HotForex (licensed under the name HF Markets Ltd.) is an ECN Forex broker that offers competitive trading conditions and a wider range of currency pairs than most other ECN brokers offer. Although it offers the standard MetaTrader4 platform, few other aspects of this brokerage are standard, including its wide range of major and exotic currency pairs and a website available in 10 somewhat uncommon languages. Peruse this comprehensive HotForex review to see if HotForex is hot…or not.
General Information
Founded in: 2010
Headquarters: Mauritius
Maximum leverage: 1:500
Minimum deposit: $5 (Micro Account)
Minimum lot size: 0.01 lots
Languages available: English, Arabic, Russian, Spanish, Chinese, Farsi, Indonesian, Thai, Japanese, Georgian
Regulation: FSC
Trading Platform
HotForex trading platform (Click image to enlarge)
HotForex offers a standard MT4 trading platform that can be downloaded directly onto the trader’s desktop. The broker’s MT4 platform is also available in PDA and smartphone versions for traders who enjoy trading on the go. The Hot WebTrader is also available for those who prefer a browser-based Forex trading platform. We appreciated the ability to choose between these two platforms, especially since many other brokers offer MT4 only, and this platform, although popular, is not suitable for every trader.
Features
Unlike other broker websites that flaunt Forex education centers or trading tools, the HotForex website focuses almost exclusively on the company’s favorable trading conditions and rollover policies. Still, HotForex does offer an ample Forex education center as well as notable trading tools for those who look at the bottom of the website instead of at the top. Among the tools we appreciated most during our HotForex review were the Fibonacci calculator, the Pivot Point calculator and the pip calculator, none of which are specifically unique, but all of which are useful for intermediate to advanced Forex traders.
What we found even more helpful though was the free access to TradeSignals.com (with a standard account) and the choice between a 50% withdrawal bonus and a 15% rescue bonus, both of which are worthwhile, if you ask us.
Customer Support
When it comes to customer support, the HotForex team is both transparent and available. International phone numbers are available in 10 different languages, and email queries can be sent to 6 different virtual destinations, to ensure that they’re reaching the right desk. We emailed the HotForex team on a Monday and received a response in 1 hour and 40 minutes, which was quite a fair response time.
Email from HotForex (Click image to enlarge)
Chat support is also available 24/5. During our HotForex review we had the opportunity to chat with the support team multiple times and we repeatedly received courteous, helpful service.
Chat with HotForex (Click image to enlarge)
Ease of Use
Registering for HotForex was markedly easier than registering for many other Forex brokers, because traders are able to choose their account type directly in the registration page, and to compare all account options directly on the registration page before making this decision. We were also relieved by the fact that we didn’t need to answer pages of probing personal questions we did with some other brokers. Submitting identification documents is required in order to finalize the opening of a live account. Two forms of identification are required. The first is a national ID such as a driver’s license, passport or government-issued ID. The other is a confirmation of address in the form of a bill or bank statement. A government-issued ID may also be used for this purpose if it has an address on it.
HotForex registration popup (Click image to enlarge)
Registration for HotForex is done in a popup window that allows you to choose your account type straight off, a feature that found extremely useful. The details of each account change depending on which account type is checked off. Likewise, traders can choose between two different bonuses when they open their live account.
One thing we noticed that was a bit unexpected was that while the site is available in 10 different (and slightly unusual) languages, deposits can only be made in EUR and USD. Likewise, HotForex accepts seven different funding options including credit card, wire transfer, AlertPay, Webmoney, PerfectMoney, Neteller and China UnionPay, but we noticed PayPal and MoneyBookers as popular options that were missing from this list. Still, there were more than ample options to choose from and we had no trouble funding or withdrawing from our HotForex account. We were also satisfied that payments are processed within 24 hours and not within 42 or 72 hours which is standard for many other Forex brokers.
Finally, we were impressed to see that trades can be closed by phone in the event that access to the trading platform isn’t available or the trader has connectivity issues, and that traders with all account types can benefit from this service.
Final Thoughts
HotForex caters both to new traders and advanced traders, though throughout our HotForex review we couldn’t help feel that experienced traders might find more to love about this brokerage, because of their interesting currency pairs and availability of the MT4 platform only. If you’re looking for an ECN broker with fast execution, competitive trading conditions and exotic currency pairs, HotForex may be just the broker for you.
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