Bump. PFG has always made me a little nervous. They seem a little too pedestrian, like there's something shady just below the surface. Didn't know they offered Currenex. BTW does anyone know who they are white labeling through?
I havent tried PFG currenex but I did google it a while back and found a couple of posts which I found unnerving. As a possible alternative I thought maybe Alaron currenex. Anybody use this by any chance?
What I have been told by PFG: Commissions: $40-$50/Million USD traded Minimum account size: $40,000 USD Margins: typically 2% Spreads on cable between 3 AM and 11 AM are between 3-5 wide. I trade gbp/usd only, don't know about other ccy's as far as spread. Good Luck. G.
For what it's worth, I've found that noone manages to beat Interactive Brokers on both spreads and commissions. I've looked at many Currenex-providers, and you have to realise they're all different - Currenex is just a technology-platform. The only one on Currenex I've seen that basicly matches IB is NewEdge - but you need a big account to gain access there. So for accounts like 40k IB is exceptional in my view (frontend things aside, of course). Keep in mind that there are Currenex-providers by the dozens, so having tried 3-4 I'm not saying there can't be others that are good. But... NewEdge has 60 banks...
Yup PFG currenex is a very good platform. Don't be afraid of PFG. They are a great firm. Well capitalized and good customer service.
4XQs: Thanks for posting your findings. Have you tried HotspotFXi ? Hotspot is closing their retail department and sent me an offer to go with their institutional branch. Im a bit unsure where to go from here, might as well be IB (despite the neverending stream of complaint-posts here on this forum). I could get a bit cheaper commissions on HS than on IB, but what use is that if pricing/liquidity isnt on par.
PFG Forex contact, Ryan Hansen. Ask him about segregation of funds, if they trade against you, do they hunt stops etc. Get a CurreneX demo. The only drawback is you will need a "FIX engine" for advanced charting solutions, such as Neoticker etc. A while back I met a "hedge fund" manager who was looking for a broker, I recommended PFG, after he talked to them, he called me back to curse me out about, "Who are these *(&()&)(&)(*)()(, and who do they think they are, I'm not going to sign an "own funds letter" and you are a &(*&*&)((*(()*&*&*( if you are with these people", I said well it is part of their compliance, he cursed again and hung up. This person is from Florida and recently made the news, "all the money is gone, and clients suspect he was running a Ponzi scam", so we see why he did not want to sign an own funds letter. PFG lost a client because of being very strict in applying Futures Rules to Spot C, even before the big crackdown, but its my observation that its how they roll. Other than Woodie, which Ryan has nothing to do with, they are really good eggs. They are expensive but it seems they comply with the regs right down the line, Ryan and also the trade desk are very helpful, and so is the tech help. By the way I had a hand in helping develop the protrader, so try that to. Anyway this is what I know, and your experiences may differ, so remember due dilligence The Ever Not Being An IB For PFG VIPER