Axi Broker Review

Axi is a reputable online Forex and CFD broker that offers a wide range of trading instruments across multiple asset classes, including currencies, commodities, indices, equities, and others. The broker offers some of the best trading conditions to beginners and experienced traders, as well as high volume traders.

In this broker review, we will pay attention to the critical aspects of Axi, which you may consider before deciding whether to trade with this online brokerage.

Key Pros and Cons

Let us first provide a quick snapshot of Axi’s advantages and disadvantages.

Company Information

Axi Group is comprised of the following corporate entities with their respective regulated offices:

1. AxiCorp Financial Services Pty. Ltd., regulated by the ASIC: office address: Bay 5, 6 Middlemiss Street, Lavender Bay, NSW 2060, Australia
2. AxiCorp Financial Services Pty. Ltd., regulated by the FCA: 36 – 38 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3A 1AT, United Kingdom.
3. Axi (Saint Vincent and Grenadines), regulated by the FSA: office address: Suite 305, Griffith Corporate Centre, PO Box 1510, Beachmont Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
4. Axi (South Africa), office address: 61 Katherine Street, Dennehof, Sandton, 2196, South Africa.

Note that Axi does not accept clients from certain countries, including the United States, New Zealand, and Australia.

Why Trade with Axi?

Now, let us provide a quick list of the key features that we like about Axi.

Regulation

Axi is a reputable broker that is regulated in various jurisdictions:
In its headquarters — Australia — Axi is authorized and regulated by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) with the AFSL number: 318232. This is a solid regulatory authority in Australia.

In the United Kingdom, Axi operates as AxiCorp Limited, which is registered in England and Wales under registration number 06378544. AxiCorp is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), with Reference Number: 509746.

Axi’s operations in other parts of the world are handled by AxiTrader Limited (AxiTrader), which is incorporated in St Vincent and the Grenadines (registration number 25417 BC 2019) by the Registrar of International Business Companies and registered by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This regulation is by the FSA cannot be considered as strong as those of the ASIC and FCA.

A breakdown of the various regulatory regimes is presented below.

With strict ASIC and the FCA regulations, we can say that the broker’s regulation is solid.

However, it is lacking CFTC regulation, so Axi cannot provide its services to US citizens or residents.

We should also note that the broker does not accept clients from New Zealand and Australia.

It is important to note that its FCA regulation means UK-based retail clients will be able to receive compensation of up to GBP 85,000 from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if Axi’s UK arm fails to meet its financial obligations.

KYC Procedure for Account Creation and Depositing

It is easy to create a live trading account with Axi. The entire procedure took us less than 10 minutes, while our live account was verified within 24 hours. Overall, the entire account creation process followed the industry-standard procedure, involving the following steps:

1. Setting up your login – You enter a valid email and choose a password
2. Filling your details – you input your names, date of birth, city of residence, address, postcode, and phone number
3. Choosing your trading account – Choose your preferred trading platform and account type (Standard, Pro, and Islamic)
4. Checking your suitability status – Following the industry standard, Axi will ask about your employment and sources of income, as well as your trading experience. If you are approved based on your answers, you can proceed to the next step of the process, but if any of your answers do not match the broker’s internal requirements, your application will be rejected;
5. Ticking the declaration box — You tick necessary boxes which indicates that you agree to Axi’s Terms and Conditions
6. Verifying your documents — You provide your proof of ID (Passport, or National ID card, or Driver’s License) and proof of residency (utility bill or bank account statement that is less than 3 months) for Axi to verify your account.

Account verification may take up to 24 hours to be completed. After filling in the account creation forms and uploading the relevant documents, you will have to wait until the broker verifies your account. When your trading account is verified, you are welcome to fund your trading account using any of the payment methods available on the broker’s website. The website is encrypted to ensure the safety of your personal information.

Account Types

The broker offers various live trading account options. All the accounts share similar features; for instance, they have the same base currencies: AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, NZD, SGD, and USD. Traders should determine the account that best suits their individual needs and trading style. The available trading account options include the following:

Islamic Account

Axi also offers a swap-free account type for clients of the Muslim faith who do not want to earn or pay interest. With this account, trades in all available instruments will not incur nor be paid any swap or interest, in accordance with Sharia law.

Demo Account

The demo account is a practice account that comes loaded with virtual funds for practice purposes only. It is beneficial for beginners and experienced traders alike. While new traders can use it to test the broker’s platforms before committing real cash, experienced traders can use it to test their trading strategies before implementing them on the live trading accounts.

Trading fees and other costs

As a trader, you will always consider a broker’s trading fees and other costs before deciding whether to trade with them. Just like other CFD and Forex brokers, there are main types of trading fees to keep in mind when trading with Axi, and they include:

• Trading fees – spreads, commissions, and overnight financing rates;
• Non-trading fees – account management fees, deposit and withdrawal fees, non-activity fees.

Let us provide a breakdown of those two categories and see how Axi has positioned itself on this front.

Spreads

Similar to other major competitor brokers, there are two different pricing models on Axi’s main account types:

• Standard Account – all-inclusive spread only;
• Pro Account – ultra-thin spreads (starting from 0.0 pips) + a commission of USD 7.0 per round turn.

Let us take a look at the average spreads offered on both account types:

There is a mark-up (of 0.9 pips) to the average spread on Axi’s Standard Account to cover the costs of trading the EUR/USD pair.
Now, let us compare the trading costs for the two account types. Let us have a 1 Lot trade on EUR/USD (one pip movement equals $10). Let us assume that the trade is opened and closed at the same price. By using the average spreads, the trading costs for the two accounts will be:

So, the Pro Account is cheaper to trade with.

Finally, let us compare Axi Standard Account average spreads with those other major brokerages offer on the three most actively traded Forex pairs.

From the above, we can easily deduce that the spreads offered by Axi are within the range of those offered by the big names in the industry, such as IC Markets and IG Markets.

Commissions

Axi does not charge any commissions on the Standard account. On the Pro account, on the other hand, the broker charges a commission of $3.50 per lot per side ($7 round trip).

This means:

• for a 1 Standard Lot trade (100,000 units), you will pay a $7.0 commission to open and close the position;
• for a 1 Mini Lot trade (10,000 units), you will pay a $0.7 commission to open and close the position;
• for a 1 Micro Lot trade (1,000 units), you will pay a $0.07 commission to open and close the position.

A $7.0 commission for a 1 Lot trade is similar to what other brokers such as IC Markets will charge, but it is not the lowest in the industry. An equivalent trade on a zero spread account with Fusion Markets will incur a $4.50 commission per round turn, which is, at present, among the most competitive offers within the industry.

Financing charges

A Swap Rate is defined as an overnight or rollover interest (that is earned or paid) for holding positions overnight in foreign exchange trading.

At Axi, traders can see the swap charges for a currency position by logging into their MT4 platform and taking the following steps:

1. Right-click on a pair in the ‘Market Watch’ panel Select ‘Symbols’
2. Choose the symbol you wish to view, then select ‘Properties’. Next, the features of the currency pair, including the relevant swap rates, will be displayed

Deposit fees

Axi will not charge any deposit fees; this has already become a fairly standard practice among major brokerages – for more details see Deposit Methods

Withdrawal fees

Axi will also not charge any withdrawal fees on all payment options available. For international bank wire transfers, your bank may charge you a receiving fee; this non-transactional fee is your responsibility – for more details see Withdrawal Methods

Inactivity fees

Axi will not charge an inactivity fee if there has been a period of no trading activity on your account. With many of the large brokerages, you will usually incur such a charge. This is an exciting plus for Axi.

Overall on Fees

Axi offers very raw spreads, fair commission fees, and there are no additional fees on top of overnight financing charges. Also, there are no non-trading costs, which is a beneficial feature for traders.

But we may not give Axi a 100% pass mark overall on fees since their commission fees of $7 per round turn are high compared to some of their competitors, such as Fusion Markets.

Desktop Trading Platforms

The broker provides traders with the popular MT4 trading platform.

MetaTrader 4

Axi allows traders to use the world’s most popular trading platform, MT4, to trade the over 150 trading products it offers. The MT4 trading platform is available as a desktop application for Windows and Mac computers, WebTrader, and a mobile app that is compatible with Android and iOS devices. The WebTrader can be accessed through all popular web browsers, such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge.

Some exciting features you will enjoy from this platform include live price quotes, real-time charting, good drawing tools, various technical indicators for better analysis, flexible chart setups, the one-click trading option, decent expert advisors, and more.

In addition, Axi’s MT4 platform will also grant you access to:

1. Autochartist: this tool allows you to stay on top of your game. It is an advanced trading software that automatically scans the market and spots opportunities – with insights formulated from market movements.
2. PsyQuation with Axi: The PsyQuation works like your own private trading coach, analyzing trades, identifying potential mistakes, and giving you tailored alerts to improve profitability.
3. MT4 NexGen: This is a unique plugin that is explicitly designed for Axi clients. The MT4 NexGen provides you with enhanced ordering, sentiment trading, and management tools.
4. MT4 VPS hosting: The MT4 hosting service allows traders to get 24/7 connectivity, which is ideal for automated and copy trades with guaranteed uninterrupted trading and executions.

Even more, Axi’s MetaTrader 4 platform offers you the following benefits:

1. Reliable and fast order execution
2. Competitive pricing across the broker’s entire Forex and CFD product list
3. An easy-to-fill order panel that allows you to trade micro-lots
4. Trailing stop loss orders

Copy-trading with Axi

Axi offers various copy-trading tools, and they include:

1. Myfxbook Autotrade: This advanced plugin allows you to follow top traders and mirror their trades. Myfxbook Autotrade lets you copy trade directly into your MT4 account while remaining in complete control.
2. MT4 signals: With the MT4 signals, traders can easily discover leading global traders and follow their approach.

Mobile Trading Platforms

Axi’s traders are allowed to trade various financial assets from the convenience of their mobile devices through a mobile trading app.
Interestingly, the MT4 mobile app is designed to effortlessly narrow down the full functionality of the desktop platform to the small screens of mobile smartphones.

Axi’s MetaTrader mobile app for Android devices is user-friendly and offers all the major features with flexibility and portability. For example, it features real-time interactive charts with popular technical indicators. Users can trade real-time Forex and CFD quotes, and all trade orders (including pending orders) are allowed. The app requires Android 5.0 or later.

Similar features can be seen on the broker’s MetaTrader mobile app for iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod touch). The app requires iOS 9.0 or later.

Note that Axi currently does not offer a proprietary mobile trading app, just like some of its peers, such as IC Markets.

Trading Instruments

Apart from Forex trading, Axi allows traders to buy and sell over 150 financial instruments across different asset classes. But, 130 financial instruments cannot compare with what its major competitors, such as IG or IC Markets, offer. Also, we found that Axi has a bit limited diversity of asset classes, as it does not offer CFDs on bonds, futures, options, or interest rates.

Let us now take a closer look at the product list.

Forex

Axi offers over 70 forex currency pairs. These are spread across the major, minor and exotic currency pairs. So, with Axi, you have multiple options. Trading Forex with Axi gives you several advantages, including security and negative balance protection.

One of the fascinating things about trading forex with Axi is its competitive trading conditions, including leverage of up to 1:500 (1:30 for the UK and EU retail traders), raw spreads, and competitive pricing due to its diverse liquidity mix and advanced ECN execution technology. For example, you can trade major Forex pairs with spreads of as low as 0.1 pips on Axi’s Pro Account, while the average spreads on the Standard Account is also fair at 0.09 pips on EUR/USD (when compared with its peers such as IC Markets and FP Markets).

CFDs

Axi provides access to many markets, featuring over 50 financial instruments to trade as CFDs. Whether you’re trading for the first time or looking for new ways to diversify your investment portfolio, CFDs can open a world of opportunities with margins as low as 1%, no brokerage fees, and no commission on standard accounts.

With Axi, you can trade CFDs online with 500:1 leverage, deposit and withdraw anytime, with zero commission, and enjoy super competitive spreads with ultra-fast execution speed. Axi offers CFD trading in stocks, indices, commodities, precious metals and cryptocurrencies ( Bitcoin, Dash, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple ).
However, it does not offer Futures CFDs, Options CFDs, Interest Rate CFDs, and other more complex instruments that are designed for professional traders in particular.

Stock CFDs

Traders who are looking to profit from some of the world’s most popular stocks can consider trading stock CFDs with Axi. The broker offers commission-free stock trading.

A stock CFD mirrors the actual performance of an underlying stock. For example, the Apple shares CFD follows the Apple Inc. (AAPL) stock price.

When you invest in stocks, you pay the total price up-front to take some ownership of an asset and can only profit when the price of the stock increases. However, when you trade stock CFDs, you’re simply betting on the price movements, so you have the advantage of profiting from price movements in any direction.

And since share CFDs also allow you to apply leverage, you don’t need large amounts of capital to gain the benefits of trading some of the world’s biggest stocks.

Axi offers a wide range of stocks that represent a large number of trading opportunities for traders. Axi currently offers 50 share CFDs across the UK, the US, and European markets. Axi charges 0% commission for share CFDs. They provide some of the most competitive prices on Share CFDs, allowing traders to maximize their investment opportunities with leverage of up to 20:1.

Indices CFDs

An index is a financial product that tracks the performance of an entire market, a market sector, or a specific group of assets. Trading indices is generally considered safer than trading individual stocks since no single company can sharply influence the overall price of the index.

Axi allows traders to invest in over 30 of the most globally traded stock market indices, including DOW, S&P 500, DAX 30, FTSE 100, EURO STOXX 50, and NASDAQ 100, as CFDs. The broker charges zero commission for trading index CFDs and offers competitive spreads that start from 0.2 points. In addition, the broker offers leverage of up to 1:500 (1:30 for UK and EU retail clients).

Commodity CFDs

Commodity trading is the buying and selling of raw materials, such as crude oil, wheat, corn, rice, and so on, which are important to the global economy. Crude oil is the most traded energy instrument on this broker’s platform.

When you trade commodities with Axi, you are not buying a physical asset such as a barrel of oil. Instead, you simply bet on the direction of price movements of the underlying asset through CFDs. This means you can profit whether the price is going up and when it’s going down, and the broker offers leverage of up to 1:100 (1:30 for UK and EU retail clients).

Precious Metals

Axi allows traders to invest in a range of precious metals, including gold, silver, and copper, with super-competitive spreads, fast execution speed, and leverage of up to 1:500 (1:30 for the UK and EU retail clients). The most popular precious metals are the Bullion Spot CFDs: gold, silver, and platinum, against the US dollar (Symbols XAU/USD – XAG/USD – XPT/USD).

Bullion Spot CFDs are also accessible against other quote currencies, such as the Australian dollar, Swiss franc, Euro, and British pound. In addition, precious metals are also available in the form of commodity futures CFDs. With these instruments, traders and investors can gain exposure to gold, silver, and copper futures markets.

Cryptocurrency CFDs

When you trade cryptocurrency CFDs with Axi, you don’t have to invest directly in the product. Instead, you’re simply trading on the real-time price movements in the market. So, while you don’t own the underlying crypto, you can benefit from the price movement in any direction.

With Axi, you can trade leading cryptocurrency CFDs, including Bitcoin, Dash, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple, from your MT4 platform without the need for a digital wallet. Axi offers low spreads, zero commissions, and leverage of up to 1:5.

Trade Execution

Backed with the reliable MT4 trading platform, Axi offers you the confidence that your trade will be delivered at a very fast speed.
Axi offers a reliable ECN execution of trade orders with no dealing desk intervention. An ECN model of operation boosts client trust and allows for breakneck execution speeds. For more than a decade, Axi has built strong relationships with top liquidity providers around the world. The broker can deliver you a more reliable trading service with better pricing and faster execution speeds thanks to these trusted partnerships.

Axi believes that traditional ECN connections are too slow for today’s traders; layers of networks, cables, firewalls, and third-party platforms only add latency which costs the trader. To mitigate that, Axi goes directly to over 20 top-tier liquidity providers and uses co-located servers in key locations worldwide. As a result, the broker makes use of a shorter, therefore faster, connection. This simple approach results in faster execution, more accurate pricing, and minimal slippage. Another benefit of Axi’s execution model is direct order filling with no requites.

Axi gives you access to various VPS providers. VPS hosting ensures fast execution and no downtime by making sure your platform keeps running 24 hours a day. One of Axi’s VPS partners is ForexVPS, which offers state-of-the-art SSD drives located in New York. For the Basic VPS edition, Axi will cover up to $34.99 of the monthly fee if you trade more than 20 lots in a calendar month. Another VPS option is MetaTrader VPS, which is offered by MetaQuotes at $10.00 per month.

Deposits

Axi requires a minimum deposit of $0 for all live account types, and it will not charge any fees on deposits. However, as with many brokers, you should be aware that there may be charges from the payment providers, which are beyond Axi’s control.

The broker supports the following base currencies: AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, NZD, SGD, and USD. The various base currencies are beneficial as they help curb the potential costs related to foreign exchange conversion.

The broker offers a generous selection of deposit methods, including:

Currently, there are no deposit bonuses available with this brokerage.

Withdrawal Methods

It is easy to withdraw funds from your Axi trading account: you can simply log in to the secure client portal to withdraw your funds:

If you have not made a withdrawal before, please note that all requests will be processed within 1-2 business days upon receipt.

The broker does not guarantee the same-day receipt of funds, as processing times are subject to the receiving bank processes outside their control. For instance, international transfers may take between 2 – 5 days.

Axi does not support third-party remittances following Anti-Money Laundering / Counter-Terrorism Financing law.

For international bank wire transfers, your bank may charge you a receiving fee. This non-transactional fee is your responsibility; please check with your bank if you are unsure. Also, the broker will require Proof of Identity and Proof of Source of Funds before processing withdrawals through international transfers.

Customer Support Contacts

Axi offers a knowledgeable client support team that is polite and responsive. The support is available 24 hours a day, five days a week — from Mondays to Fridays. You can contact the broker’s support team through any of the following channels:

1. Live Chat – This is an interesting channel that allows you to chat with the broker’s support team live. You will find this as a “Help” icon at the lower-right corner of the website. When you click on the icon, a chatbot will respond first to direct you to resources that can answer your question. Then, a “Get in touch” button appears through which you can chat with the customer support team live.
2. Telephone contact – You can also contact the broker’s support team but over the phone only during local business hours. Here are phone numbers for the broker’s offices in various cities:
   • Australia – 1300 888 936
   • China – 400 8907839
   • Germany – 0800 7244085
   • Hong Kong – 800 903 578
   • Indonesia – 0018030164060
   • Malaysia – 1800 81 6529
   • New Zealand – 0800 7244085
   • Singapore – 800 120 6765
   • Spain – 80 060 01 30
   • Thailand – 001800120664622
   • United Kingdom – 0800 018 3306

   When we contacted the broker’s Australian office during local business hours, we got a response in up to 3 minutes. The response from the customer support team was polite and offered all the information we were looking for.

3. Email Contact: You can send specific inquiries to the following email addresses:
   • Support: service@axi.com

   After emailing the support team during business hours, we got a reply to our queries within a few hours.

4. Submit Request: This is another contact option on Axi’s website. It is a form you can input some of your details and your query. The support team will either send you an email or contact you over the phone or WhatsApp contact within 24 hours.
5. Knowledge Base: This is a comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions. They answer some of the clients’ most common questions about account and billing, markets, MT4, trading accounts, and so on.

We should also mention some of Axi’s awards for their satisfactory services:

• Best MT4 Forex Broker: atozmarkets.com, 2019
• Best Forex Broker Europe: forex-awards.com, 2019
• Best Forex Broker Middle East: forex-awards.com, 2019
• Best EMEA Region Broker: ADVFN International Financial Awards, 2020

While Axi offers a good support service, they do not deserve our top mark here since they do not offer support service over the weekend (only Mondays to Fridays), unlike peers such as IC Markets.

Research and Educational Materials

Axi offers a good selection of learning resources to help traders make knowledgeable trading decisions. Their range of educational resources includes MT4 Video Tutorials, Seminars & Webinars, Free eBooks, Axi Blog, Axi Academy, and more. Here is what you will find:

1. A rich blog containing various market analyses and educational content
2. A news section that keeps traders up to date with the latest events in the markets.
3. Video tutorials on the following topics:
   • How to install MetaTrader 4
   • Manage open trades in the MT4 terminal
   • Basic functions of MT4
   • MetaTrader 4 Navigator
   • Place a trade in MetaTrader 4
   • Types of orders in MT4
   • How to use Market Watch
   • Loading charts to MetaTrader
   • Backtesting with Axi MetaTrader
4. Free webinars are conducted regularly, where you can access live analysis from Axi experts and acquire new skills in real-time.
5. Ebooks on various trading topics

Security and Money Guarantees

At bestbrokers.com, we recommend that traders only transact with well-regulated online brokers, and Axi is one of such. Our key findings include:

• Over a decade of business history and growth
• Top-tier ASIC and FCA regulation
• FSCS and ICF compensation for UK and EU clients
• Award-winning brokerage

The FCA and ASIC are top-tier regulatory authorities that provide traders with the assurance that a company is fully transparent and ethical in its business dealings. Tier 1 regulation also mandates that all client funds are kept fully segregated from the broker’s corporate accounts in client trust accounts at top-rated banks. This way, the risk of fraudulent behavior by the brokerage is kept at a minimum.

Also, UK-based retail clients’ funds are insured via the Financial Services Compensation Scheme in the event of broker insolvency, as we discussed earlier in the review.

Finally, the broker has bagged several industry awards from Forex-Awards.com, Atozmarkets.com, ADVFN International Financial Awards, and more. Some of the awards include Best MT4 Forex Broker, Best Forex Broker Europe, Best Forex Broker Middle East, and Best EMEA Region Broker.

Conclusion

Overall, our team of experts at BestBrokers.com believes that Axi may be a good choice for both beginners and professional traders who are looking to trade with fair and favorable trading conditions. Our reasons for this verdict include:

• Fair pricing
• Raw spreads, high liquidity, flexible leverage
• Innovative trading technology
• Lightning-fast execution via the MT4 platform
• Award-winning 24/5 customer service
• Free education to sharpen your skills
• Self-service portal and multilingual support
• Fully licensed and regulated since 2010

E. Ifeanyi