Axi Broker Review

Is Axi Safe?

With a long history of responsible behaviour and top-tier international regulation, we consider Axi to be a safe broker to trade with. However, Filipino residents will be trading with Axi’s subsidiary registered in St Vincent and the Grenadines, which does not regulate Forex brokers and only acts as a business registrar.

Axi (formerly AxiTrader) is an ECN-only Forex and CFD broker founded in Sydney in 2007. Axi has expanded rapidly since its foundation and has become one of the most respected brands in Forex and CFD trading, with over 42’000 traders on its books and satellite offices in London, Dubai, Singapore, Germany and China. 

Axi is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) and is registered with St Vincent and Grenadines Financial Services Authority (FSA). See below for a list of Axi registered companies:

• AxiTrader Limited is incorporated in St Vincent and the Grenadines and registered with the FSA (number 25417)
• AxiCorp Financial Services Pty Ltd is incorporated in Australia (ACN 127 606 348) and regulated by ASIC (license # 318232)
• AxiCorp Ltd is authorised and regulated by the FCA (licence number 509746)
• AxiCorp Financial Services Pty Ltd (DIFC Branch) is regulated by the DFSA and holds a category 4 license

Filipino traders will be trading with AxiTrader Limited, which is incorporated in St Vincent and the Grenadines and is registered (but not regulated by) the SVG Financial Service Authority (FSA).

Unlike other financial authorities, such as ASIC in Australia and the FCA in the UK, the FSA in St Vincent and Grenadines is not a regulator and does not require Axi to restrict leverage, offer negative balance protection, or to be members of a client compensation scheme. But all Filipino client funds are held in segregated accounts with top-tier banks and Axi is subject to frequent audits of its finances and client operations. Without negative balance protection, it is possible for Axi’s Filipino clients to lose more money than is held in their trading account.

Being an ECN broker, Axi’s client’s trades are posted directly to the market without any dealing desk interference from the broker, removing any possibility of a conflict of interest.

Axi has won many awards in the industry, substantiating its credentials as a safe broker.  Some recent awards include:

• Best EMEA Region Broker 2020 (ADVFN International Financial Awards)
• Best Forex Broker Europe 2019 (forex-awards.com) 
• Best MT4 Forex Broker 2019 (atozmarkets.com)
• Most Trusted Forex Broker (UK Forex Awards 2018)

With over a decade of responsible behaviour to its clients, a large international customer base, regulation from some of the strictest authorities in the world, and ongoing industry recognition, Axi is considered a reliable and safe Forex broker. But by trading with Axi’s FSA registered subsidiary, Filipino traders will have much fewer protections than they would with other brokers.

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Axi Trading Costs

Axi’s trading fees are average compared to other ECN brokers, but lower than most market makers

Unlike other brokers that offer a range of account types with lower spreads linked to higher minimum deposits and a range of trading platforms, Axi offers only two MT4 market-execution accounts with no minimum deposit to retail traders. It also offers an Elite Account for professional or high-volume traders with a minimum deposit of 25,000 USD. The Standard Account has the trading costs included in the spread while the Pro and Elite Accounts offer tighter spreads and a small commission per trade. For more detail on Axi’s trading accounts, click here.

Axi is an MT4 only broker, but this singular focus provides for one of the best MT4 trading experiences in the world, for more on Axi’s trading platforms, click here.

Axi’s fee structure is transparent, and it publishes all the spread and commission costs associated with all accounts. 

Axi’s accounts were assessed to compare the costs to those of other brokers. The costs were evaluated based on the trading fees on one lot (100 000 USD) on the EUR/USD, including the spread and commission:

Spread x Trade Size + Commission = Total Trading Cost (USD)

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As you can see from the table above, the trading costs on the Standard Account are built into the spread and are higher overall than the costs on the Pro and Elite Accounts, which have a small commission per lot traded. While neither of the retail accounts requires a minimum deposit, the Elite account requires a minimum starting balance of 25,000 USD, making it inaccessible to beginner traders. 

Overall, Axi’s trading costs are about average on the Standard Account – most good brokers will have a cost of around 9 USD per lot of EUR/USD – and lower than average on the Pro and Elite Accounts. While the costs are lower than the overall average on the Pro Account, they are average when compared to other ECN brokers. The trading costs on the Elite Account, however, are significantly lower than average.

In combination with these transparent and low-cost trading conditions, Axi has no minimum deposit requirements on the Standard and Pro Accounts (though it does recommend a minimum of 200 USD) making it a good choice for both beginner and experienced traders.

The 200 USD recommended minimum is for good reason. When trading with leverage, brokers will always require a margin to cover the money borrowed from the broker to hold your trading position. With less than 200 USD in your account, it makes it difficult to hold a substantial trading position without getting stopped out and losing the money held in your trading account as a result.

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Broker

Trading Conditions

Base Currencies

EURUSD (Standard)

Trading Cost (Standard)

EURUSD (Best)

GBPUSD (Best)

USDJPY (Best)

Commission

Axi

4.5/ 5

AED, CAD, EUR, GBP, JPY, NZD, PLN, SGD, USD

1.00 pips

USD 10

0.00 pips

0.10 pips

0.10 pips

USD 0

IC Markets

4.5/ 5

AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, CAD, SGD, NZD, JPY, CHF, HKD

0.10 pips

USD 8

0.02 pips

0.23 pips

0.14 pips

USD 7

XM

5/ 5

USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, CHF, ‎AUD, HUF, PLN, RUB, SGD, ZAR

0.60 pips

USD 6

0.60 pips

0.60 pips

0.60 pips

USD 0

Axi’s Swap Fees

Another trading cost to consider is the swap rate charged on positions held overnight. Unlike most brokers, Axi does not publish its swap rates, but they are available to view from inside the MT4 trading platform.

An example of Axis’s swap fees can be found using the following calculation: 

Daily swap charge = (one pip/exchange rate) x (trade size x tom next charge)

So in the case of going long on one lot of EUR/USD with an account base currency in EUR, the following data can be used:

• One pip: 0.00001
• Account base: EUR
• Exchange rate: 1.1290
• Trade size: 1 lot (€100,000)
• Pepperstone’s EUR/USD long swap rate: -11.49, 
• Pepperstone’s EUR/USD short swap rate: +7.02

Swap value to be debited from the account: (0.00001/1.1290) * (100,000 *-11.49) = €-10.18

Using the same data, if you were going short one lot of EUR/USD instead, you would receive 6.22 EUR a day.

Swap-fees are subject to fluctuation with interest rates, but this is no excuse for Axi not to publish an average swap-fee for popular trades or provide a swap-fee calculator, as some other brokers do. That said, traders will be able to view the swap rate from inside the MT4 trading platform.

Axi Non-trading costs

Axi has some of the lowest non-trading costs in the Forex trading industry

While most brokers will charge an inactivity fee on trading accounts that haven’t been used for some months, Axi does not. In addition, there are no withdrawal or deposit fees – making Axi one of the lowest cost brokers in the world in terms of non-trading costs. For more on Axi’s deposit and withdrawal methods, click here.

Opening a Trading Account with Axi

Opening an account at Axi is a fully digital process but does require a suitability assessment that is not carried out by many other brokers

All Filipino traders are eligible to open a trading account at Axi but will have to follow the fully digital three-step application process. Once the process is complete, Axi aims to approve applications within a few minutes.

How to open an account with Axi:

1. Create your login via the Axi website, you will be asked for your name, email address, country of residence, phone number and whether you want an individual, joint, or company account. We will be focusing on opening an individual account. 
2. The second step is to confirm your identification. Axi needs two ID documents from you, the easiest way to provide these documents is to take a photo of them with a mobile phone:
   1. A photo ID (passport, driver’s license or national ID card) and; 
   2. A secondary ID (a bank or utility statement with your full name and address dated in the last three months).
   3. Important: Axi will not accept ID documents that are black and white images, scanned copies, blurry or damaged.
3. Once your application is approved, you can log in and fund your account in the base currency of your choosing. For more on Axi’s base currencies, click here.

Compared to other similar brokers, Axi’s account opening process is fast, hassle-free, and fully digital. 

Axi offers excellent trading conditions on all of its live accounts, the difference between the two is the commission and tighter spreads on the MT4 Pro Account. Axi also allows hedging, scalping, and copy trading and offers Islamic swap-free accounts. A major advantage with Axi is the free AutoChartist on all accounts and a free VPS service once you hit a minimum trading volume. For more on Axi’s trading tools, click here.

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Demo Account

Axi offers a demo account with a virtual balance of 50,000 AUD that remains open for 30 days. While using your demo account, Axi will provide you with a dedicated account manager to assist you and answer any questions you may have. The demo account is an opportunity to experience Axi’s services without risking your money, but the 30-day limit is unusual – many brokers offer unlimited demo accounts (but without the dedicated account management service).

MT4 Standard Account

With no minimum deposit, the MT4 Standard Account is a commission-free account where spreads start at 1.00 pips. This gives you access to over 70 FX pairs, maximum leverage of 500:1, free AutoChartist, and a free VPS service (the VPS service is subject to a minimum trading volume).

MT4 Pro account

The MT4 Pro Account is very similar to the MT4 Standard Account, with the same perks and trading assets, the only difference being that this is a commission account, with a 7 USD round trip commission on trades and minimum spreads starting at 0 pips.

Elite Account

The Elite Account is ideal for professional or high-volume traders. In order to open an Elite Account, traders will have to deposit a minimum of 25,000 USD. Spreads are extremely tight, down to 0 pips on the EUR/USD in exchange for a round trip commission of only 3.5 USD. Traders also have access to free VPS services, Autochartist, and the Premium MT4 Trading Tools.

A well-regulated broker, Axi ensures that all Anti-Money Laundering rules and regulations are followed, and as such, all non-profit withdrawals are returned to the deposit source.  No matter your deposit method, the withdrawal of all profits must be made by bank transfer to a bank account in your name. Note that Axi does not allow any withdrawals whatsoever by credit/debit card.

Axi allows deposits and withdrawals in most common currencies. Be aware that you will pay a conversion fee if the base currency of your account is anything other than your deposit currency. For more on Axi’s base currencies, click here.

All deposits and withdrawals are free of charge, and you can fund your account via:

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• Debit and Credit Cards – Deposits with debit and credit cards will fund your account instantly but withdrawals are not available.
• Bank Transfer – Deposits and withdrawals are free via bank transfers but can take up to three days to reflect. International bank transfers will take 3-5 business days for the funds to reflect in your account and may be liable for further bank fees which will not be covered by Axi. There is a minimum withdrawal of 50 USD via bank transfer.
• Bitcoin: Deposits and withdrawals are free but there is a minimum withdrawal amount of 5 USD.
• Neteller/Skrill – Deposits via Neteller and Skrill are instant and free but withdrawals can take up to 3 days to reflect. There is a minimum withdrawal amount of 5USD for both methods. Do note that Axi accepts deposits with INR Filipino Rupees with Skrill
• Global Collect: This is a service for international bank transfers which allows users with international bank accounts to deposit without having to pay bank fees. Be aware that this can only be used for deposits, not withdrawals, and can take up to 5 days to reflect to your trading account.

Withdrawals are generally processed within 1-2 days, and funds will only be returned via the same method as the deposit. All withdrawal requests must be made from within the client portal. Axi does not charge a fee for making a withdrawal, but your bank may add charges depending on the method of transfer.

Accounts can be denominated in the following base currencies: USD, AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, NZD, PLN, and SGD

As Axi does not offer INR as a trading account base currency, any INR deposits or withdrawals will be liable for conversion fees. 

Axi’s Trading Platforms

With support for MT4 only, Axi trading platform choice is severely limited compared to most other brokers. That said, Axi does deliver one of the best MT4 trading environments in the world.

Currently, Axi only supports the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform. MT4 trading on Axi is truly customisable though, with a range of tools and plugins that can be added to the platform to make it more powerful. For more on Axi’s trading tools, click here.

Developed by MetaQuotes in 2002, MT4 is still considered one of the best CFD trading platforms in the world.  The benefit of Axi offering a third-party platform such as MT4 is that traders can use the platform should they choose to migrate to another broker. Although the platform feels somewhat outdated, it is still widely recognised for its execution speeds, excellent charting tools, algorithmic trading, and customisability.  Other features of MT4 include:

• Supports the creation, modification, and utilisation of automated trading strategies.
• Supports MQL4 programming language.
• Algorithmic trading, which allows any trading strategy to be formalised and implemented as an Expert Advisor. 
• Allows traders to develop their own custom indicators.
• Superior charting tools in nine timeframes
• 24 graphical objects
• 30 built-in indicators
• Four pending order types, including buy stop, sell stop, buy limit, and sell limit.

Note that MT4 is not natively capable of trading stock CFDs, so these are not available at Axi. For more on Axi’s financial instruments to trade, click here.

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Broker

Platform Choice

Copy Trading

Platforms

Axi

4/ 5

Yes

MT4

IC Markets

5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

cTrader

TradingView

XM

4.5/ 5

Yes

MT4

MT5

Axi’s Mobile Trading Platforms

As Axi only offers MT4, on mobile as well as desktop, the mobile trading experience is limited compared to other brokers.

Axi offers MT4 on a mobile trading platform. It is available for both Android and iOS. Although there is slightly limited functionality compared to the desktop version of the platform, with reduced timeframes and fewer charting options, traders will still have access to analytics with technical indicators, graphical objects and a full set of trading orders.

Axi’s Trading Tools

Axi’s singular focus on the MT4 platform allows them to offer a great package of MT4-specific trading tools.

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Broker

Economic Calendar

Autochartist

Trading Central

Trading View

Free VPS

Axi

Yes

Yes

No

No

Yes

IC Markets

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

XM

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

Axi has a carefully selected range of trading tools that all MT4 users will find useful. While all of these tools are “free” to Axi clients, many of them are conditional on higher minimum deposits –  highlights include:

AutoChartist

Free to all Axi clients no matter their account balance, Autochartist is an award-winning automated technical analysis tool that plugs into MT4 and scans all available CFD markets for trading opportunities.

Autochartist’s advanced pattern recognition engine identifies the strongest potential trading opportunities and predicts future price movements. Some of Autochartist’s key features are:

• Chart pattern recognition
• Fibonacci pattern recognition
• Key level analysis
• Pattern quality indication

The market scanner provides statistically significant market movements and identifies important price levels that are catalysts for market movements.

PsyQuation Premium

With a minimum deposit of 500 USD (or currency equivalent) you will get access to PsyQuation Premium. PsyQuation is one of the world’s most advanced data analytics plugins for retail traders. Using highly sophisticated algorithms it works like a trading coach, analysing your trading style, identifying mistakes and helping you avoid making similar mistakes again. Because every Axi client gets a unique PsyQuation Score, you can use the PsyQuation leaderboard to follow the most successful traders – details provided include performance history and equity curve. 

Auto/Social/Copy Trading

Axi also offers DupliTrade (with a 5000 AUD minimum deposit), a powerful auto-execution system that duplicates the trades of chosen strategy providers; Myfxbook, a free social trading plugin that allows you to follow and copy other traders; and ZuluTrade, another free social trading platform that easily allows you to follow and copy other traders.

MT4 Forex VPS Hosting

Axi clients can also subscribe to an MT4 Forex VPS hosting service from external third-party providers, helping ensure trades are never disrupted by technological or connectivity issues. Prices and exact services offered vary by provider, but some are free once you hit a minimum trading volume of 20 lots PCM.

While Axi does offer a selection of CFDs to trade, it only provides support for the MT4 trading platform which is historically and primarily a platform for trading Forex. This shows in Axi’s relatively limited range of financial instruments, however, it recently (August 2021) added a small range of share CFDs to its offering.

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Forex: Axi offers 70+ currency pairs for trading, including majors (EUR/USD, GBP/USD, and USD/JPY) and minors (NZD/CAD, EUR/JPY, and GBP/NZD), and exotics (EUR/NOK, USD/SEK and EUR/ZAR). At Axi, there are more pairs to trade than most other Forex brokers, but ASIC regulations limit Forex leverage to 500:1.

Indices: Axi offers trading on 30+ indices, which is more than other similar brokers, and includes the likes of the NASDAQ, FTSE100, DAX30, and Hang Seng. Leverage is up to 200:1 on indices and both Index Futures and Index Cash CFDs are available.

Share CFDs: Axi recently added share CFDs to its offering – it now offers shares from the top 50 companies listed in the United States, the United Kingdom, and European markets, including popular and liquid stocks like Apple, Amazon, and Netflix. Maximum leverage is up to 20:1 on share CFDs.

Commodities: Axi offers 14 commodities, whereas most brokers only offer trading on between 5 – 10 commodities. Commodities include gold, silver, platinum, petroleum, and softs such as coffee, cocoa, and soya beans. Maximum leverage on commodities is 500:1.

Cryptocurrencies: Axi offers trading on 11 cryptocurrencies, a broad range compared to other similar brokers. These include favorites like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple, in addition to Cardano, DogeCoin, Polkadot, EOS, Chainlink and Stellar Lumen. Maximum leverage is up to 5:1.

Apart from the wide selection of Forex pairs, Axi has a disappointing range of CFDs. However, we are hoping that with the addition of share CFDs to its offering, Axi will slowly increase the number of assets available for trading. 

Axi’s Educational Content

Axi’s trader education is better than most other ECN brokers, with detailed information in video and text format for both beginners and more experienced traders

Trader education at Axi is detailed and flexible, available in both written and video format. Highlights of the education available include:

• Video tutorials on demand 
• Courses available in 24 languages
• eBook with simple lesson structure
• Frequent tests to monitor your progress
• Frequent webinars on both basic and advanced topics

Subjects covered include:

• Forex trading basics: Currency pairs, leverage, spreads, opening/closing trades
• Analysis techniques: Charts, technical analysis, support/resistance, using indicators and oscillators to support trading strategies
• Developing a trading strategy: Including day trading, news trading, trend trading and more
• Trading psychology: Risk management, greed and overcoming the fear of loss

While Axi’s educational content is not as broad or as deep as the best trading educators, like BDSwiss or IG Markets, it is still better than most ECN brokers and will be useful for both beginners and experienced traders.

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Broker

Beginner Course

Advanced Course

Well Structured Education

Education Quality

Webinars

Axi

Yes

No

Yes

Medium

Yes

IC Markets

Yes

Yes

Yes

High

Yes

XM

Yes

Yes

Yes

High

Yes

Axi’s Research and Analysis

Axi’s market analysis is less frequent than many other large international brokers, but the quality is excellent.

Aside from a perfectly functional Economic Calendar, Axi also runs a Market News Blog which features regular analysis, both technical and fundamental, as well as educational pieces and features. Regular analysis includes a weekly market preview, charts of the day, charts of the week, and a daily briefing on the market open.

Overall, not as in-depth as you may expect from a broker of this type, but all analysis is solid and well-written.

Axi’s Customer Support

All new and existing clients have dedicated account management and access to customer support 24/5 (Monday 01:00 until Saturday 01:00, local Filipino time) via telephone, email and live chat. Toll-free numbers are available in Malaysia, Australia, China, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, and the UK, but unfortunately not Philippines.

This support will help you get started and learn how to trade at any time of day that suits your schedule.

Evaluation Process

We value transparency and openness in the way we review the partners. To bring transparency to the forefront, we have published our review process that includes a detailed breakdown of the Axi offering. Central to that process is the evaluation of the reliability of the broker, the platform offering of the broker and the trading conditions offered to clients, which are summarised in this review. Each one of these is graded, and an overall score is calculated and assigned to the broker.

Axi Risk Warning

Trading Forex is risky, and each broker is required to detail how risky the trading of Forex CFDs is to clients. Axi would like you to know that: 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.

Overview

For experienced traders who value simple account options, strict regulation and the heavily customisable MT4 platform, Axi is a very tempting option. The limited demo account, single platform support and complex trading tools on offer may put off some beginner traders, but there are no required minimum deposits on its retail accounts, and all clients get a dedicated account manager.

Education and market analysis are both good and experienced traders will appreciate the wide range of currency pairs; overall Axi is good for serious beginner traders and more experienced MT4 users looking for a new broker.

Editorial Team

 

Chris Cammack
Head of Content

Chris joined the company in 2019 after ten years experience in research, editorial and design for political and financial publications. His background has given him a deep knowledge of international financial markets and the geopolitics that affects them. Chris has a keen eye for editing and a voracious appetite for financial and political current affairs. He ensures that our content across all sites meets the standards of quality and transparency that our readers expect.

 

Alison Heyerdahl
Senior Financial Writer

Alison joined the team as a writer in 2021. She is the Senior Editor for FXScouts.  She has a medical degree with a focus on physiotherapy and a bachelor’s in psychology. However, her interest in forex trading and her love for writing led her to switch careers. She has a passion for Forex trading and over a decade of editorial experience researching Forex and the financial services industry, producing high-quality content. She hosts a weekly podcast, “Let’s Talk Forex,” alongside her colleague, Chris, and has produced over 100 Forex educational videos for the FXScouts YouTube channel. She also writes weekly technical analyses and has tested and reviewed over 100 Forex brokers.

 

Ida Hermansen
Financial Writer

Ida joined our team as a financial writer in 2023. She has a degree in Digital Marketing and a background in content writing and SEO. In addition to her marketing and writing skills, Ida also has an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. Her interest in crypto trading led to a wider fascination with Forex technical analysis and price movement. She continues to develop her skills and knowledge in Forex trading and keeps a close eye on which Forex brokers offer the best trading environments for new traders.