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HFM Review

BrokerNotes.co

Written by BrokerNotes.co
Edited by John Bringans
Fact-checked by Joey Shadeck

March 14, 2024

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

HFM is a trusted broker that offers an enhanced MetaTrader experience. Traders at HFM gain access to both MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 alongside third-party upgrades like Premium Trader Tools from FX Blue Labs and trading signals via the Autochartist plugin. HFM also offers its own proprietary copy trading platform, HFcopy, and a proprietary mobile trading platform, the HFM app. It's worth noting that you'll need to hold a Premium account with HFM to use the HFM app for trading.

Overall Rating

7.9 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$0

Trust Score info

Trusted
86

HFM Trust Score

We consider HFM to be Trusted, with an overall Trust Score of 86 out of 99.

HFM is currently licensed and/or authorised by the following regulatory bodies:

About Trust Score: Trust Score, a proprietary algorithm that allows traders to get an at-a-glance rating of a broker’s overall trust, was originally developed for BrokerNotes.co’s sister site, ForexBrokers.com. Trust Score is based on our independent research and powered by the extensive data we’ve collected on brokers and regulatory agencies across a wide range of regulatory environments, jurisidictions, and countries.

Regulatory licenses held by HFM, compared to the industry average

HFM currently has 2 Tier-1 Licenses, 3 Tier-2 Licenses, 0 Tier-3 Licenses, and 2 Tier-4 Licenses. To get an idea of how HFM stacks up against the industry average, check out our visual breakdown of the average number of Tier-1, Tier-2, and Tier-3 regulatory licenses held by brokers in the BrokerNotes database:

Can I trust HFM?

HFM has a Trust Score of 86, compared to the industry average of 83, and BrokerNotes.co considers HFM to be Trusted. Trust Scores can vary from broker to broker (a "Highly Trusted" label means a broker is at the top of our scoring scale, and a "High Risk" label indicates a broker that's at the lowest end of our Trust Score scale), so it’s helpful to know where your broker stands in comparison to the rest of the industry.

Check out our visual breakdown below to get an idea of how HFM’s status as a Trusted broker compares to the average Trust Score label in our database of 60+ forex brokers.

average risk label of forex brokers on BrokerNotes.co

Why should I care about regulatory licenses?

Determining the legitimacy of a forex broker (and avoiding forex scams) can be a real challenge. Unregulated brokers do not have to report to a governing body. If your broker lacks regulation, and you are scammed in any way, you often have no recourse for recovering your funds. That being said, not all regulator licenses carry the same weight.

In our five-tier Trust Score system, the strictest regulatory agencies and licenses are labeled Tier-1. Here are a couple of examples of how Tier-1 licenses provide the highest consumer protections:

  • Many regulators impose additional capital requirements. Brokers that offer forex trading to retail clients in the U.S. must maintain at least $20 million in regulatory capital as a Retail Forex Exchange Dealer (RFED) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
  • Brokers are subject to stricter laws. In an effort to prevent consumers from sustaining heavy losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the U.K. does not permit leverage beyond 30:1. The FCA also requires that forex companies segregate client funds from their own. Read our guide to trading forex in the U.K. to learn more.

Investment Types at HFM

There are now dozens of regulated forex brokers, each with their own product offering and range of available markets. It’s important to make sure that the forex broker you’ve chosen allows you to trade your preferred instruments and markets. To help you decide if HFM is the right broker for you, we’ve included a breakdown of the major products and range of markets available at HFM:

  • Total tradeable symbols - 3500
  • Total forex pairs - 102
  • Copy trading - Yes
  • Cryptocurrency (physical) - No
  • Cryptocurrency (CFD) - Yes
  • Spread betting - No

Overall, HFM ranks #23 out of the 62 brokers that have been evaluated and scored within our investment types category.

Note: We review each broker’s overall global offering – a “Yes” checkmark for any of the above features or tradeable markets in this review does not guarantee their availability in your country of residence. To verify the availability of any features or markets within your country of residence, please contact the broker directly. To learn more about country-specific regulations and restrictions (and to discover our data-based picks for the best brokers by country), check out our country guides.

How many tradeable symbols does HFM offer?

HFM provides access to 3500 tradeable symbols and 102 different forex pairs, compared to the median number of 982 symbols and an average of 66 available forex pairs across the 60+ brokers reviewed on BrokerNotes.

How does HFM’s offering of investments compare to the rest of the 60+ brokers on BrokerNotes.co?

Tracked as variables within our database, our research team closely monitors the availability of features and products such as bitcoin, cryptocurrency CFDs, commodities, social copy trading, Islamic accounts, stocks (CFD and non-CFD), and some of the most popular forex pairs – among many others.

According to our independent database (currently tracking over 2,200 data points), the average forex broker offers 29 of the 37 products and features currently tracked for our offering of investments category. HFM offers 30, which helped contribute to the broker ranking #23 out of 62 brokers overall in this category.

How does HFM compare to the rest of the 60+ brokers on BrokerNotes.co for its offering of investments?

According to our independently researched database of international forex brokers, 100% of brokers offer forex trading (spot or CFDs), 8% offer crypto trading (physical asset), 91% offer trading physical cryptocurrency CFDs, 92% offer trading on U.S. stock CFDs, 28% offer trading on physical U.S. stocks, 56% offer ETFs, 38% offer international stock trading (non-CFDs), and 78% offer social copy trading.

Commissions and Fees at HFM

Your forex broker’s trading costs can be a factor in the overall profitability of your trading strategy. That being the case, it’s crucial to choose a forex broker with commissions and fees that are affordable for your trading style. We’ve researched and broken down some of the trading costs that you can expect to find with HFM (this list is not meant to be comprehensive; be sure to visit the broker's website for a full accounting of all fees and trading costs):

  • Minimum initial deposit - $0
  • Average Spread EUR/USD - 1.2
  • All-in Cost EUR/USD - 0.7
  • Active Trader or VIP Discounts - No

HFM has a score of 7.5/10 in this category, while the average broker received a score of 8/10. Overall, HFM ranks #29 out of the 62 brokers that were evaluated and scored for our commissions and fees category.

Note: Using an online broker that advertises low commissions and/or low spreads does not make trading forex or CFDs less risky.

What is the minimum deposit requirement for trading with HFM?

The average minimum deposit requirement across the industry is ÂŁ115 (55 brokers), whereas HFM requires an initial minimum deposit of $0. Forex brokers require a minimum deposit in order to cover their own costs associated with opening and maintaining a trading account for the client. The amount required can vary depending on the broker and the type of account being opened.

What are the typical spreads at HFM?

HFM delivers an average spread of 1.2 when trading the EUR/USD within a standard account. The all-in cost of trading the EUR/USD with an active account is 0.7. We were able to obtain average spread data for over 30 brokers, and found the industry averages for these data points to be 1.04 (standard) and 0.87 (all-in).

How does HFM fare against the rest of the 60+ brokers on BrokerNotes.co for commissions & fees?

Looking at our database, the average forex broker offers 6 of the 11 features variables we track in the commissions & fees category, and has average spreads of 1.04 when trading the EUR/USD. HFM offers 5 of the 11 features, while offering average spreads of 1.2 which helped contribute to the broker ranking #29 out of 62 brokers in this category.

Traders are constantly on the hunt for low-cost forex brokers – you can learn more about low-cost forex trading by checking out our guide to zero-spread forex brokers.

Funding Methods at HFM

The availability and flexibility of your broker’s banking options and payment methods can make an impact on your overall trading experience. Simply put: all traders need to have a reliable method for depositing and withdrawing funds. We’ve researched the banking and funding options at HFM to see if it’s the right broker for your preferred payment method:

  • Visa/Mastercard (credit/debit) - Yes
  • Bank Wire (deposit/withdrawal) - Yes
  • PayPal (deposit/withdrawal) - No
  • Skrill (deposit/withdrawal) - Yes

92% of the brokers in our database (60+) offer Visa/Mastercard, 77% offer Skrill, 70% offer Neteller, and 45% offer PayPal. PayPal has become a popular funding option for many forex traders – find out which brokers support it as a payment method by reading our PayPal guide for forex traders.

Trading Platforms at HFM

A vital part of any trader’s experience, a broker’s trading platform can make or break any trading experience.

Here’s what HFM offers in terms of trading platforms. Ultimately HFM ranks #40 of the 62 brokers graded across our platforms & tools category.

  • Proprietary platform - Yes
  • Desktop platform (windows) - Yes
  • Web platform - Yes
  • MetaTrader 4 (MT4) - Yes
  • MetaTrader 5 (MT5) - Yes
  • DupliTrade - No

As far as platform trading tools are concerned, HFM provides 15 charting indicators, 30 drawing tools, and 7 watchlist fields, contributing to its overall category rating of 7.5/10.

How do trading platforms at HFM stack up against the competition?

Of the 60+ brokers reviewed on BrokersNotes, 64% offer a proprietary platform, 100% offer a web platform, 91% offer a desktop platform, 11% offer cTrader, 14% offer Zulutrade, 81% offer MetaTrader 4, and 64% offer MetaTrader 5.



How is HFM graded against the other 60+ brokers on BrokerNotes.co for platforms & tools?

Analyzing our 1,178 data points for our platforms & tools category, the average forex broker has 12 of the 19 features we track for desktop web platforms. HFM has 15. HFM received an overall rating of 7.5/10 in the platforms & tools category, contributing to its overall category ranking of #40 out of 62 brokers overall.



Research at HFM

Having consistent access to high-quality market research is hugely important to forex traders. To effectively keep track of market movements, traders need to stay up-to-date with global events, industry news and trends. We gave HFM a 8.0/10 in the research category, while the average broker received a 7/10. Here’s our summary of the research offerings available at HFM:

  • Autochartist - Yes
  • Daily Market Commentary - Yes
  • Economic Calendar - Yes
  • Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) - Yes
  • Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs - Yes
  • Trading Central (Recognia) - No
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