IS ALPARI A RELIABLE BROKER? FIND OUT IN THIS ALPARI BROKER REVIEW
Alpari is an international forex and CFDs broker that was established in 1998. Over the last decade, the broker has expanded its operations to cover more than 150 countries and serves in exccess of more than 2 millions clients. Alpari also maintains a local presence though branch offices or representative offices in 31 different cities around the world. However, the broker’s presence is mostly concentrated around major European cities such as Ankara, Berlin, Dublin, Helsinki, Kiev, Lisbon, Madrid, Nicosia, Oslo, Paris, Rome and Vienna.
In terms of regulation, Alpari is registered with the Financial Services Authority St. Vincent and the Grenadine (SVGFSA) as an IBC (International Business Company). It should be noted that being an authorized IBC does not mean that the broker’s operations are regulated in any manner by the SVGFSA. In recent years, many forex brokers have chosen to base their operations in tax haven locations such as St. Vincent and the Grenadine due to the favorable taxation regime. The fact that there is no actual regulatory oversight is an added plus for these brokerage firms. Nevertheless due to the prevalence of many brokerage companies claiming to be regulated by the SVGFSA, the SVGFSA has issued a warning to inform the public that it does not issue licenses for forex trading nor regulate the operations of IBCs operating as forex brokers. Nevertheless it is interesting to note that Alpari is a member of the Financial Commission, an independent self-regulatory organization that provides an impartial dispute resolution mechanism for brokers and their clients.
Despite the fact that Alpari has a relatively weak regulatory oversight, it is still well regarded in the forex industry as a trustworthy and reliable broker. Its positive reputation was one of the main reasons why the brand survived after the liquidation of Alpari’s UK operation in 2015. Considering the fact that the online forex industry is ultra competitive, Alpari’s successes in recent year were no small feats.
- Website: https://alpari.com/en/
- Support: Live chat
- Leverage: 1:1000
- Min. Deposit: None
- Spreads: from 0.2 pip
- Mac
- Windows
- Android
- Linux
Established: 1998 | Website: www.alpari.com |
Country: Saint Vincent & the Grenadines | Regulation: SVGFSA |
Platform | 4/5 |
Customer Support | 4/5 |
Account Management | 4/5 |
Leverage & Bonuses | 3/5 |
Reliability / Security | 4/5 |
Alpari doesn’t accept new clients. Try FXTM
Advantages
- No Minimum deposit
- Cashback Loyalty Program
- Multiple choices of Accounts
- MT4 & MT5 supported
Disadvantages
- No Research resources
- Modest numbers of instruments
Do I Need A Large Trading Capital For Opening An Alpari Trading Account?
For trading accounts, Alpari offers a wide selection of trading accounts that will suit different categories of traders. The trading accounts are divided into those for independent trading and those for fund management. For independent trading, there are 6 different types of trading accounts. They comprise of the nano mt4 account, the standard mt4 account, the standard mt5 account, the ECN MT4 account, the pro ECN MT4 account and the ECN MT5 account. For the Nano account, there is no minimum deposit requirement. As for the other accounts, Alpari only requires a token deposit of $20 to $500. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to note that the leverage ratio offered by Alpari is as high as 1:1000. This leverage ratio is one of the highest in the industry. In other words, you do not need a large trading capital in order to start trading on Alpari.
For funds or money managers, Alpari has also provided them with a selection of PAMM accounts. They include the PAMM standard MT4 account, the PAMM standard MT5 account, the PAMM ECN MT4 account, the PAMM pro ECN MT4 account and the PAMM ECN MT5 account. The maximum leverage ratio for PAMM accounts is also 1:1000. What is surprising is the fact that the minimum deposit for these accounts is extremely low at $50 or equivalent currency. Spreads on the PAMM accounts are as low as zero pips and the commission charge is $16 per lot traded. These competitive spreads and low commission charges will represent a huge savings for those who are trading in volume.
Promotions and Programmes
For loyal clients of Alpari, the broker has a Cashback program where they can earn points traded and then redeem those points back in the form of rebates on their trading fees. For traders who make large deposits, they will get to upgrade their account status to being a Premium Client. As a premium Alpari client, you will get to enjoy more favorable trading conditions and benefits. Some of these benefits include being assigned a personal manager and investment consultant and an advance of up to $10,000 on their trading account. Apart from the above mentioned promotional offers by Alpari, traders who are currently using UnionPay to deposit their funds will be entitled to full deposit commission compensation. In other words, it is free to deposit through UnionPay. For traders who love a bit of competitive spirit, they can participate in the trading contests held by Alpari. Winners of these trading contests will be entitled to attractive cash prizes.
Alpari Forex Mobile App & Desktop Trading Platforms
The mainstay of Alpari’s trading suite is the MetaTrader trading platform. The broker is actually one of the first few forex brokers that adopted the MetaTrader trading platform when it was first introduced by the developer MetaQuote Software. There are 2 versions of the MetaTrader trading platforms available at Alpari. They are the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform and the MetaTrader 5 (MT5) platform.
Alpari is regarded as the world’s largest MetaTrader based broker. The MT4 trading platform has been proven to be extremely reliable and powerful. The MT4 platform comes with numerous trading tools all designed to make the life of an online trader easier. It has an advanced charting package, large library of technical indicators, support for different time frames, support for multiple order types and automated trading. Traders at Alpari have 3 versions of the MT4 platform to choose from, the desktop client version, the mobile app version and the WebTrader.
In addition to the MT4, traders at Alpari also have access to the MT5 trading platform. The MT5 is considered to be a more updated version of the MT4 platform and have additional features such as more technical indicators and support for more order types. It is also capable of supporting more timeframes.
Overall, Alpari offers its clients a decent quality in terms of its services. Nevertheless, there are still certain areas which the broker can improve upon. For example, the broker is lacking in the area of research and regulation. It can do more to beef up its regulatory status since its main focus is in Europe.