MG FOREX Review

Review

Review update
MG Forex has recently in August 2008 updated their trade platform with a new version called DealStationFX.  This new version has many new features:
1. The platform is even more customizable, with more room for adding tabs and workspaces to add more charts to be viewable at your fingertips.
2. Trailing stops are now available.
3. Trades can be made directly from the charts by right clicking, and one click trading is also featured.
4. New technical indicators have been added to the mix
5. Economic events can be “plotted” on the charts to make sure that traders are aware of when important news data is coming out.
6. A more comprehensive account management area where withdrawal forms and account reports are available.
In many ways this new trade platform can compete with many of the best platforms available.
Not previously mentioned in this broker review, MG Forex continues to offer these features that many brokers do not offer:  Trading accounts can be based in several currencies:  USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, CHF, AUD, and CAD.  Also, they offer “Flexitrading” which means with one account a trader can trade fractions of a lot or normal lots.  Another nice feature is focused for money managers who use this broker.  With one trading account, multiple client accounts can be added, so that with one click these managed accounts can be traded and managed from one account screen.  They also offer all the back office accounting for handling managed account clients and easily calculating commissions that you might charge them.
MG Forex continues to strive to be relevant in a constantly changing atmosphere that is Forex trading, while still being one of the oldest retail brokers out there.  They currently have a promotion that if a live account is funded via paypal, MG will refund any paypal fees.  Additionally, a live account funded via bank wire transfer, MG will refund the wire fees charged by the bank.  Their customer service is also very good and responsive.   Also available is a managed account fund, for those who would rather let a professional do the trading.
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At first glance everything about www.mgFOREX.com and the MG Financial Group seems simple. They offer one main platform, the DealStation, which is available in a number of versions. They offer one type of trading: FOREX. They offer a limited number of crosses: ten popular pairs. Even deposits are acceptable in only two forms: check or wire. But once the trader starts digging in to the MG FOREX Web site, he will find that the brokerage service is like a big puzzle, with scattered pieces that have to be put together in order to see the big picture.
The puzzle begins with “MG.” What the “MG” in MG Financial Group (the company behind www.mgFOREX.com, stands for is a bit of a puzzle. (It’s not on the site, but it stands for “Money Garden.”) Their exact relationship to FOREXnews.com, a news and market resource, is also a bit of a puzzle, as is their relationship (and links) to other software sites. In the FOREX environment, where a trader may be investing large sums of money, any uncertainty about a broker and its business ties may be unsettling to some.
However, what is not a puzzle is that the MG Financial Group was founded in 1992, that they are registered with the National Futures Association and Commodity Trading Commission, and that every trading contingency and its effect is touched upon somewhere on the site. This protects both the company and the trader.
The foundation of MG FOREX is the DealStation. Made up of a few easy-to-read panels (Account Status, Current Rates, Chart, Open Trades, Open Orders, News), the platform can be deployed as a Java applet (one-time download), a Web-only (HTML) version, or as one of two mobile versions. Only the Java platform is available in multiple languages: English, Russian, Chinese, Spanish, and German. A first-time trader can choose which version to demo and which type of account to select: a regular virtual trading account or a contest account to compete for a monthly prize.
The DealStation allows four types of trades: market, stop, limit, order cancels order. There are no change orders, only cancellation orders. Trades can be made from the rate chart or the “Open” panels. All trades are confirmed through pop-up screens.
Any positions that are open by 3:00 p.m. EST will be assessed rollover fees.  A trader can also earn rollover credits if certain requirements are met, as outlined on the site.
The DealStation dashboard is as customizable as the Windows Operating System’s “View” menu. That is, you can move the panels around and they can be minimized, maximized, cascaded, or tiled. The only chart that appears on the dashboard is a candlestick chart. Additional charts (bar and line graphs) require a separate download. For more chart options, the trader can subscribe to and download additional software. A special e-mail alert news feature (alert!fx) requires a trip to a separate site. News is automatically supplied from Dow Jones, but downloads or links to other sites (FOREXnews.com) is also offered. These are all pieces of the puzzle for the trader to fit together himself.
Learning to use the DealStation isn’t too difficult because there are so few bells and whistles. Besides the Demo account, MG FOREX provides a user guide, video tutorials, and descriptive Web pages. The Demo Account is free, but the “Ultimate Demo Contest” is not. The user must fork over $500 for 12 monthly chances to win up to $3,000 in credit towards a live account. You’ll find more details on the contest on various pages on the site. Also, on diverse pages, you’ll find what is really most important to the FOREX trader: the numbers.
A trader can open an account with $200, although the site recommends $1,000. The maximum number of pairs that can be traded is shown in some places to be 10, in others to be 12. Currencies include USD, EUR, and GBP, AUD, CAD, CHF, and JPY. Spreads are fixed at 3 to 8 pips. Margins range from 1:50 to 1:400. Trading size is set automatically at 100,000, but the trader can use “flexiTrading,” which allows fractional units beginning at 10,000 (considered .1 unit).
At MG FOREX, as is true for all sites, the user must read the documentation. This is soon apparent when applying for a “live” account, which is the real one with the real money. Registering for a demo account is quick and easy, but applying for a live account is somewhat complex. The new user must wade through 4 sign-up screens, a 7-page Customer Agreement, with numerous places in which to sign or initial, and a 5-page application. These must all be completed and faxed to the company for processing.
Deposits and withdrawals also require paperwork. Deposits may only be made by check or wire. The trader gets one “free” withdrawal a month, but must pay $15 for each additional request.  Meanwhile the “free” wire transfer will cost $25 for USD accounts, and $35 for EUR, JPY, GBP, AUD and CAD accounts. If an account slides into arrears, the trader will be assessed an interest rate equal to 3 percentage points above prime.
MG FOREX is one of the few sites that doesn’t employ some kind of hard-sell tactic to pressure new users into signing up for a real account. Representatives don’t call or deluge you with e-mails. In fact, the company is so quiet, you may wonder what is going on. The site furnishes a New York address, but their trading window does not coincide with New York trading times. Live chat also seems disabled. Generally, though, MG FOREX just seems to be a small, solid company. Any griping about the service has to do with spreads (what else is new?), rollover fees (which are specified on the site), and the lack of trailing stops.
Many FOREX traders enjoy researching the market, so searching to complete the puzzle that is MG FOREX may be enjoyable as well. This is truly a site for the hunter-gatherer. After you’ve gathered all the pieces and put them together, you have a proven, rather simple-to-use trading tool.

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