Axi Review 2021

Axi has low forex, but average CFD fees. The non-trading fees are low: no withdrawal or inactivity fees are charged.

We ranked Axi's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.

To get things rolling, let's go over some lingo related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees, and non-trading fees.

• Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
• Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.

In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of Axi for each asset class. For example, in the case of forex and stock index trading, the most important fees are spreads, commissions and financing rates.

We also compared Axi's fees with those of two similar brokers, Pepperstone and IC Markets. This selection is based on objective factors, such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of Axi alternatives.

To have a clear overview of Axi, let's start with the trading fees. 

Axi trading fees

Axi has low trading fees. There are two account types, each with cost structures. We tested the Pro account in this review, which has low spreads and commission fees. 

We know it's hard to compare trading fees for forex brokers. So how did we approach the problem of making their fees clear and comparable? We compare brokers by calculating all the fees of a typical trade for selected products.

We have chosen popular instruments in each asset class usually provided by forex brokers:

• Forex: EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDUSD, EURCHF and EURGBP
• Stock index CFDs: SPX and EUSTX50

A typical trade means buying a leveraged product, holding it for one week and then selling. For the volume, we chose a $20,000 position for forex and a $2,000 position for stock index and stock CFD transactions. The leverage we used is:

• 30:1 for forex
• 20:1 for stock index CFDs

These catch-all benchmark fees include spreads, commissions and financing costs for all brokers. Let's see the verdict for Axi's fees.

Forex fees

Forex fees at Axi are low, however, you can find similarly priced alternatives. We show you Pepperstone and IC Markets as an example. For Pro accounts, there's a $3.5 charge per traded lot, and a much lower spread cost. For Standard accounts, spreads are much wider.

CFD fees

Axi has average CFD trading fees.

Non-trading fees

Axi has no non-trading fees. It charges no account, inactivity or withdrawal fees.

Account opening at Axi is user-friendly and fully digital, but it takes a bit longer than at similar online brokers.

Can you open an account?

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What is the minimum deposit at Axi?

Axi doesn't require a minimum deposit.

Account types

Axi differentiates its accounts based on two things: who owns them and what fee structure is applied.

Based on ownership, there are three types of accounts:

• Individual - account is owned by an individual
• Joint - account is owned by multiple individuals
• Corporate - account is owned by a legal entity

Accounts can differ in fee structure, too:

• Standard account - no commission fees, generally higher spreads 
• Pro account - $7 round trip commission, generally lower spreads

There's also an option to open an Islamic account.

In this review, we have tested the individual Pro account. 

How to open your account

Creating an account is easy and fully digital, but it took 2 business days until our account was approved.

The steps of account opening at Axi are the following:

1. Provide personal information, like your email address and country of residence
2. Select the account type
3. Answer a couple of questions that assess your level of understanding of trading
4. Verify your identity and residency by uploading either a copy of your ID card, driver's license or passport, and uploading a copy of a recent utility bill or bank statement

Axi charges neither deposit nor withdrawal fees. For deposits, you can use bank transfer, credit/debit cards and electronic wallets. However, you can only withdraw via wire transfers and e-wallets.

Account base currencies

At Axi, you can choose from 11 base currencies. These are the following:

Axi has a good base currency selection compared to Pepperstone and IC Markets.

A convenient way to save on currency conversion fees is by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank. These usually offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates, as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account only takes a few minutes on your phone.

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Deposit fees and options

Axi charges no deposit fees. 

Besides bank transfer, you can use credit/debit cards, broker-to-broker transfer and several electronic wallets, including:

The methods are available in different currencies and for different residents.

A bank transfer can take several business days, while payments with a credit/debit card or electronic wallets are instant.

You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name.

Axi withdrawal fees and options

Axi charges no withdrawal fees and has several withdrawal options. However, if you deposited with a debit/credit card you can only withdraw funds to your bank account and in the case of electronic wallets, you can only withdraw to the wallet you used for depositing. While the $0 withdrawal fee is definitely a big plus, withdrawal options are a bit more limited compared to some competitors, like Pepperstone or IC Markets.

How long does it take to withdraw money from Axi? We tested the bank transfer withdrawal and it took 2 business days.

How do you withdraw money from Axi? You can withdraw money from Axi by following these steps:

• Log in to the Client Portal
• Select 'Withdraw Funds'
• Choose the withdrawal method
• Add your bank account details, like IBAN and Swift code (if you haven't done it before)
• Enter the amount you wish to withdraw
• Initiate the withdrawal

Compare to other brokers

The web trading platform of Axi (provided by MetaTrader) is highly customizable and has a clear fee report. On the other hand, its design is outdated and it lacks a two-step login and price alerts.

Axi does not have its own self-developed trading platform, it uses MetaTrader 4, a third-party platform. To access it, first, you have to log in to a completely redesigned client platform. The new layout is great, however, it can be really slow. There were times, when accessing certain menus took ages, with the whole page frozen, while loading.

MetaTrader 4 is available in an exceptionally large number of languages.

Look and feel

Axi's web trading platform has great customizability. You can easily change the size and the position of the tabs.

However, the platform feels outdated and some features are hard to find. For example, it took some time until we found how to add an asset to the watchlist.

Login and security

Axi provides only a one-step login. A two-step authentication would be more secure.

You can't use a biometric login. Providing this feature would be more convenient.

Search functions

The search functions are average. You can find the assets in categories. However, we missed the usual search function, when you can type the asset's name manually.

Placing orders

You can use basic order types, but will not find more sophisticated ones, like 'one-cancels-the-other'. The following order types are available:

• Market
• Limit
• Stop
• Trailing Stop

Trailing Stop is available only in the MT4 desktop platform.

If you are not familiar with order types, read this overview.

There are also order time limits you can use:

• Good 'til canceled (GTC)
• Good 'til time (GTT)

Alerts and notifications

You can't set alerts and notifications on the Axi web trading platform. This feature is available only on the desktop trading platform.

Portfolio and fee reports

Axi has clear portfolio and fee reports. You can easily see your profit-loss balance and the commissions you paid. These reports can be found under the 'History' tab. We didn't find a way to download them. However, all your monthly financial statements are available to download at the Client Portal. You should click on 'Financial Statements' within the 'Trading Accounts' menu.

Axi sends your monthly financial statements automatically via email, too. 

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Axi has a great mobile trading platform, offered by MetaTrader 4. It is well-designed and user-friendly, with a good search function. However, it lacks a safer login.

Similarly to the web trading platform, Axi offers MetaTrader 4 as a mobile trading platform. MetaTrader 4 is available for both iOS and Android. We tested it on iOS.

After you download the MT4 mobile trading platform, you have to access the Axi-Live server. 

Just like at the web trading platform, you can choose from a lot of languages on the mobile trading platform too. Changing the language is a bit tricky on Android devices: you have to change the default language of your mobile.

Look and feel

Axi has a great mobile trading platform, we really liked its design and user-friendliness. You will easily find all the features.

Login and security

Similarly to the web trading platform, Axi provides only a one-step login. A two-step login would be safer.

You can't use fingerprint or Face ID authentication. Providing this feature would be more convenient.

Search functions

Placing orders

You can use the same order types and order time limits as the ones on the web trading platform. 

Alerts and notifications

You can set alerts and notifications, although only via the desktop trading platform. It would be much easier, if you could set these notifications on the mobile trading platform itself.

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In design and functionality, Axi's MetaTrader 4 desktop platform is almost the same as the web trading platform. One major difference is that you can set price alerts on it.

Axi offers MetaTrader 4 as a desktop trading platform.

It has the same design, is available in the same languages, offers the same order types plus Trailing Stop, has the same search functions, and offers the same portfolio and fee reports as the web trading platform.

The major difference is that you can set alerts and notifications in the form of mobile push and email notifications on the desktop trading platform. To set them, you have to add your email address and mobile MetaQuotes ID (you can find it in the MT4 app's settings), by going to the 'Tools' menu and then 'Options'.

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Axi only has forex products and CFDs in its selection.

Axi has a great selection of forex products. The stock index, commodity, and crypto CFD selection is average, while stock and ETF CFDs are not available.

Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 75.6% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

FCA bans the sale of crypto-derivatives to UK retail consumers from 6 January 2021.

You cannot change leverage levels if you are under FCA jurisdiction. For European clients, it is a fixed 1:30. For clients under different entities, it could be changed. 

Changing the leverage is a very useful feature, when you want to lower the risk of your trade. We think this is something you should be in control of. Be careful with forex and CFD trading, as the preset leverage levels may be too high.

Axi offers a social trading service via Forex Trading Signals on the MT4 platform.

At Axi, you can use the research tools of the MetaTrader 4 platform, which has no trading ideas or fundamental data. As a plus, there are alternative web tools, like a great economic calendar.

Axi's research tools have two sources:

• The MetaTrader trading platform
• 'Markets Blog' on its website

MetaTrader tools are available in multiple languages.

Trading ideas

Axi does not provide trading ideas.

Fundamental data

Axi does not offer fundamental data.

Charting

Axi has averge charting tools. These charting tools can be found on the MetaTrader trading platforms. You can use 31 technical indicators and other technical tools, such as trendlines or Fibonacci retracement.

On the other hand, the design is outdated and some features are hard to use. For example, we had difficulty in finding how to remove an indicator from the chart.

News feed

Axi has a news feed on its MetaTrader 4 platform. This is a great addition compared to similar CFD brokers. However, the news section lacks charts and other visual elements.

We liked the market analysis section, which can be found on the website under 'Markets Blog.'

An economic calendar is also provided with multiple filters, such as 'Country' or event 'Category'. All in all, nice touch. 

News are structured best on Axi's own site. The articles are of good quality and they are updated daily. 

Unfortunately, some articles are available only through the Australian and UK websites. If you are on the international website, you will only be able to access forex market analysis news and educational pieces. Also, the quantity of news differ from language to language - for example, news in Spanish only seems to be updated once a month.

PsyQuation

Axi clients are provided a lifetime access of PsyQuotetiuon Premium. PsyQuotation is a AI driven analystics platform to help you discover strategies that would work on MT4. There are many tools to choose from - from 'Order Flow Sentiment Indicator Charts' to a 'Twitter vs Rates' tool, which shows how Twitter news affect symbol price changes. Below, you can see the tools and their short descriptions.

• OFSI chart: shows the order flow sentiment indicator for multiple symbols
• OFSI table: the indicator is showed in a table form instead of a chart
• Intraday moves: you can check how closely related symbols are in their movements
• Lot sizing & risk calculator: helps you to calculate the probability of reaching a particuler stop loss/take profit value
• Price journey: shows symbols that save a large intraday move, with explanation on the event
• Account benchmark: scores your trading account based on numerous criteria
• MAE/MFE: helps your exit strategy with Maximum Adverse Excursion and Maximum Facourable Excursion
• Symbols correlations: similar to 'Intraday moves', it helps you see the correlation between symbols' movement
• Yearly price journey: comparative movement journey of a symbol return in comparison with others 
• Lead lag: you can explore the lead/lag relationship visually between symbols
• Twitter vs. rates: you can see how Twitter news affect symbol price changes
• Yield curve analysis: you can examine the yield curve and spreads of differnet countries over time

Compare research pros and cons

Axi is reachable via phone, live chat, and emails, too. The answers are mostly relevant in a quick manner. On the other hand, it is 24/5 only.

You can contact Axi via:

• Live chat
• Phone
• Email

Axi has a fast live chat, an agent is connected almost immediately. However, the answers were semi-relevant, as our operator proceeded with another issue, not with our main question. There was also a time, when our operator gave false info on the fees of CFD indexes.

Axi's phone support was average-speed and we got relevant answers. In all our tests, the operator was really helpful and gave us a broader context to our questions.

Via email, we received relevant answers in okayish speed.

We missed 24/7 availability. Axi's customer support is only a 24/5 service.

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Axi does a great job when it comes to education. You can use a demo account, watch high-quality educational videos and read great ebooks. On the other hand, not all contents are translated.

At Axi you can learn in the following ways:

• Demo account
• Platform tutorial videos
• General educational videos
• Quality educational articles
• Ebooks

You can find the primary educational tools under the 'Learn to Trade' menu from the top of the front page. There are educational articles in 'Markes Blog' as well, which are up-to-date and well-written.

The general educational videos have great quality and cover a lot of topics, like trading psychology and forex trading. You can download multiple high-quality ebooks as well.

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Axi is regulated by a number of top-tier financial authorities. It is a well-established brand but it is not listed on any exchange and it doesn't hold a banking license.

Is Axi regulated?

Yes, it is regulated by a number of authorities and bodies throughout the world:

• the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA)
• the Financial Service Authority of St. Vincent and the Grenadines (FSA)

Being regulated by a top-tier financial authority is a great sign for Axi safety. On the other hand, note that Axi's license has been suspended in New Zealand by the country's regulator, the Financial Markets Authority, since July 29, 2019. You can read more about the suspension here.

Axi is based in Australia and was founded in 2007. 

Is Axi safe?

To be certain, we highly advise that you check two facts:

• how you are protected if something goes wrong
• what the background of the broker is

How you are protected

Protection matters for you because the investor protection amount and the regulator differ from entity to entity.

Axi provides negative balance protection for forex spot and CFD trading, but only for retail clients from the European Union. Professional and non-EU clients are not covered with any negative balance protection.

Background

Axi was established in 2007. The longer track record a broker has, the more proof we have that it has successfully survived previous financial crises.

Find your safe broker

Axi is regulated by multiple authorities globally, like the UK's FCA and ASIC in Australia.

On the plus side, forex fees are low and no inactivity fee is charged. Deposits and withdrawals are also free of charge. Account opening is easy and fully digital, without any minimum deposit, which is also great.

AxiTrader has some drawbacks, though. Its product range is limited to FX and CFDs, and its research tools lack recommendations and fundamental data. In addition, customer support is only 24/5.

Feel free to try Axi, as the trading fees are low and there are no deposit, withdrawal or inactivity fees.
 

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