XTB

XTB is not licensed locally in the Philippines, but it is a globally regulated broker with robust oversight from top-tier financial authorities.

Regulatory Overview: XTB is authorised and regulated by several respected financial authorities worldwide, including:

• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK – XTB Limited (FRN: 522157)
• Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) – XTB Limited (Licence No. 169/12)
• Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) – XTB S.A.
• Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) – XTB MENA Limited
• International Financial Services Commission (FSC) of Belize – XTB International Limited (Licence No. 000302/11)

Regulation for Philippine Traders: While XTB does not hold a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) licence in the Philippines, trading with XTB is permitted. Clients from the Philippines are onboarded via XTB International Limited, the Belize-based entity regulated by the FSC of Belize. XTB is nonetheless widely considered a safe option, thanks to its oversight by reputable international regulators.

Client Protection Measures: Although Philippine clients are not covered by local regulation, XTB maintains the following global client safety measures:

• Segregation of Funds: Customer assets are held in segregated accounts, separate from company operational funds.
• Negative Balance Protection: Ensures clients cannot lose more than their deposited funds.
• Regulatory Oversight: Subject to regular audits and supervision by FCA, CySEC, KNF, DFSA, and the FSC of Belize.

In summary, despite not being locally licensed by the SEC, XTB’s strong regulatory footprint in multiple jurisdictions makes it a credible and acceptable broker for Philippine residents.

Instrument Categories: XTB provides access to a comprehensive selection of CFDs and real assets across multiple markets, including:

• Forex: Major, minor, and exotic currency pairs—such as EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/ZAR, and USD/TRY—with leverage up to 1:500
• Commodities: Hard and soft commodities via CFDs, including gold, oil, natural gas, coffee, and sugar, with competitive spreads and leverage up to 1:20.
• Indices: Global indices CFDs including S&P 500, Dow Jones, DAX 40, FTSE 100, and Nikkei 225, with high liquidity and 24/5 trading availability.
• Stock and ETF CFDs: Thousands of shares and ETFs from major global exchanges, including the NYSE, NASDAQ, and LSE. XTB also offers commission-free trading on some equities and leverage up to 1:5.
• Cryptocurrencies: Popular digital assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple via CFDs, available with 24/7 trading and leverage up to 1:2.

Access for Filipino traders: Filipino clients, onboarded under XTB International, have access to the full instrument list offered by the Belize-based entity. This includes nearly 2,000 trading instruments spanning forex, commodities, indices, stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies.

Trading Conditions: XTB offers competitive trading conditions, with tight spreads, fast execution, and access to popular instruments like EUR/USD. For example, EUR/USD can be traded with spreads starting from 0.6 pips and leverage up to 1:500. The broker also supports advanced charting, sentiment indicators, and fractional share trading across its platforms.

The account opening process at XTB is user-friendly, and accounts are ready for trading within one day. While there are no minimum deposit requirements to open an individual account, corporate accounts require a 15,000 EUR minimum deposit. 

XTB offers Filipino traders a straightforward account structure with competitive trading costs. Although accounts are managed via an offshore entity, XTB maintains transparent pricing and low spreads across its asset classes.

Account Types: XTB provides a simplified account offering that includes:

• Standard Account: Commission-free CFD trading (excluding stocks and ETFs), with spreads starting from 0.6 pips on major forex pairs such as EUR/USD.
• Islamic (Swap-Free) Account: Available on request for traders who require Sharia-compliant conditions. Spreads typically start from 0.7 pips.
• Demo Account: Free virtual account for practice, offering full access to XTB’s trading platforms and instruments.

Trading Costs Overview:

• Forex & CFD Trading: No commissions are charged on most CFD instruments in the Standard Account. Costs are built into the spread.
• Stocks & ETFs: Real stock and ETF trading is commission-free up to €100,000 in monthly volume. Above this threshold, a 0.2% commission applies (minimum €10 per trade). A 0.5% currency conversion fee may also apply if trading in a non-account currency.
• Spreads: Competitive spreads starting from 0.6 pips on major pairs. Swap-free accounts generally have slightly higher spreads, starting from 0.7 pips.

Access for Filipino Traders: Filipino clients onboarded under XTB International have access to the full range of instruments and account features, including commission-free CFD trading, real stocks and ETFs, and swap-free options.

Overall, XTB’s mobile trading app provides an excellent trading experience.

xStation 5

A mobile version of the xStation5 application is available, which seamlessly connects to the application’s desktop version, and it is available on both Android and iOS mobile devices and tablets. 

The mobile app is well-designed and it has excellent search functionality, and it allows traders to work from anywhere, with functionality to close and modify existing orders, and calculate profit/loss in real-time.

Available Platforms:

• xStation 5 (Proprietary Platform): XTB’s award-winning platform is also available on web and desktop. It offers a user-friendly interface, fast order execution, and advanced integrated features designed for traders of all levels. Note that XTB does not offer scalping, hedging, or copy trading on the xStation5 platform. 

Platform Features & Tools:

• Advanced Charting: xStation 5 includes dozens of technical indicators, charting tools, multiple timeframes, and layout customisation options for in-depth analysis.
• One‑Click Trading & Fast Execution: Traders can open and close positions instantly with optimised trade tickets and fast execution speed.
• Market Sentiment Indicator: A real-time tool showing how other XTB traders are positioned on specific instruments, helping inform strategy.
• Risk & Trade Calculators: Built-in margin, profit/loss, and pip calculators help traders manage risk effectively and plan their positions accurately.
• Integrated Education & Market Analysis: xStation 5 features a built-in education centre, economic calendar, live news feed, and expert commentary.

Trading Tools Comparison

Broker

Economic Calendar

Autochartist

Trading Central

Trading View

Free VPS

VPS services are usually offered free with a minimum trade volume, otherwise a monthly subscription fee will apply. VPS services are usually hosted by third-party companies.

XTB

Yes

No

No

No

No

Exness

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

FP Markets

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

A well-regulated broker, XTB does not process payments to third parties. All withdrawal requests from a trading account must go to a bank account or a source in the trader’s name.

Trading Account Currencies: XTB only allows trading accounts to be denominated in USD, which limits traders with accounts denominated in other currencies. Currency Conversion Fees are charged for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different from the currency of a trader’s account. 

Deposits and Withdrawals: There are several ways to deposit funds into your trading account, and some of these methods may incur additional charges. All deposits except for bank transfers are instant; you will see this reflected in your account balance immediately. Bank transfers can take 2-5 days to arrive, depending on the country you send money from. Unfortunately, this depends on your bank and any intermediary bank.

Library: XTB’s library is comprehensive and comprises short articles covering Platform and Account tutorials, as well as trading-related subjects such as Fundamental Analysis, Technical Analysis, and Trader Questions.   

Demo Account: XTB also offers a demo account with virtual funds, but unfortunately, the demo expires after 30 days. Demo accounts are a great way to practice trading in a risk-free environment, allowing traders to familiarise themselves with XTB’s platform.

XTB’s market analysis materials are comprehensive and provide actionable trading ideas. 

XTB offers frequent webinars with live market analysis, demonstrated on XTB’s trading platform, xStation 5. These webinars are followed by a live discussion, during which traders can chat with XTB’s market analysts and account managers.

Traders receive multiple updates throughout the trading day, which can consist of brief fundamental summaries, technical trading alerts, the Trade of the Day, and the Crypto Newsletter. Some content is text-only, and the rest includes charts and trading ideas.

XTB also offers an economic calendar, a comprehensive log of all scheduled macroeconomic releases, including a potential impact rating, and detailed historical data to help traders predict the results on corresponding markets.

A wide range of fundamental and technical analysis tools are also available within the xStation5 platform, giving traders a comprehensive charting package to identify potential trading opportunities.

XTB also operates an open-door policy so customers can visit any of their offices. Notably, XTB has 20 local branches.

Customer support is offered in English, Spanish, Arabic, French, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, German, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, and Hungarian. Overall, we found the live chat support responsive, polite, and able to answer most of our questions.