Our take on FXCM
FXCM is a UK-based broker offering forex and CFD trading. FXCM's account opening process is straightforward, easy and fast. It has great technical research tools, including many technical indicators. The available educational content is high-quality. On the negative side, FXCM provides only CFDs (forex, indices, commodities, cryptos and shares), thus popular asset classes like real stocks or ETFs are missing. There is also a high fee for bank withdrawals. Lastly, the trading platforms don't offer safer two-step authentication. BrokerChooser gave FXCM a 4.4/5 rating based on analyzing 500+ criteria and testing via opening a live account.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Fast and straightforward account opening
|
• Limited product portfolio
|
|
• Good technical research tools
|
• High bank withdrawal fees
|
|
• High-quality educational content
|
• No two-step authentication on trading platforms
|
FXCM main highlights
| 🗺️ Country of regulation | UK, Australia, South Africa and Cyprus |
| 💰 Trading fees class | Low |
| 💰 Inactivity fee charged | Yes |
| 💰 Withdrawal fee amount | $0 |
| 💰 Minimum deposit | $50 |
| 🕖 Time to open an account | 1-3 days |
| 💳 Deposit with bank card | Available |
| 👛 With electronic wallet | Available |
| 💱 Number of base currencies | 4 |
| 🎮 Demo account provided | Yes |
| 🛍️ Products offered | CFDs (forex, indices, commodities, cryptos and shares) |
FXCM summary
FXCM review
Fees
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• No withdrawal fee
|
• Inactivity fee after one year
|
|
|
• High bank withdrawal fees
|
| Assets | Fee level | Fee terms |
|---|---|---|
| EURUSD | Low | The fees are built into the spread, 1.2 pips is the average spread cost during peak trading hours. |
| GBPUSD | Low | The fees are built into the spread, 1.4 pips is the average spread cost during peak trading hours. |
| S&P 500 CFD | Low | The fees are built into the spread, 0.4 points is the average spread cost during peak trading hours in 2021 Q4. |
| Inactivity fee | Low | $50 per year after one year of inactivity |
How we ranked fees
We ranked FXCM's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.
First, let's go over some basic terms 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 FXCM 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 FXCM's fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, Forex.com and Pepperstone. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of FXCM alternatives.
To have a clear overview of FXCM, let's start with the trading fees.
FXCM trading fees
FXCM trading fees are low.
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 chose 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 was:
- 30:1 for forex
- 20:1 for stock index CFDs
These catch-all benchmark fees includes spreads, commissions and financing costs for all brokers. Let's see the verdict for FXCM fees.
Forex fees
FXCM forex fees are generally low.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EURUSD benchmark fee | $15.9 | $5.9 | $13.9 |
| GBPUSD benchmark fee | $8.0 | $3.6 | $10.2 |
| AUDUSD benchmark fee | $12.6 | $5.6 | $8.8 |
| EURCHF benchmark fee | $2.7 | $5.8 | $2.1 |
| EURGBP benchmark fee | $14.2 | $7.1 | $10.5 |
CFD fees
FXCM has generally low CFD trading fees.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 index CFD fee | $2.8 | $1.2 | $2.3 |
| Europe 50 index CFD fee | $2.2 | $1.6 | $2.0 |
Non-trading fees
FXCM has average non-trading fees. There are no fees charged for account maintenance, deposit, or credit/debit card withdrawal.
However, there is an inactivity fee and bank withdrawal fees. The inactivity fee is $50 after a year of inactivity. The bank withdrawal fees depend on the currency and where your bank account is located.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | No | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | Yes | Yes | No |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
FXCM review
Account opening
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Fully digital
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• Slower than at most forex brokers
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• Low minimum deposit
|
|
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• User-friendly
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|
Can you open an account?
FXCM accepts customers from most countries around the world. There a few exceptions, like residents from the USA, Japan, Brazil, Turkey, Hong Kong, Iran, Cuba, Russia, New Zealand, Syria and South Korea.
What is the minimum deposit at FXCM?
The FXCM minimum deposit is $/€/£50 (via credit/depit card) for both account types. Active Trader accounts require a $25,000 minimum account equity.
Account types
FXCM offers two account types:
- Individual – Standard
- Individual – Active Trader
If you plan to trade in high volumes, FXCM's Active Trader account would be the best option for you. This provides better spreads and customer support compared to the standard accounts. For example, the EURUSD spread is 0.2 during Q1 2021 with the Active Trader account, compared to 1.3 at the Standard account.
Our best alternatives to FXCM are:
The highest ranking competitors are:
FXCM review
Deposit and withdrawal
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Credit/Debit card available
|
• High bank withdrawal fees
|
|
• No deposit fee
|
• No minor account base currencies are accepted
|
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• Free credit/debit card withdrawal
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|
Account base currencies
At FXCM, you can choose from 4 base currencies.
The available base currencies are: EUR, USD, GBP, CHF No minor currencies are accepted.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of base currencies | 4 | 7 | 9 |
This selection falls behind competing brokers. Both Forex.com and Pepperstone offer more base currencies.
Why does this matter? For two reasons. If you fund your trading account in the same currency as your bank account or you trade assets in the same currency as your trading account base currency, you don't have to pay a conversion fee.
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.
Deposit fees and options
FXCM charges no deposit fees. You can use the following deposit options:
- Bank transfer
- Credit/Debit card
- Skrill (not available for EU residents)
- Neteller (not available for EU residents)
- Unionpay
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | Yes | Yes | Yes |
A bank transfer can take several business days, while payment with a credit/debit card is instant.
You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name.
FXCM withdrawal fees and options
FXCM charges no withdrawal fees for credit/debit cards, but bank transfers may cost up to $40.
You can use bank transfer, debit/credit cards and electronic wallets for withdrawing funds.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank transfer | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Credit/debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Electronic wallets | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Withdrawal fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
The bank withdrawal fees depend on the currency and where the target bank account is located.
| Currency | Domestic | International |
|---|---|---|
| USD | $25 in the UK, France or US | $40 outside the UK, France or US |
| EUR (SEPA) | €0 for receiving accounts accepting SEPA | €0 for receiving accounts accepting SEPA |
| EUR (non-SEPA) | €15 in the UK, France, Germany or Italy | €30 outside the UK, France, Germany or Italy |
| GBP (BACS) | £0 for receiving accounts accepting SEPA | £0 for receiving accounts accepting SEPA |
| GBP (non-BACS) | £15 in the UK | £30 outside the UK |
| JPY | JPY 0 in Japan | JPY 3,000 outside Japan |
| CAD | CAD 25 in Canada | CAD 40 outside Canada |
| AUD | AUD 15 in Australia | AUD 30 outside Australia |
| NZD | NZD 15 in New Zealand | NZD 30 outside New Zealand |
| CHF | CHF 15 in Switzerland | CHF 30 outside Switzerland |
How long does it take to withdraw money from FXCM? We tested the credit card withdrawal and it took more than 3 business days.
You can only withdraw money to accounts that are registered under you name.
How do you withdraw money from FXCM?
- Log in to your account through myfxcm.com
- Once logged in, click on 'Withdraw Funds'
- Select your preferred withdrawal method
- Specify the amount of funds you want to withdraw
- Re-enter your password for security reasons and review your withdrawal
FXCM review
Web trading platform
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Good search function
|
• No two-step (safer) login
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• Good customizability (for charts, workspace)
|
• No price alerts
|
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• Good variety of order types
|
|
| Trading platform | Score | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Web | 3.3 stars | Yes |
| Mobile | 4.5 stars | Yes |
| Desktop | 3.8 stars | Yes |
With FXCM you can trade on many platforms (depending on your jurisdiction):
- Trading Station – FXCM's own self-developed trading platform
- MetaTrader 4 – a third-party trading platform designed for forex trading
- NinjaTrader – a US broker's platform, which has advanced charting and technical tools
- ZuluTrade – a trading platform for social (copy) trading
- TradingView – you can integrate FXCM into the TradingView platform and trade directly from there
In this review, we tested Trading Station, as this is FXCM's own platform.
FXCM's web trading platform is available in English, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Spanish, French and Arabic.
Look and feel
The FXCM web trading platform is relatively user-friendly. Important features, like account management or some research tools, are not integrated with the trading platform and you have to open separate web pages to use them.
On the other hand, the customizability is great and extremely advanced. Basically, the whole page consists of customizable widgets.
Login and security
FXCM provides only a one-step login. A two-step authentication would be safer.
Search functions
The search functions work well. You can search by using the traditional search field or by finding assets categorized by type, e.g. forex or commodity products.
You can find the Search function under the Subscription List menu.
Placing orders
You can use a wide range of order types on the FXCM platform:
- Market
- Limit
- Stop
- Stop trailing
- OCO (one-cancels-the-other)
To get a better understanding of these terms, read this overview of order types.
You can choose from several order time limit options:
- Good-til-date (GTD)
- Good-til-canceled (GTC)
- Immediate or cancel (IOC)
- Fill or kill (FOK)
Alerts and notifications
You can't set up price alerts or notifications on FXCM's Trading Station.
Portfolio and fee reports
There are clear portfolio and fee reports on the 'Reports' tab of the platform and at MyFXCM.
FXCM review
Mobile trading platform
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• User-friendly
|
• No two-step (safer) login
|
|
• Good search function
|
• No Touch/Face ID login
|
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• Good variety of order types
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|
With FXCM, you can use the following mobile trading platforms:
- Trading Station – FXCM's own mobile trading platform
- MetaTrader 4 – a third-party mobile trading platform
- ZuluTrade – a mobile trading platform for social (copy) trading
Similarly to FXCM's web trading platform, we tested FXCM's own mobile trading platform, Trading Station. It is available both for iOS and Android.
Trading Station is available in English, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Spanish, French and Arabic.
Look and feel
The FXCM mobile trading platform is user-friendly and well-designed. However, when we tested the platform on iOS, we felt that the platform's layout was not optimized for newer iOS versions.
Login and security
FXCM provides only a one-step login. A two-step authentication would be safer. Biometric authentication isn't available either.
Search functions
FXCM's search functions could be better. It is surprisingly difficult to find the search option, as the 'Settings' menu is not at all an obvious location for it – but that's where it is. Once you pass this hurdle, it works as a basic, bare-bones search field, with no predictive input or any other features.
Placing orders
You can set the same order types and order terms on the mobile platform as on the web trading platform.
Alerts and notifications
You can't set price alerts or notifications on the FXCM mobile platform.
FXCM review
Desktop trading platform
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
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• Clear fee report
|
• No two-step (safer) login
|
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• Good customizability (for charts, workspace)
|
|
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• Good variety of order types
|
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You can use Trading Station or MetaTrader 4 as FXCM's desktop trading platform. We tested FXCM's own desktop platform, Trading Station.
Trading Station is available in many languages:
| FXCM's desktop trading platform languages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arabic | English | French | German | Greek |
| Hebrew | Hungarian | Italian | Korean | Polsh |
| Portugese | Russian | Spanish | Turkish | |
Look and feel
Just like Trading Station's web version, the desktop trading platform has great customizability. It is fast and stable and its charting solution is really advanced. You can build and save your own layout.
However, first you need to get used to the logic of the platform before you can become a power-user. It is quite inconvenient that many functions, such as research, are not integrated with the platform.
Login and security
FXCM provides only a one-step login. A two-step authentication would be safer.
Search functions
The search function works well. You can search by typing in the name of the product, while there is also a categorized breakdown, for e.g. major currency pairs.
Placing orders
There are more order types on the desktop trading platform than on the web platform.
The following order types are available on the desktop platform:
- Limit
- Market
- Stop
- Stop loss
- Stop trailing
- OTO (One-Triggers-the-Other)
- OTOCO (One-Triggers-One-Cancels-the-Other)
- If-Then
- If-Then OCO (One-Cancels-the-Other)
There are also order time limits you can use: GTC, IOC and FOK.
Alerts and notifications
You can set price alerts or notifications on the desktop trading platform.
Portfolio and fee reports
The FXCM desktop platform has clear portfolio and fee reports.
FXCM review
Markets and products
FXCM is primarily a forex and CFD broker. To learn more about CFDs read our CFD trading tips.
Disclaimer: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% 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.
FXCM's CFD offering lags behind compared with the selected competitors.
| FXCM | Forex.com | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Currency pairs (#) | 45 | 91 | 62 |
| Stock index CFDs (#) | 15 | 18 | 25 |
| Stock CFDs (#) | 219 | 4,500 | 1,400 |
| ETF CFDs (#) | - | 20 | 110 |
| Commodity CFDs (#) | 12 | 26 | 32 |
| Bond CFDs (#) | 1 | 12 | - |
| Futures CFDs (#) | - | - | - |
| Cryptos (#) | 7 | 6 | 21 |
FCA bans the sale of crypto-derivatives to UK retail consumers from 6 January 2021.
You can't change the leverage levels of the products, which is a drawback. Changing the leverage manually is a very useful feature when you want to lower the risk of your trade. Be careful with forex and CFD trading, as the preset leverage levels may be high. Please note that leverage is a double-edged sword and can dramatically amplify your profits. It can also just as dramatically amplify your losses. Trading foreign exchange/CFDs with any level of leverage may not be suitable for all investors.
FXCM offers a social trading service via the third-party service ZuluTrade. Access is provided through ZuluTrade's own trading platform, where all you have to do is register with your FXCM account number.
FXCM review
Research
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
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• Good interactive chart
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• No fundamental data available
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• Trading ideas
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• Quality news flow
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Most FXCM research tools are available on the FXCM Plus platform, a separate portal that is not included in the trading platform. This makes it a bit inconvenient.
Trading ideas
FXCM provides trading ideas. You can find trading ideas through FXCM's Trading Signals and Technical Analyzer pages. They are based on technical analysis. Bear in mind that the trading ideas do not constitute and should not be regarded as an investment advice. You act on these information entirely at your own risk.
Fundamental data
FXCM does not offer data on asset fundamentals.
Charting
FXCM has outstanding charting tools. They are customizable and you can use over 50 technical indicators.
There is also a Market Scanner feature. This shows whether you should buy or sell, based on technical indicators like RSI or MACD. However, you can use it only for a few products.
News feed
You can read a quality news feed, sign up for a newsletter and use an economic calendar.
The news is available through the 'Global Market News' page. We liked that you can view search terms by category, like currency pairs or popular searches.
The economic calendar has a nice design, but it lacks a country filter option.
Other research tools you will enjoy
FXCM does a great job in algorithmic trading. It provides four APIs for free, and you can buy many others. The free APIs are REST API, FIX API, Java API and a ForexConnect API.
FXCM review
Customer service
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Phone support
|
• No 24/7 support
|
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• Fast response time
|
|
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• Live chat (depending on jurisdiction)
|
|
You can contact FXCM via:
- live chat (depending on jurisdiction)
- phone
FXCM provides free phone support for the residents of 42 countries. Click here for the full list.
When we tested customer support, an agent was connected almost immediately both on the live chat and phone. We got relevant answers on both platforms.
We also received relevant answers to queries sent by email. The response time was around one day.
The only thing we missed is the 24/7 availability.
FXCM review
Education
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Demo account
|
None |
|
• Trading platform tutorial
|
|
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• Educational videos
|
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At FXCM you can learn in the following ways:
- Demo account
- Platform tutorial videos
- General educational videos
- Webinars
- Quality educational articles
FXCM provides a demo account to all clients. FXCM also sends free educational material via email if you agree to receive when opening a demo account, which is a nice touch.
Furthermore, we enjoyed the quality of the videos, which were well-produced, factual and concise.
The FXCM video library is very extensive: you can find content on topics such as charts, and various order and product types.
Live webinars, pre-recorded videos and pdf booklets are available for free. These cover topics ranging from trading basics to platform tips and tricks.
FXCM review
Safety
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
• Majority of clients belong to a top-tier financial authority
|
• Customers onboarded under FXCM Markets Limited are not covered by negative balance or investor protection
|
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• Its majority economic owner is listed on stock exchange
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• Negative balance protection in the regulated entities
|
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Is FXCM regulated?
Yes, it is regulated by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), the Financial Sector Conduct Authority of South Africa (FSCA), and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
Is FXCM safe?
To be certain if a brokerage is safe, 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
Depending on your country of residence, you can open an account at one or more of FXCM's legal entities.
This can be important because the investor protection amount, the maximum leverage allowed and the regulator differs depending on the entity. Only the clients of Forex Capital Markets Limited and FXCM EU LTD are covered by investor protection.
| Country of clients | Investor protection amount | Regulator | Legal entity |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK | £85,000 | FCA | Forex Capital Markets Limited |
| Australia | No protection | ASIC | FXCM Australia Pty. Limited |
| South Africa | No protection | FSCA | FXCM South Africa Pty. Limited |
| EU | €20,000 | CySEC | FXCM EU LTD |
| All other clients | No protection | N/A | FXCM Markets Limited |
FXCM provides negative balance protection for retail clients onboarded under the regulated entities. If the balance on your account goes into negative, you will be protected.
Background
The majority economic owner of FXCM is the Jefferies Financial Group. The background of the broker matters, as a strong economic owner company reduces the chance that the company will go bust.
The Jefferies Financial Group is a listed company on the New York Exchange It has an merchant banking background. The stock exchange listing increases transparency, as the company publishes annual reports.
FXCM was founded in 1999. The company's more than 20-year history signals that FXCM can sustain operations despite periods of economic distress. The company had been fined multiple times from 2005 to 2017 and there were name changes also. However, we did not find any problems from 2018.
Being regulated by a top-tier regulator is a great sign for FXCM's safety.
FXCM review
Bottom line
FXCM is a great forex and CFD broker. Its majority economic owner is the Jefferies Financial Group. Also it is regulated by multiple top-tier financial authorities, including the FCA and ASIC.
FXCM’s technical research and educational tools are high-quality and well-organized.
On the other hand, FXCM's product selection is limited to only CFDs (on shares, stock indices, forex, commodities and cryptos). Bank withdrawal fees are high and trading platforms lack a secure two-step login.
Feel free to try FXCM, as their minimum deposit requirement is low and the inactivity fee only kicks in after a year.
FXCM review
FAQ
We recommend FXCM for forex traders looking for easy account opening, funding and withdrawal.
Below you can find links to all aspects of FXCM in this comprehensive collection.
Lower fees, lower costs?
We detailed this in our FXCM fees article.
What about the minimum deposit?
Our ultimate guide to the FXCM minimum deposit is updated regularly.
How's their trading app?
Here's our expert view after checking the FXCM trading app.
Is the quality of customer service satisfactory?
All you need to know about the FXCM customer service.
Legit or scam?
Is FXCM legit features all the key aspects you need to look at to see if a broker is safe and legit.
Free or premium? Or both?
A glance at actual costs and whether FXCM is really free.
Is this broker good for beginners?
We checked it in Is FXCM good for beginners.
Should you buy your silver bullets on FXCM?
Research for silver bugs in the Silver buy on FXCM guide
I want to trade options, are they available at FXCM?
We explored the topic in Can you trade options on FXCM?
What is the minimum account balance at FXCM?
Check out the current account balance requirements at FXCM in our What is the minimum account balance at FXCM article.
Looking for commission and fees data for FXCM?
We collected them in FXCM commission and fees.
How do you withdraw money from FXCM?
We tested it and collected the options and costs in How to withdraw money on FXCM.
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