Pros & cons of AAATrade

AAATrade Fact sheet

When it comes to safety and security of your funds, choosing a regulated broker is crucial. When a broker is regulated, traders are guaranteed that they will be met with fair trading practices and their accounts will be under legal protection. 

AAATrade is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), with license number 244/14. In addition, AAATrade Ltd. is in compliance with EU and local regulations such as the European Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II). In addition, the broker holds a BaFIN EU passport. 

The fact that AAATrade is regulated by reputable financial regulatory bodies means that the broker can be trusted. However, it should be mentioned that the CySEC is not a very strict regulator. 

Policies that AAATrade follows

In compliance with the regulators, the broker provides its clients with negative balance protection and keeps traders’ funds in segregated accounts. 

Negative balance protection guarantees that no matter what happens in the markets, traders will not lose more money than what’s on their accounts. 

Segregation of accounts is also very important for safety. This feature guarantees that even if the broker goes bankrupt and assets get liquidated, traders will be able to withdraw their money. 

On the downside, it should be mentioned that AAATrade is not a part of the Investors’ Compensation Fund. 

AAATrade offers both CFDs (Contracts for Difference) and real stocks for trading to its clients. CFD trading offers several benefits to traders, including:

• Access to leverage. CFDs allow traders to use leverage, which means they can trade with a larger position size than their initial investment. This can increase potential profits, but it’s important to remember that it can also increase potential losses. 
• Low barriers to entry. CFD trading gives traders access to multiple markets such as stocks, indices, commodities, cryptos, etc.
• Ability to short sell. Traders who speculate using CFDs can trade in both directions and make a profit in every market condition. 
• Lower trading costs. CFDs are traded more frequently than underlying assets, and therefore, these instruments have higher liquidity and tighter spreads. 

On the other hand, real stocks are a better option for investing long-term. What’s great about AAATrade is that the broker offers CFDs and real shares for all types of investors. 

Forex trading on AAATrade

There are 83 currency pairs available for trading with this broker. The maximum available leverage for professional traders is 200:1. The broker offers access to trading major, minor, and exotic pairs with spreads starting from 0.4 pips. It should be noted that there are no commissions charged when trading with AAATrade. 

Crypto trading on AAATrade

There are 52 crypto derivatives for trading with AAATrade. The average spread on Bitcoin vs US Dollar is 812.39. It should be mentioned that these instruments are CFDs, and can be traded in both directions using leverage. In addition to all the benefits we have mentioned above on CFD trading, Crypto derivatives trading is more comfortable. Profits go straight to the trader's account balance and there’s no need to worry about crypto wallets and cashing out. The broker offers access to popular cryptocurrency pairs, such as: 

• Bitcoin Cash Vs. USD (CFD)
• Bitcoin Vs. EUR (CFD)
• Bitcoin Vs. USD (CFD)
• Eos Vs. Bitcoin (CFD)
• Eos Vs. Ethereum (CFD)
• Eos Vs. Euro (CFD)
• Eos Vs. Usd (CFD)
• Ethereum Classic Vs. Bitcoin (CFD), and more.

Indices trading on AAATrade

There are 24 Indices for trading with AAATrade. Trading fees start from 1.39 on US indexes. An index in finance is a statistical measure of the changes in a particular market or a subset of that market. Indices are also known as indexes, and they provide important insight into the health and fitness of given economies. For example, the S&P 500 index tracks the performance of the biggest large-cap publicly traded stocks in the USA. This index helps traders get a picture of the US economy. In addition to being a great indicator, indices can be traded as CFDs. 

AAATrade offers access to trading popular indices, such as: 

• US Dollar Index Futures, USD (Underlying currency)
• German 40 Cash Index, EUR
• France 40 Cash Index, EUR
• Australia 200 Cash Index, AUD
• Hong Kong 50 Cash Index, HKD
• Switzerland 20 Cash Index, CHF, etc.

Commodity trading on AAATrade

There are 8 precious metals available for trading with this broker. Precious metals are known for their ability to withstand the negative effects of inflation. When there’s high inflation, investors generally purchase more precious metals, which in turn drives the demand for the commodity class and prices go higher. The broker offers popular commodities as CFDs such as:

• Gold Vs. US Dollar (CFD), USD (Underlying currency)
• Silver Vs. US Dollar (CFD), USD
• Palladium (CFD), USD
• Platinum (CFD), USD
• Palladium (CFD), USD
• Platinum (CFD), USD
• Nickel (CFD), USD
• Aluminum (CFD), USD

The broker believes that novice and experienced traders approach trading differently, and offers 2 dedicated account types to serve these groups.

Pros & cons of account types

Novice account and Experienced account types

Both account types give beginner and seasoned traders access to trading stocks, ETFs, FX, CFDs, and more. In total, traders have access to trading over 16,000 tradable instruments. There are no minimum initial deposits required to open the account. However, when making a 25,000 deposit in account base currency, traders receive a number of benefits, such as: 

• 5% Commission rebate on every trade
• 1 on 1 Training with certified technical analysts
• 0.25% Positive interest rate

By depositing 100,000 units in account currency, traders get additional premier services, such as:

• 10% Commission rebate on every trade
• Dedicated account manager
• Concierge services

In addition to CFD trading, clients of AAATrade can open stock trading accounts that are dedicated to trading securities. On the securities trading account, there is no leverage, and therefore, there are no Stop Outs levels and margin calls. Traders with this account have access to trading stocks from 60 global stock exchanges.

Getting started on AAATrade – Main steps

In this section, we will guide you through the account opening process. The whole process is fully digital and user-friendly. 

Step 1: Open an account

Firstly, go to the main page of the broker. You’ll be able to see the “Sign Up” button right away. By clicking the button you will be transferred to the registration page. Simply fill in the fields and register your account. Check your email and verify your email address. 

Step 2: Time to verify your account

Once you verify your email address, set up your account and verify your information. For verification, the broker asks you to upload proof of your identity (digital copy of your ID card/passport/driving license) and proof of residence (bank statement/utility bill). Make sure to verify your account before funding, as this gives you the ability to withdraw funds from your account without any difficulties. 

Step 3: Make your deposit and start trading

The final step is funding. The broker enables traders to use various options. Most of them are instant. However, bank wire transfers take a couple of business days. Available funding methods include bank transfer, credit/debit card, Fasapay, Klarna, Neteller, Rapidpay, Skrill, UnionPay, and iDeal.

Trading fees are low with this broker. There are no commissions and spreads start from 0.4 pips on EUR/USD. In addition, there are no inactivity fees or any hidden fees. 

Comparing AAATrade fees with other brokers

To better see how small the trading fees truly are, let’s make a comparison with the fees of industry leaders. 

AAATrade fees compared to Interactive Brokers fees

*Inactivity fee was eliminated by IB in 2021, it used to be $20/m

AAATrade fees compared to CM Trading fees

AAATrade fees compared to plus500 fees

AAATrade fees compared to XM fees

AAATrade fees compared to AvaTrade fees

AAATrade fees compared to Capital.com fees

The only available trading platform at AAATrade is MetaTrader 5 (MT5). MT5 is a very popular multi-asset trading platform. Here are some core specifications of the software:

• MT5 supports a wide range of financial instruments, including currencies, bonds, futures, options, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, etc.
• The platform supports various order types, including market orders, pending orders, stop orders, and trailing orders. 
• MT5 offers 21 timeframes that help traders conduct multiple timeframe analysis better.
• The platform enables algorithmic trading through the use of Expert Advisors (EAs).

Overall, MT5 is a comprehensive trading platform that offers a wide range of features and capabilities for traders of all levels. 

In addition to the desktop software, traders have access to using mobile and web trading apps. There are MT5 versions of both mobile and web trading terminals, and there’s also an AAATrader app. The apps are available from Google Play and Apple Store. 

The mobile apps offer live trading charts, tools for analysis, and all the necessary features for order placement and trade monitoring from anywhere in the world. 

Well-put-together educational materials are crucial for novice traders to become professionals. AAATrade offers various tools to aid traders in conducting market research, such as:

• Live Market Events
• Economic Calendar
• AAATrade Analysis
• ACADEMY
• Trading Calculators

In addition, the broker provides daily market analysis for its clients. Overall, we can safely say that the education and tools for analysis are extensive and good. 

Live customer support at AAATrade is available 24/5. The broker is accessible via live chat, over the phone, and via email. Customer support agents are well-trained and highly professional. Overall, the customer support at AAATrade is good. However, the online downside we can see is that the customer service is not multi-lingual. The broker’s main page is only in English.

To sum everything up, AAATrade is a regulated broker in Cyprus. In addition, the broker is in compliance with EU and local regulations such as the European Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II), which means that the broker can be trusted. The broker offers access to trading over 16,000 instruments such as bonds, CFDs, CFDs on stocks, ETFs, Forex, futures, indices, and metals. The available trading platform is MetaTrader 5 and the maximum leverage for professional traders is 200:1. Educational material is extensive and the customer support is professional. The broker offers low trading fees to its customers. Overall, we can safely say that AAATrade is a good broker.