In this SF Capital review, we’ll objectively discuss the Forex/CFD broker that modestly calls itself “The Trading Partner You Can Trust.” It claims to help traders unleash their full potential, promising attractive trading conditions, quality support, and strict regulation. Essentially, the company seeks to create a comfortable experience for clients. But are these promises realistic, or is there a scam lurking behind them? You’ll find answers to these questions below.

Highlights

Key Trading Features

After seeing the impressive landing page of SF Capital, the next thing to check out is its trading conditions. Their motto, “Trade Smart, Grow Strong,” sets high expectations. Initial impressions are relatively positive.

Unlike most brokers, SF Capital’s account type table presents several specific indicators:

• Minimum balance for each account type.
• Maximum leverage available.
• Spreads and trading fees.
• Minimum trade volume.
• Account technology used.
• List of available markets.

These indicators are largely the same across all account types. For instance, the broker promises ECN/STP execution, position sizes starting at 0.01 standard lots, and access to over 80 trading instruments.

However, the four account types differ in some key ways:

• Standard. Minimum deposit of $50, leverage up to 1:400, spreads of 2 pips, no swaps
• Premium. Minimum deposit of $5,000, leverage up to 1:400, spreads of 1.5 pips, dynamic swaps
• VIP. Minimum deposit of $25,000, leverage up to 1:200, spreads of 1 pip, dynamic swaps
• Professional. Minimum deposit of $100,000, leverage up to 1:150, spreads of 0.8 pips, dynamic swaps

SF Capital’s strategy of lowering trader costs and managing risk/return with higher deposits is pragmatic. Most experienced traders with large deposits avoid using maximum leverage as a part of risk management. For beginners hoping to make quick profits, however, the first two accounts with leverage up to 1:400 may quickly deplete their deposits while enriching the broker.

Yet, there are questions about the account table. We’re curious about:

• The meaning of “mixed ECN/STP technology”.
• Why the firm collects commissions on all account types without reducing spreads.
• The reason for using fixed spreads.
• Whether fees apply to a full trade or OneWay.

Trading fees for the entry-level account, accessible to nearly any client, suggest that the company isn’t keen on clients using the Standard account. Trading on the Premium account appears more favorable but requires 100 times the deposit.

From SF Capital’s perspective, it’s easy to explain. Naturally, the company benefits when clients risk a substantial deposit. At 1:400 leverage, the likelihood of losses is similar on $50 or $5,000 accounts, but $5,000 brings in more profit than $50.

Overall, the trading conditions in the account type table seem transparent enough, though they’re hardly advantageous for traders. Sadly, some crucial details remain undisclosed. For instance, we don’t know how dynamic swaps are calculated, at what level stop orders can be set, or when StopOut activates. While the broker may not consider these details important, traders need this information.

Overview of Available Trading Instruments

SF Capital offers trading on over 80 instruments, giving access to:

• Forex.
• Commodity markets.
• Cryptocurrencies.
• Stocks.

However, the broker’s descriptions are only a few paragraphs long, lacking sufficient detail.

As clients, we’d like to see a list of available assets and contract specifications for each market. Price widgets on each page may indicate some asset types, with the total number of tickers matching the broker’s claimed 80+.

Contract specifications, however, are missing from SF Capital’s website. This leaves users guessing about the leverage on trades with commodities or cryptocurrencies, spreads, and price increments. Since most of this data is part of trading conditions, we conclude that the project is hesitant to fully disclose it.

This tactic is often used by scammers, leaving clients to discover trading terms during trades, which significantly raises risks and leads to real losses. The reason SF Capital employs this approach is unclear.

Trading Platform Analysis

The broker’s trading platform, MetaTrader 5, is excellent. Registered firms face no restrictions on purchasing one of the best platforms in the industry. Its key strengths include:

• Multi-chart mode, allowing for numerous open price charts.
• Over 40 technical indicators and numerous graphical objects for market analysis.
• Built-in programming language for custom indicators and trading robots.
• Enhanced strategy tester, providing accurate advisor performance analysis for auto-trading.
• Fast data exchange and quick order execution.

The use of MetaTrader 5 is a clear advantage for SF Capital. Additionally, the broker offers a desktop version, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and a web version. However, there’s no way to access the web terminal before registering. Nor does the company mention demo accounts, though the platform can support both real and demo accounts. This decision to withhold information about demo accounts is puzzling.

Additional Services

In the menu on the main site and footer, you’ll find several additional services SF Capital offers, including:

• VPS for uninterrupted connection to the broker’s server (currently announced with a “Coming Soon” page).
• Educational Resources: A separate page with useful information, though access to materials requires contacting support. This unconventional approach stands out.
• Telegram Channel: Launched on July 25, with regular posts starting in mid-September 2024. However, all posts are in Arabic, so only Arabic-speaking users will find it useful.

SF Capital has other offerings, such as job opportunities for traders and the option for crypto enthusiasts to trade with Azadi coin, the firm’s own digital asset.

The broker is striving to appear established and credible. However, it remains to be seen if SF Capital will achieve long-term success, particularly if its attitude toward traders doesn’t improve.

Fee Structure

Many companies detail the fees they charge traders in regulatory documents such as Terms & Conditions, while some publish this information on their websites. However, SF Capital doesn’t seem to consider these details important, as they aren’t published anywhere.

All we know: the broker charges trading fees, which vary depending on the client’s chosen account type. On the Standard account, it’s $20 per lot, $10 on the Premium account, and $5 on both the VIP and Professional accounts.

However, the company’s representatives forgot to clarify whether this fee applies to the full transaction or is one-way (only for opening or closing). In any case, it’s difficult to call them reasonable, especially on the two lower-tier accounts.

Here’s a small example to illustrate. A trader on the Standard account, having deposited $50, can open a trade of up to 0.2 standard lots with a leverage of 1:400. In this case, the fee will be $4 (if we assume the provided fee applies to the full transaction), which is 8% of the margin. Not a bad profit for a broker, taking 8% of the client’s margin deposit as unconditional income for every trade. If the fee only covers part of the transaction (opening or closing), the total fee doubles, and the relative percentage increases to 16%.

Of course, the trader’s costs are significantly lower on higher-tier accounts. However, due to increased deposit amounts, they also grow in absolute terms, and the difference is noticeable. So, even without additional fees, the company doesn’t forget about its own interests. As we mentioned before, substantial fees are an effective lever for pushing traders onto higher-tier accounts where deposit amounts are hundreds of times greater.

Legitimacy of SF Capital

The broker’s official data looks decent. The company provides a registration address in the Union of the Comoros, on Mwali (Moheli) Island. Certainly, this registration was obtained to secure a license from the local financial regulator, MISA, which can be confirmed in the relevant registries.

We see that SF Capital obtained a broker’s license on June 13, 2024, which grants it the right to claim it’s regulated.

The choice is understandable; this license is relatively inexpensive and imposes virtually no restrictions on a brokerage or dealer company’s operations. Furthermore, all clients can be serviced on equal terms without distinction between retail and professional clients.

Such documents are popular among scammers: by offering unfavorable trading conditions and not fearing serious sanctions from the regulator, they proudly claim to be licensed companies. Is SF Capital one of them?

Especially since the firm hasn’t published any documents regulating client relationships. The website lacks the mandatory Terms & Conditions (Client Agreement), Privacy Policy, and Risk Disclosure, not to mention the policies on non-trading operations, KYC, or AML.

Moreover, we couldn’t register independently. After filling out and submitting the registration form, we received a message that our request was accepted and that company representatives would contact us soon. Evidently, “soon” in their terms means over three business days.

We were also surprised by the broker’s office location in Erbil, Iraq. This doesn’t seem like the best choice, given the situation in that region. In short, the official data and the license only increased our doubts about the broker’s honesty and the safety of client funds in its accounts.

Company History

Another issue with SF Capital is the complete lack of information about its history. There are no registration dates or details of any significant events on the website.

However, we know the license date and can determine the broker’s actual working period based on whois information about the domain registration.

As we can see, the domain sfcapitalfx.com was only registered in May 2024, so the site has been online for just six months. For a reputable broker, this is too little, especially considering the problems mentioned above. Overall, we conclude that we’re likely dealing with another scam where the owners invested just a bit more in preparation.

Conclusion

To conclude our SF Capital review, the risks of partnering with this broker are high, and we recommend avoiding it. It’s not just about the license, which isn’t recognized internationally, or the company’s short history. The broker offers unfavorable trading conditions that make it easier to lose a deposit than to earn a stable profit.

Weighing the Pros and Cons

Common Questions