Libertex Review 2023

Trust

Libertex Regulations

In our reviews, we examine the licences and regulations of each entity operated by a broker. This allows us to compare each entity’s different levels of protection. We rank licences by various regulatory bodies on a three-tier system, where tier-1 licencing indicates the highest level of regulation. This is what we found concerning Libertex:

Indication Investments Ltd., a Cyprus investment firm, is regulated and supervised by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with CIF Licence number 164/12 and provides investment services to the European Economic Area and Switzerland. CySEC ranks as a tier-1 regulator on our system.

We have summarised the most essential aspects of Libertex’s entities in terms of regulation and safety in the table below:

Why is it Important to Know Where Your Broker is Regulated?

Brokers usually operate several entities so that they can serve clients from different parts of the world, which is why traders need to be aware of any discrepancies in the regulatory frameworks the entities they choose are made to comply with. In the case of Indication Investments Ltd, the company operates a single entity, so traders need not be concerned with such discrepancies in legislation.

We found the Legal Docs section on the website to be very informative. It consists of vital information pertaining to the security measures entailed by the CySEC regulation, such as:

• Segregation of client funds. In order to negate the risk of accounting errors, brokers are made to keep their clients’ funds separate from their corporate banking accounts. Indication Investments Ltd. complies with this requirement.
• Negative balance protection. The negative balance protection policy ensures traders’ losses cannot exceed their account balances. Traders working with Indication Investments Ltd. are protected against the possibility of incurring a negative balance.
• Compensation scheme. Compensation schemes are put in place to protect traders against the credit risk faced by the broker. In the unlikely event that the company becomes insolvent, a trader would be compensated. Retail traders with Libertex are protected under the Investor Compensation Scheme (ICF).
• Maximum leverage. Regulators that operate under strict financial frameworks such as MiFID II tend to cap the maximum leverage the brokers they authorise are allowed to provide. The leverage is the biggest determinant of market exposure, which is why it needs to be used with extreme caution. That is why the maximum leverage that retail traders can use on libertex.com is 1:30.

Is Libertex Safe to Trade With?

Given that Indication Investments Ltd. is authorised by a top-tier regulator (CySEC), traders can enjoy a very high level of protection. Their losses cannot exceed their account balances, their maximum market exposure is capped, and they are not at risk from the broker’s liabilities.

Stability and Transparency

In our tests for the Trust category, we also cover factors relating to stability and transparency. Here, we focused on how long the broker has been in business, the company’s size, and how transparent they are in terms of readily available information.

We found Indication Investments Ltd. very stable and transparent. In addition to the multiple safety procedures it is mandated to comply with under CySEC regulation, information on the website is very clear and easy to digest. The entity’s licencing information and Legal Docs sections are pretty exhaustive, and there is even a Fraud Warning letting clients of the company know of clone firms pretending to be Libertex.

In summary, our findings indicate that Libertex can be regarded as having a good level of trust and stability due to the following factors:

• It is licenced by a top-tier regulator (CySEC)
• Has negative balance protection and segregation of client funds
• The website is very transparent, with all relevant information being easily accessible

Fees

Libertex’s floating spreads vary greatly on instruments from different asset classes: spreads on currency pairs and commodities tend to be quite low, while shares and indices are average compared to the broader industry. The broker’s overnight costs are also average. Except for cryptocurrencies, a commission per traded volume is applicable for opening new orders. Additional information regarding Libertex’s trading fees can be accessed here.

Regarding its non-trading costs, Libertex charges an inactivity fee for dormant accounts on which no trades have been placed for a period of 180 calendar days. The broker does not charge anything for deposits, but withdrawals may be liable for a commission depending on the chosen payment method.

Libertex Trading Fees

Libertex’s Spreads

We tested Indication Investments Ltd.’s spreads during the London open at 8am UK time and just after the U.S. open at 2.45pm UK time. These are the most actively traded times. The test was conducted on the 11th of July 2022.

Libertex’s spreads on some of the most widely traded currency pairs are quite low. Those instruments are particularly popular amongst novice traders at the beginning of their trading experiences, which makes Libertex’s costs suitable for small retail traders with little to no prior experience on the market.

The spread on gold, which is one of the most popular trading instruments in general, is also quite low. The spread on crude oil is not so, but this can be explained by heightened volatility due to geopolitical tensions at the time of our measurements.

Spreads on bluechip stocks, which are popular amongst more experienced traders, range from medium to high, while the spreads on most of the bigger indices are average compared to the broader industry.

Libertex’s Swap Rates

A swap fee is a trader’s cost for holding an open position overnight because of changing interest rates. Swap long refers to the charge deductible or credit receivable for holding a buy position open overnight. In turn, swap short relates to the charges/credits deductible or receivable for holding a selling position open overnight.

The values listed below are for one full contract (100,000 units) of the base currency.

Overnight rollover charges apply to all of Libertex’s instruments except for cryptocurrencies, which are liable for swap-free trading. Additional information can be found here.

Libertex’s Commissions

The broker charges a commission of 0.003 EUR per 1000 EUR of traded volume on instruments from all asset classes, except for cryptocurrencies.

Libertex’s Non-Trading Fees

Libertex charges a maintenance fee of 10 EUR on all dormant accounts on which no trading activity has been registered for a period of 180 calendar days. The fee is charged monthly until trading activity resumes or the account balance drops to zero, in which case the broker reserves the right to archive the account.

The broker does not charge anything for deposits, though third-party fees may apply for withdrawals. Additional information is available here.

Are Libertex’s Fees Competitive?

Libertex’s fees are competitive, especially on cryptocurrencies where commission-free and swap-free trading conditions apply. Retail traders who are predominantly focused on currency pairs and some commodities can also benefit from the low spreads on some of the underlying instruments from those asset classes.

Platforms and Tools

The broker’s custom-built platform has multiple trading indicators and drawing tools, all neatly arranged logically and coherently. The easy-to-navigate design of the platform accommodates fast and precise order execution, while the many features of the platform afford traders an outlook on price action from multiple angles.

The seamless design of Libertex’s platform makes it arguably easier to use than MT4 and MT5, however, it lacks some of the features available in its more popular counterparts. Namely, one-click trading, social and automated trading. On the other hand, the mobile app version of the Libertex platform stands out with its sharp focus on current market news, making it an excellent tool in this fast-paced and event-driven market environment.

Libertex’s Web Trader Platform

General Ease of Use

Most attention on Libertex’s platform is paid to price action, which is what each platform should be doing. Price action can be scaled up and down, affording quick transition between observing well-established trends and recent price formations. Traders can thus quickly make out small and erratic fluctuations from big directional trends.

The platform thus affords a deep and penetrating outlook into the multi-faceted nature of price action from multiple timeframes. The general ease of use of the platform is further bolstered by its layout – all available tools are arranged logically around the chart.

Charts

To make sense of the underlying price action, traders use chart tools to discern determinate price formations against the background market noise. A chart’s tools and features determine its functionality.

Here is what we found concerning the available features of Libertex’s platform:

• Trading indicators. The platform incorporates 43 different indicators separated into three categories – oscillators, volatility-based and trend-based. Regardless of whether the market is ranging or trending, traders can choose from a wide range of tools for all types of market environments.  
• Drawing tools. With a total of 54 drawing tools, traders can choose between trend lines, channels, wedges, and others, to highlight repeatable patterns in the price action and determine key support and resistance levels.
• The platform has 10 different timeframes. These can be used to examine the behaviour of the price action in the long term and the short term.
• Chart types. Price action itself can be represented in 6 different ways – as a line, with bars, candlesticks, and others.

Orders

Here is a list of the order types that are available on Libertex’s platform:

• Market orders. The most popular order type in the industry, market orders are used for immediate entry at the best possible price. If triggered, they guarantee volume filling, though there could be a discrepancy between the requested price and the price where the order actually gets filled.
• Limit orders. Unlike market orders, limit orders guarantee exact price execution. However, a limit order will not be filled if the price action does not reach the pre-determined execution price.
• Stop-loss orders. They are used to support open trades by limiting the maximum loss that can be incurred if the market turns against an underlying position. A stop-loss order is placed at a fixed price below or above the spot price (depending on whether the underlying trade is long or short); if the market does indeed turn and triggers the stop-loss, it will transform into a market order and get filled at the best possible price.

Libertex’s Mobile App

The mobile app version of Libertex’s platform is just as sophisticated as its web trader counterpart. Generally, apps are not ideal for conducting probing technical analyses because they run on low-resolution devices. Libertex’s platform avoids this problem to a degree by being news-oriented rather than emphasising price action.

The app pays most attention to the latest market developments, letting traders know what is driving the market currently. This allows them to make informed trading decisions while on the go. This is especially important when using such mobile apps since their primary function is to help traders monitor and adjust their running positions.

Traders can also receive regular updates relating to the biggest daily gainers and losers on their apps, which is very useful as it lets them know the best trading opportunities at any time.

General Ease of Use

The mobile app retains the usability of the web trader platform to an extent, which enhances its general ease of use. The mobile app is easy to navigate as all essential information is arranged orderly, with a heavy emphasis on current news and analyses.

In addition to the market-oriented features of the app, traders can also use it to monitor the development of their running positions and portfolio as a whole and, if necessary, make timely adjustments.

Charts

Some of the most important features of the mobile app include:

• Trading indicators. Traders can choose from 8 different trading indicators. While this is a number that is significantly lower than the web trader version of the platform, it should be remembered that mobile apps are generally not intended to accommodate probing technical analyses.
• Drawing tools. The mobile app does not have any drawing tools. This is arguably its greatest drawback because traders are not afforded even basic charting tools to outline key support and resistance levels.
• Similar to the web trader version of the platform, the mobile app has 10 different timeframes. These are used to study price action behaviour in the long term and short term.
• Chart types. Price action can be represented in 4 different ways – as a line, using bars, candlesticks, or as an area.

Orders

Here is a list of the most popular order types that are available on Libertex’s mobile app:

• Market orders. Market orders guarantee volume filling, though there can be a discrepancy between the requested price and the price at which the order actually gets filled. They get filled at the best possible price – as near as possible to the current spot price, depending on the availability of enough liquidity to fill the order.
• Limit orders. Limit orders guarantee exact price execution. However, a limit order will not be filled if the price action does not reach the pre-determined execution price.
• Stop orders. Stop orders are triggered when the price moves to a specific level, in which case they get transformed into market orders and filled at the best possible price. They are typically used to support a primary position. For instance, stop-loss orders are fixed at a specific price level, while trailing stops are placed at variance from the spot.

Tradable Instruments

Libertex’s assortment of currency pairs, commodities, stocks, cryptocurrencies, and indices is medium to high compared to the industry, affording access to different markets. The broker caters to the needs of different types of traders – from those with an affinity towards high-risk/high-return assets to more risk-averse traders.

Libertex offers over 200 OTC derivatives that can be traded as CFDs, including options. Investors can also purchase stocks from the platform and build a portfolio.

What are CFDs?

Contracts for difference (CFDs) are derivatives used to speculate on the price of the underlying without physical delivery. For example, a long position on gold would generate a profit as the price rises or incur a loss as it falls. This is achieved without having to purchase actual bars of gold. One of the biggest advantages of trading CFDs is that traders can get in and out of the market almost instantaneously, thereby catching even minute changes in the price of the derivative.

What Can You Trade With Libertex?

Here is a list of the available instruments on a standard Libertex account, broken down by asset class:

• 49 Currency Pairs
  • Majors, Crosses, Exotic
• 17 Commodities
  • Metals, Energy, Agriculture
• 125 Stocks
  • Healthcare, Retail, Financials, Others
• 24 Indices
  • S., Europe, South America, Asia, Global
• 10 ETFs
  • Varied
• 77 Cryptocurrencies
  • Majors, Minors
• 8 CFD Options
  • Metals, Cryptocurrencies, Indices

The broker has a significant amount of FX pairs, stocks, and cryptocurrencies. Traders are afforded a sufficient variety of both low-risk and high-risk assets. Given that they can trade cryptocurrencies without paying commissions and swaps, the wide range of instruments from this asset class makes Libertex particularly well-suited for high-risk/high-yield traders who seek to trade highly volatile instruments.

Customer Support

What we found particularly useful is that Libertex has integrated its FAQ section into its live chat feature, helping you find an answer to your query faster and more easily. And if the algorithm cannot resolve your question, you can always request to be connected with an agent. Help is available in 7 languages.

Libertex’s Customer Support Test

When we test a broker’s customer support team, we evaluate the agents’ knowledge of their own website, how long it takes them to respond to questions, and how detailed their answers are.

We conducted our test on the 11th of July via the live chat option, available at the bottom-right corner of the main page. We requested additional information pertaining to Libertex’s swap-free trading option. An agent connected almost instantaneously, and he provided a satisfactory answer fairly quickly.

Deposit and Withdrawal

Libertex Deposit Methods

Libertex Withdrawal Options

All of the payment methods integrated by Libertex are regulated (additional information is available here). Most deposits are processed instantaneously, while withdrawals take 1 to 3 business days to complete. The broker does not charge anything for deposits, but third-party fees may apply for withdrawals. Libertex does not compensate traders for those.

Account Types and Terms

Libertex has 4 retail account types – a standard Libertex account, Libertex Invest, MT4 Market, and MT5 Market; those are also available for professional traders but under different conditions. There are some discrepancies between the four, chiefly in how commissions are structured and their minimum trading volume requirements. Additional information is available here.

The minimum deposit requirement for new accounts is 100 EUR. This is low for the industry, making Libertex’s services quite accessible. The one minor drawback is that there is only one available base currency – EUR.

Why is Choosing the Right Account Type Important?

Most brokers usually have several account types with different features in order to cater to the needs of a greater number of traders with different goals, needs, and means on the market. Therefore, it is a trader’s responsibility to pick the account type that best matches their approach to trading.

In Libertex’s case, in addition to some discrepancies in the way the trading costs are structured, the biggest difference between the various account types lies in the underlying platform. Traders have to select between the ease of use of the Libertex platform and the practicality of the MT4 and MT5 platforms.

What Account Types Does Libertex Offer?

Libertex’s CFD accounts – Libertex, MT4-Market, and MT5-Market – differ primarily in their costs. On a standard Libertex account, there is a commission of 0.003 EUR payable per 1000 EUR of traded volume, whereas the other two account types charge a minimum trading amount commission. There are no commissions with a Libertex Invest account, and investors can receive dividends from owning stocks.

What is CFD Leverage?

The leverage determines a trader’s overall market exposure. When trading Contracts for Difference (CFDs), positions can be opened for a fraction of their value because of the leverage. Essentially, the broker lends the trader money so that the latter can open bigger-sized positions. The leverage multiplies the profits a trader generates from winning positions and losses incurred from failed trades.

Libertex Account Opening Process

We have broken down the process of opening a standard Lbertex account with Indication Investments Ltd:

• Step 1 – To register an account with the entity, click the ‘Sign Up’ button that is found at the top-right corner of the main page. You will have to provide an email address and choose a password. Afterwards, a confirmational email will be sent to you.
• Step 2 – After that, you can log in to your client portal for the first time. By clicking the ‘My Accounts’ button that can be found in the settings menu at the top-right corner, you can choose what type of an account to open (you are automatically given a Libertex live account and a demo account after registration).
• Step 3 – You need to click the ‘My Accounts’ button to fill in personal details and follow the subsequent steps to verify your account. Additional information concerning the verification process can be accessed here. Finally, you will be taken to the deposit page, where you can fund your account.

Why is a Demo Account Important?

Practice accounts serve a twofold purpose. Firstly, potential clients of a broker can use them to test out its service without any risk to their funds before deciding whether to register a real account. Secondly, demo accounts are essential supporting tools for novice and experienced traders alike. They are used to monitor, test, and improve one’s strategies in a safe environment.

Libertex Supported Countries

Indication Investments Ltd. accepts traders who are citizens of countries within the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland.

Research

Libertex’s research content provides an adequate yet not all-encompassing overview of current market trends. Its articles do a good job of explaining the general causes of significant market developments, though its news breakdowns are very narrowly focused on the direct impact on the price of a given asset. The technical analyses also suffer from a lack of supporting materials, such as charts.

Experienced traders who appreciate fundamental analysis can certainly draw the maximum out of Libertex’s research content. In contrast, beginners are more likely to struggle to understand the general reasoning behind such developments from the broker’s topic-specific materials.

 Research Tools

Libertex’s research content falls into several types:

• Trading analyses. Available from the client portal, the analyses represent a brief outlook of the current trading setups on a given instrument. They briefly explain the underlying driving factors of price action, thereby contextualising its behaviour against the broader market sentiment. The most important support and resistance levels are highlighted, though the absence of a supporting chart makes it more difficult to appreciate the trading setup.
• Trading Insights. They are presented in a video format, making them more easily digestible. Libertex’s trading insights are typically predicated on an upcoming economic release. While they are effective in so far as they represent a quick insight into an existing trading opportunity, they also have a rather limited scope. They outline a potential entry, a stop-loss, and take-profit levels but do not delve deeper than that.
• The news section is where traders can read up on the latest market developments. The impact of economic releases on the price of a given asset is underscored in a sentence or two.
• Libertex also has broader opinion pieces that are available from its website to everybody. They do not underpin specific trading opportunities and are instead intended to break down general market trends and developments.

Education

Libertex’s blog contains a handful of educational articles that explain some basic trading concepts. However, this is nowhere near enough to serve as a solid basis for beginners wanting to understand the essence of trading. There are no educational videos and only 4 webinars, the last one dating from December 2020. For those reasons, we found Libertex’s educational content unsuitable for beginners.

 The Bottom Line

Libertex is an OTC broker that offers derivatives trading with CFDs and CFD options and investment solutions to traders and investors with different experiences and aspirations on the market. Its large collection of cryptocurrencies which can be traded commission-free and swap-free, makes the broker particularly suitable for traders with an affinity for high-volatility strategies.

Libertex’s fees are competitive for the most part, and traders can also benefit from the over 200 available instruments, several highly practical trading platforms, and diverse account types that can accommodate traders with different needs and goals. The reputable broker also offers excellent customer support and adequate research materials that give traders a fair representation of the broad market sentiment.

The one major drawback of Libertex is that it lacks a comprehensive educational course. There is a deficiency of articles and video content, while its few webinars haven’t been updated recently. Libertex’s supporting materials thus do not delve deep enough into the intricacies of trading.

As a result, we found Libertex to be more suitable for advanced traders. The broker has low trading costs on average and a rich collection of instruments that all can enjoy, but almost no educational content. Its services can match the needs of seasoned traders who already understand fundamental analysis. Libertex’s underlying conditions are also suitable for the implementation of sophisticated trading strategies.

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