Pros & cons of CM Globals broker

CM Globals Fact sheet

Choosing a safe and reliable broker is the first step to successful trading. There are various factors to consider when making a decision, but the safest brokers are well-regulated ones. CM Globals is regulated by two different authorities and jurisdictions. The main regulator is the Australian Securities and Exchange Commission (ASIC), and it ensures client fund safety and that other security measures are in place. The ASIC is one of the most reliable Forex regulators and increases the feeling and actual safety of traders. The downside is their maximum allowed leverage of only 1:30, but the broker is also regulated by the Money Services Businesses Canada (MSB) which enables CM Globals to offer up to 1:500 leverage to global traders. The lack of negative balance protection makes it susceptible to harm to traders in case of over-leveraged trading. The broker uses segregated bank accounts for client funds and is part of an investor compensation fund. So, on the regulations side, things are very well-balanced and only the lack of negative balance protection poses an issue. 

*CFD stands for Contract for Difference and such instruments enable traders to speculate on underlying asset prices without owning them. 

CM Globals offers a wide range of tradable instruments, including CFDs on stocks, cryptocurrencies, Forex, indices, commodities, energies, and metals. Despite the wide range of trading assets offered, the best one for trading is Forex, because of how many pairs the broker offers for trading. 

Forex trading on CM Globals

The Forex market is very attractive, but depending on your level of experience and the spreads offered by the broker, it may become challenging to achieve profitability. CM Globals spreads start from 1.7 pips on the Co-Basic trading account which is way beyond the industry standard of 1 pip. Because of the expensive spreads, it is not recommended to trade scalping and other short-term strategies with this broker. Since there are no commissions the best way is to use swing and day trading strategies that do not rely on low spreads. We will get into more details on trading account types below. The lowest spreads possible require trading accounts of at least 10,000 USD which is not low and CM Globals is targeting experienced traders and professionals with this policy. 

Stock CFD trading on CM Globals

The stock CFDs are not many, but the spreads are acceptable, starting from 0.05. Stocks can be bought but it is not possible to short them, this is where CFDs on stocks come in handy as they allow traders to open a sell position without owning the underlying asset. There are 50 stock CFDs offered by CM Globals that allow traders to speculate on their prices and make money no matter what the market is doing. 

Cryptocurrency trading on CM Globals

BTUSD, ETHUSD, LTCUSD, and XRPUSD are the four crypto pairs offered by CM Globals as of now. The spreads are low and cryptos are open for trading 24/7. The spread on BTC is about 9 USD per BTC traded which is not high assuming that one BTC is around 0.27 lots depending on the flagship crypto’s price. Cryptos are becoming super popular lately and we hope CM Globals offers more cryptos in the future with low spreads. 

Commodities and indices trading on CM Globals

Various indices, commodities, energies, and metals are offered with low spreads by CM Globals. Gold is a very popular trading asset, especially during these crisis times. The spread on CM Globals’ gold asset class is around 1 USD. 

CM Globals offers an advantage with its diverse account types, which come with different spreads and key specs. Let’s discuss each of them and conclude which one is the best. 

Co-Basic, Co-Class, Co-Pro, and Co-Master account types are targeted at traders with different budgets. The two main differences between these accounts are minimum initial deposit requirements and spreads offered. What all accounts have in common is that they all come with investment assistant service, daily trade support and bulletin, and no trading commission based on trading volume. If we consider the high spreads, the trading commissions being zero seems very natural in this case. 

As we can see the spreads are very high for basic account clients. The best spreads can be acquired when the trading account balance exceeds 10,000 USD, this makes CM Global a more expensive alternative to other brokers. Many popular brokers have super low initial deposit requirements and low spreads. 

Pros & cons of CM Globals account types

Getting started on CM Globals – Main steps

In this section, we’ll show you how to open a demo and live trading account with CM Globals. The registration process and account activation are all done digitally, and the broker’s web page is very intuitive and user-friendly. After registration, it is possible to open a demo or live account with just a few clicks. 

Step 1: Open an account

Just click on a registration button and enter basic information like mobile number, email address, and country of origin. After this information is in, clients will be redirected to the main dashboard where they can further verify and complete their accounts or open a demo account right away. There is also a web trader to access the demo account quickly and easily to start testing the waters. 

Step 2: Time to verify your account

Verification consists of several steps. It will be necessary to verify your email address and complete your trading profile. After these steps, it is possible to open a live trading account. But in order to increase your deposit and withdrawal limit of 100 USD, full verification is required by providing proof of identity as per their KYC policy and proof of address with a copy of a bank statement or utility bill. 

Step 3: Make your deposit and start trading

After the verification process has been completed it is easy to open a live account and start trading. The funding methods supported include all the popular methods like bank transfers, Bitcoin, credit/debit cards, crypto, e-wallets, Neteller, POLi, PayPal, and Skrill. With the funding methods being this many, the only challenge is to find your favorite method and start trading. 

Comparing CM Globals fees with other brokers

CM Globals fees compared to Interactive Brokers fees

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

CM Globals fees compared to CM Trading fees

CM Globals fees compared to plus500 fees

CM Globals fees compared to XM fees

CM Globals fees compared to AvaTrade fees

CM Globals fees compared to Capital.com fees

The main trading platform that CM Glboals offer to its traders is MetaTrader 5, and numerous useful features are included in CM Globals’ MetaTrader 5 platform. There are three versions available encompassing all the available devices and clients can log in with the same credentials to all three platforms of the WebTrader, Android app, or desktop software. It is worth mentioning that the co-mobile app is down at the moment and is impossible to download from the Android store and test it. It seems the company is still developing and testing its proprietary platform and the standard MT5 is the best platform before it becomes available. 

CM Globals is a broker that focuses on providing its traders with educational materials which can be used by beginners. The educational resources are sorted in an easy-to-understand and follow manner. Fundamental analysis, technical analysis, trading psychology, and advanced technical analysis are topics covered in the dedicated education section of CM Globals. With these topics, beginners can have a basic understanding of the dynamics of the Forex markets and start practicing on a demo account. There are no tools or custom indicators offered by the broker as of now. 

Customer support is available 24/5, but only in English and there are several options to contact the broker’s representatives directly. There is no live chat option which is a downside, but the available methods include visiting physical offices in 4 cities. One office is in Ottawa and Sydney, and two offices are in Melbourne. It is possible to call the broker representatives or leave a message. Email support is also available. 

CM Globals is a Forex and CFD broker regulated in Australia and Canada. The broker is relatively young but has already managed to establish a 150,000+ client base which is not an easy feat for any broker. By obtaining licenses from regulators in Canada and Australia the broker is secure and somewhat flexible, offering leverage of up to 1:500 to international clients. But the broker has high spreads and it will require 10,000 USD or more on your trading account to get spreads from 0.8 pips on major pairs. There are no commissions for trading Forex and trades will have to pay the spread markups. All popular trading asset classes are offered to CM Globals’ clients, including CFDs on stocks, Forex, cryptos, indices, and commodities. The 43 currency pairs will make it possible to find almost any preferable currency and can be attractive for Forex day traders and swing traders. Scalpers won't find this broker useful as spreads are high on all trading accounts. The only trading platform offered is MT5 and it is available on almost all platforms. Customer support lacks the live chat feature and there are no trading tools available as of now. But the broker is relatively young, it is likely they will develop over time and offer even more attractive services and customer support in the future.