2. eToro Review
eToro primarily focus on forex trading and are offering an incredible joining bonus of up to $10 000 or £7 000. eToro also offer a great ‘tracker’ service, where you can automatically copy the trades of the most successful traders in the world.
eToro is regulated by the Cypriot Securities & Exchange commission and is a fairly new addition to the world of online forex trading, having come to the market in 2007. As well as providing easy access to 28 currency pairs and a handful of other markets, eToro is revolutionizing the industry with its impressive Openbook social feature that allows users to follow what other traders are doing and even copy their trades in real time. For beginners, this is an invaluable tool in which to find out what strategies work in the market and vastly speeds up their learning curve. For more advanced traders, there is still plenty to offer, not least the ability to earn extra commissions every time a user ‘copies’ their trades.
eToro Review
Setup
The minimum capital required to set up an account on eToro is an industry low at just $50, and with the ability to fund using Paypal, setting up an account on eToro takes just a few minutes. Withdrawal of money is a slightly longer process however, with a passport and utility bill usually needed to confirm identity.
Platform
eToro uses a web based platform for trading which for the most part is straightforward and easy to use. Charts, containing all the most popular technical indicators, are seamlessly integrated into the WebTrader and the ability to see a thumbnail of each market next to its price is a nice touch. There is also a mobile platform which allows trades to be entered into the market on the move.
The WebTrader, however, can be a bit slow at times and it is a shame there isn’t a standalone application that could be downloaded to the desktop.
Social Trading
With more than 1.5 million users worldwide, eToro is all about ‘social trading’ of currencies, commodities and indices online. The Education Centre offers a range of learning tools
including videos, guides, webinars and more) along with simple, clear and helpful guidance to help you learn about social Forex trading and to take advantage of the financial markets.
OpenBook is eToro’s flagship social trading platform that facilitates communication and the sharing of information among traders. For example, users are constantly exposed to automatically shared information known as Trading Feeds.
THEY SAY: “See who is trading what in real-time, follow the best performing traders and automatically copy what the best traders do. It’s the smarter way to trade.”
AN INDEXTRADER READER SAYS: “A very slick operation. ‘Guru Finder’ is a nice touch.”
Charts
The charts on eToro stand up against any other online broker and contain more technical indicators than most providers. Like the WebTrader, the charts can be a bit slow to respond and would benefit from a ‘trade on chart’ feature.
Commissions/ Spreads
eToro offers 28 currency pairs and a handful of other markets which is lower than most but does not charge any commissions on trades. As with most forex providers, commissions are earned through the spread which start as low as 2 pips for some pairs and is competitive within the industry.
Support
Support for eToro is good with a well laid out site and a handy online chat feature which is popular among users. With over 2.75 million users in 140 countries, the eToro community is also a good point of call for traders looking to get to grips with the site.
Pros
Unique Openbook trading
Tight spreads
400:1 leverage available
Good community of users
Low minimum deposits
Cons
No standalone application
Fairly limited range of markets
Interface can be slow
Conclusion
Although the WebTrader can be clunky at times and will not appeal to all, eToro stands out for its unique approach to ‘social’ trading. The ability to search for profitable traders by key metrics such as average profit, maximum drawdown and percentage of profitable weeks means that successful strategies can be sort and if need be copied in real time. Whether or not copying other people’s trades, or ‘mirror’ trading as it is sometimes called, is a winning strategy in the long run is up for debate. What is clear, however, is that this new approach to trading offers plenty of insight and guidance for beginners and experts alike.
Thanks for reading our eToro review. If you have experience in using the company, please tell us about your experiences below.
