Both Oanda and LMFX offer similar trading services worldwide. However, there are differences in their regulations, reputations, and operations. Oanda is a regulated and trusted forex broker, supervised by top-tier regulatory authorities, including the SCB, FCA, CMVM, BACEN, and CVM. In contrast, LMFX is an unregulated offshore forex broker. Oanda provides multiple trading platforms, including MT4, MT5, WebTrader, NinjaTrader, MotiveWave, MultiCharts, TradingView and more., while LMFX does not offer MT5 and uses only MT4 as its trading platform.
Since Oanda is licensed in the USA, it can accept U.S. clients. However, Oanda does not offer high leverage or CFD instruments due to regulatory obligations in the USA. In contrast, as an unregulated offshore broker, LMFX can offer U.S. traders high leverage and CFD trading. Our score for Oanda is 9.3, and for LMFX, it is 9 (according to our expert ratings, brokers that achieve a score of 8.00 or higher are considered safe and trustworthy).
Therefore, if you are looking for a U.S.-regulated forex broker, Oanda is a good choice. However, if you prefer to trade CFDs with high leverage, you may consider LMFX. Keep in mind, though, that trading with an unregulated offshore broker carries significant risks.
Oanda vs LMFX: In a Nutshell
Oanda
Founded by Drs. Stumm and Olsen in the USA in 1996, Oanda is one of the oldest and most experienced forex brokers in the world. The broker expanded into Asia in 2007, opened its London office in 2011, and its Sydney office in 2014. On its platforms, you can trade over 3000 forex, CFDs, and even real stocks.
Oanda Overview
- Founded In: 1996
- Founder: Dr. Stumm (a computer scientist), and Dr. Olsen (an economist)
- Headquarters: New York, United States
- Trading Instruments: 100+ trading Instruments including forex, indices, shares, commodities, metals, cryptocurrencies, metals
- Minimum Deposit: No minimum Deposit is required. You may deposit as low as $1
- Maximum Leverage: 1:50 (US), 1:30 (EU), 1:200 (other regions)
- Regulations: ASIC, CFTC, IIROC, FCA, PFSA, MAS in Singapore, FSA in Japan, FSC in BVI
- Trading platform: MT4, MT5, fxTrade app, Tradingview
- Account Types: Standard, Elitetrader
- Trading Fees: Spreads starting from 0.6 pips (EUR/USD pair)
- Payment Options: Bank Wire (BankTransfer/SWIFT), VISA, MasterCard, ACH Payments (echeck), BPAY, CHAPS, Check, DBS Bill Payment, Local Bank Deposits, Local Bank Transfers, Neteller, Payment Asia, PayNow, PayPal, SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT), Skrill
- US Traders: Accepted
LMFX
Founded in 2015, LMFX is a forex and CFD broker that provides online trading services globally. It offers around 100 trading instruments through the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) platform. LMFX provides low spreads and fast execution speeds as an ECN/STP broker. The broker offers three account types: Premium, Fixed, and Zero. The broker offers a demo account for practice. The broker provides trading tools, including multiple calculators, an economic calendar, and a blog featuring market news and trading insights.
LMFX runs a monthly demo contest with a total prize pool of $1,750, awarded as live trading funds. It offers a 100% deposit match bonus for deposits of at least $100 and a Phoenix bonus for first-time deposits. The broker provides a free VPS service for traders who meet specific criteria. LMFX operates without regulation from any major financial authority. It accepts clients from various countries, except the USA and Canada.
LMFX Overview
- Founded In: 2015
- Trading Instruments: 100+ trading instruments including Forex, CFDs (Indices, Commodities, Metals, Shares)
- Minimum Deposit: $50
- Maximum Leverage: 1:1000
- Regulations: None
- Trading platform: MT4 on desktop, web, mobile
- Bonus: Available
- Account Types: Premium, Fixed, Zero, Micor, Islamic
- Payment Options: Crypto, Credit Card,
- Trading Styles: Scalping, hedging, EA Trading, News trading are allowed.
- Trading Tools:Economic calendar, Free VPS, trading calculators
- US Traders: Accepted
Oanda vs LMFX: Features
Oanda:
- Trading Instruments: CFD trading is not allowed for US clients; however, non-US clients can trade CFDs
- Maximum leverage: The maximum leverage of Oanda is 1:200 (global), 1:50 (US), 1:30 (EU)
- Minimum Deposit: No Minimum Deposit.
- Account Types: Two (Standard, Elitetrader)
- Trading Fees: Spreads range from 0.1 to 0.6, and commissions range from 3.5 to 4 per lot (depending on account type).
- PAMM/ MAM:
- Scalping: Allowed
- News Trading: Allowed
- EA/ Robot Trading: Allowed
LMFX
- Trading Instruments: Forex, Metals, Oil, Indices, Commodities, Shares
- Trading Platforms: Mt4, Web Trading, Mobile
- Minimum Deposit: $5
- Maximum Leverage: 1:1000
- Trading Fees: Spreads starting from 1 pips. LMFX charges a fixed commission for every lot traded. A lot is equal to 100,000 units of currency. If you have a zero account, the commission is $4 per lot which means $8 for a round lot.
- Minimum Trade Size: 0.01 lot.
- Maximum Trade Size (Lot restriction per Ticket): 50 Lots
- Funding Currencies: USD/EUR
- Trading Style Allowed: Almost all trading styles including Scalping, hedging, copy trading, and EA Trading.
- Stop Out Level (retail): 20%
- Margin Call Level: 50%
- Negative balance Protection: Yes
- Investor Protection: No
- Account Opening: Fully Online Account opening. It may take only 5 to 7 Minutes.
- KYC Verification: Required
Oanda vs LMFX: Pros and Cons
Oanda Pros & Cons
- Regulated by the CySEC, FCA, CFTC, JFSA, IIROC, ASIC, MAS and FSC BVI
- Clients can trade over 1800 forex/CFDs and over 2000 real stocks.
- Platforms: MT4, MT5, and Oanda mobile apps on iOS and Android.
- Trading tools provided are MetaTrader premium tools, Autochartist, Market pulse analysis, etc.
- Customer support is provided in multiple languages and via different channels.
- Fast and user-friendly account opening
- The TradingView platform is available, alongside several VPS services for MT4 hosting.
- Bank withdrawals incur a fee which is transferred to the trader.
- Premium core accounts require a minimum balance of $20,000
- Inactivity fees are charged from dormant accounts.
- No account protection for U.S. clients
- No guaranteed stop-losses for U.S. or U.K. clients
- Traders in the U.S. cannot access single-stock CFDs
- No cent accounts, bonus programme for beginner traders
LMFX Pros & Cons
- The maximum leverage is as high as 1:1000.
- Tight Spread Starting from 0 pips
- Free VPS for high-volume traders.
- Allow Scalping, News Trading, EA Trading
- Does not have any FIFO Restrictions
- Deposit bonus and other bonuses.
- Due to the absence of regulatory restrictions, the broker is open to clients worldwide
- Multiple payment options including crypto and e-wallets.
- 4 Types of accounts available ( Premium, Micro, Fixed Zero)
- Traders are supported with trading tools like calculators, economic calendars, etc.
- Not Regulated by Any Authority
- Crypto CFDs are not available to Trade
- No Investor Protection Scheme
- No access to MetaTrader 5. Only MT4 and Webtrader are available.
- The minimum deposit for bank wire transfers is $250
- Managed Accounts and Social Trading (MAM, PAMM Accounts) are not Available
Oanda vs LMFX: Side-by-Side Comparison
Oanda Vs LMFX: Our Scores and Ratings
We rated both brokers, Oanda and LMFX, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 0.1 increments. To achieve a comprehensive rating, we broadly grouped all services offered by brokers into 6 macro categories and assigned percentage weights to them. Each macro category is subdivided into several data points which contributes to the total score of 1.0-10.0 assigned to each macro category. Since all categories are not equally important, our weight percentage plays a significant role in assessing the broker accurately. For example, Regulation and Security contributes a total weight of 40% to the whole ratings because this is the most important rating category. To learn more, read our methodology.
Oanda :
LMFX
Final Verdict:
Both Oanda and LMFX offer similar trading services worldwide. However, there are differences in their regulations, reputations, and operations. Oanda is a regulated and trusted forex broker, supervised by top-tier regulatory authorities, including the SCB, FCA, CMVM, BACEN, and CVM. In contrast, LMFX is an unregulated offshore forex broker. Oanda provides multiple trading platforms, including MT4, MT5, WebTrader, NinjaTrader, MotiveWave, MultiCharts, TradingView and more., while LMFX does not offer MT5 and uses only MT4 as its trading platform.
Since Oanda is licensed in the USA, it can accept U.S. clients. However, Oanda does not offer high leverage or CFD instruments due to regulatory obligations in the USA. In contrast, as an unregulated offshore broker, LMFX can offer U.S. traders high leverage and CFD trading. Our score for Oanda is 9.3, and for LMFX, it is 9 (according to our expert ratings, brokers that achieve a score of 8.00 or higher are considered safe and trustworthy).
Therefore, if you are looking for a U.S.-regulated forex broker, Oanda is a good choice. However, if you prefer to trade CFDs with high leverage, you may consider LMFX. Keep in mind, though, that trading with an unregulated offshore broker carries significant risks.
