading is still in its infancy and is still very volatile, that’s why you won’t find huge leverage for the time being.
BDSwiss Ratings
User Friendly 17/20
The website is relatively easy to navigate and translated into 23 languages. The trading platforms are suited to both experienced traders (MT4 and MT5) as well as beginners (BDSwiss WebTrader). The Help Center is well organized so you can find the information you’re looking for without the need to contact support. US clients are not accepted; Demo accounts are available.
Range Of Markets, Spreads, And Leverage 18/20
Their trading basket contains over 200 assets, including indices, currencies, equities, commodities, and cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, etc.). The spreads are medium and floating so they change according to market conditions. The average is 1.5 pips on EUR/USD for the Classic account and 1.1 pips for the VIP account. The leverage goes as high as 1:500 for currencies and much lower for cryptocurrencies (1:5).
Deposits And Withdrawals 16/20
Deposits can be made via Maestro, Visa, a number of e-wallets, and wire transfers (method availability depends on the client’s country of residence. The same card/e-wallet the client used to deposit has to be used for withdrawal, which is usually processed during the same day or the next but more time will pass until the money is visible in your account. The minimum deposit is $100 and there’s no minimum withdrawal amount.
Fees And Support 17/20
There are no commissions to open an account, just like everywhere else but to withdraw, the client will have to pay a 10 EUR fee for wire withdrawals below or equal to 100 EUR and for any other withdrawal below 20 EUR. After 90 days without trading or depositing, an account will become inactive and will be charged an Inactivity Fee of 10% of the account balance. The minimum amount charged will be 25 EUR (or equivalent in account balance currency) and the maximum will be 49.90 EUR (or equivalent). These are high fees in our opinion and we recommend reading their Terms And Conditions. Support was fast to answer and polite – available through live chat, email, phone, and several social media apps.
Website Extras 14/20
Real-Time Trading Alerts via Telegram and Autochartist trading tool. The former is available only to VIP/RAW account holders and the latter is getting more and more popular, with many brokers offering it for free.
BDSwiss Overall Ratings (82) + Regulated (+3) = 85/100