FOREX.com Review

For American traders the list of legal forex brokers is short, and FOREX.com has been on it for more than two decades. This FOREX.com review examines the broker as it stands in late 2026: a StoneX-owned brand that has become the parent company’s main retail label after the City Index name was folded into it across several regions.

Ownership and a Changing Group Structure

FOREX.com was built by GAIN Capital, a New Jersey firm founded in 1999. GAIN grew through acquisitions, buying UK broker City Index in 2015 and taking on more than 47,000 US accounts from FXCM in 2017. In 2020 the business was acquired by StoneX Group, a Nasdaq-listed financial services company, for about $236 million.

Since then StoneX has been consolidating. City Index Singapore clients moved to FOREX.com in 2025, City Index Australia was rebranded as FOREX.com in August 2025, and in September 2026 the remaining UK City Index business became StoneX Trading. In the UK, FOREX.com itself now operates through StoneX Financial Ltd (FRN 446717) after GAIN Capital UK applied to cancel its FCA authorisation. For clients, the practical effect has been a new counterparty name rather than different trading terms, but it is worth checking which entity holds your account.

Regulatory Footprint and Track Record

US accounts are overseen by the CFTC and the National Futures Association (NFA ID 0339826). Elsewhere, group entities hold licences from the FCA, ASIC (AFSL 345646), Canada’s CIRO, CySEC (400/21), Japan’s Financial Services Agency and the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (25033), the latter covering many international clients.

The record is not spotless. The NFA fined the US arm $700,000 in 2022 after stale quotes on 14 currency pairs persisted for more than ten hours in 2021, and the CFTC imposed penalties in 2020 over onboarding US customers through a UK affiliate. These are compliance lapses rather than solvency concerns, yet they belong in any balanced assessment.

Costs in Practice

There are two core pricing routes:

• Standard: commission-free, with spreads from about 0.8 pips and EUR/USD typically averaging around 1.1 pips.
• RAW Spread: spreads from 0.0 pips on majors plus $5 per $100,000 traded.

The minimum deposit is $100, though the broker recommends funding more. High-volume clients can join the Active Trader programme, which returns cash rebates of up to 15%, while a DMA account with order-book access targets professionals. An inactivity fee of $15 per month (or local equivalent) kicks in after a year without trading. US clients face NFA leverage limits of 50:1 on major pairs, UK and EU retail clients are capped at 30:1, and the Cayman entity offers up to 400:1.

Technology and Research

FOREX.com’s in-house web platform and mobile app carry integrated charting, Trading Central signals and performance analytics. MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 are available, with Expert Advisors and VPS support, and TradingView users can link an account directly. Automated strategies can also be built without code through the Capitalise.ai partnership. The market list includes 80-plus currency pairs, indices, commodities, metals, share CFDs and a small crypto selection, though products vary sharply by country, and US clients are limited mainly to forex.

Money In and Out

Funding options include bank wire, debit and credit cards, Skrill and Neteller. Withdrawals are typically processed within one to two business days, and crypto funding is not supported.

Who It Fits Best

US-based forex traders have few comparable alternatives, which alone makes FOREX.com relevant. Internationally, it suits traders who want a large, publicly owned parent, solid research and a choice between proprietary and MetaTrader platforms. Those seeking the cheapest raw spreads, copy trading or broad crypto exposure may prefer more specialised rivals.

Final Assessment

FOREX.com combines heavyweight ownership with fair, if unspectacular, pricing. Group rebranding has made the corporate picture busier, but the core offering remains stable and well regulated.

Leveraged currency trading can produce losses larger than expected, so use risk controls and only commit funds you can spare.

FOREX.com FAQ

Risk warning: Trading forex and CFDs on margin carries a high level of risk. Bonus terms are set by each broker and may change; always check the broker's official terms before claiming.