Overview of BlackBull Markets
BlackBull Markets is a brand operated by Black Bull Group Limited, a company registered and established in New Zealand in 2014. As a forex broker and online financial technology provider, BlackBull Markets specializes in forex trading, CFDs, commodities, optical fiber communications, financial technology (Fintech) solutions, and serves clients globally.
In addition to its main headquarters in New Zealand, BlackBull Markets has expanded its operations to other regions. Currently, this forex broker has offices in Malaysia and New York. BlackBull Markets also has plans to enter the South Asian and European markets, with its first office in Jakarta.
In terms of legality, BlackBull Markets is licensed by the Financial Service Provider (FSP) of New Zealand, with license number FSP403326. While it may not be among the top-tier regulatory authorities in the world like the FCA or CySEC, BlackBull Markets’ operations are regulated and controlled to a reasonable extent. This provides some level of oversight, and BlackBull Markets is also a member of the Financial Services Complaints Limited (FSCL) dispute resolution program.
To ensure the safety of investors’ funds, this forex broker segregates client accounts from its own accounts and deposits them into ANZ Bank, one of New Zealand’s oldest financial institutions.
Operating in the market for nearly 5 years, BlackBull Markets, despite being a relatively young company, has achieved significant milestones. It won the Deloitte Fast 50 award for two consecutive years in 2018 and 2019, recognizing it as one of the fastest-growing companies by the world’s leading auditing firm, Deloitte. Additionally, BlackBull Markets received the Fastest Growing Technology Company 2018 award from the APAC Technology Fast 500.
While it may not have many specific achievements in the forex field, BlackBull Markets’ rapid growth is expected to be a springboard for its trading services in the future. The following reviews of trading conditions at BlackBull Markets will help new investors assess the suitability of the platform for their needs, ultimately making the most informed decision when opening a trading account.
Trading Products
At BlackBull Markets, investors can trade forex, metals, energy, and indices.
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- Forex: Offers 30 currency pairs, including major and minor pairs. The platform does not offer exotic currency pairs.
- Metals: Investors can trade only two metals, gold and silver.
- Energy: Includes Brent oil (UK), WTI oil (US), and natural gas.
- Indices: Offers 9 stock indices from various markets such as the US, UK, Hong Kong, Germany, Australia, and Japan. These indices include AUS200, UK100, US500, ESTX50, SUI20, GER30, JPN225, NAS100, and US30.
Compared to most other forex brokers, BlackBull Markets’ product portfolio is relatively limited. The forex market today is diverse and expanding, offering a wide range of different financial instruments such as stocks, bonds, cryptocurrencies, ETFs, and even commodities. However, for Vietnamese investors who are mainly interested in forex and gold, these limitations may not significantly impact their trading needs.
Trading Accounts
BlackBull Markets is one of the few forex brokers that offer all three types of ECN accounts for investors, including ECN Standard, ECN Prime, and ECN Institutional.
- ECN Standard Account: Suitable for novice traders with limited experience who require a live account with a small initial capital to start trading. This is the only account type that does not charge a commission, and it offers highly competitive spreads.
- ECN Prime Account: Designed for experienced traders who can quickly react to market fluctuations. This account offers very low spreads and competitive commission fees.
- ECN Institutional Account: This account is specifically for professional and high-net-worth traders who seek the best services reserved for BlackBull Markets’ VIP clients.
Comparison of basic trading conditions across the 3 account types:
PAMM/MAM Accounts
In addition, BlackBull Markets provides investors with PAMM/MAM managed account systems. With these systems, investors allocate their funds to accounts managed by professional traders who act as fund managers. These fund managers use the pooled capital to trade in the market. If the trading is successful, the profits are distributed proportionally among the investors based on their contributions, and the fund manager receives a performance fee. Conversely, if the fund manager’s trading results in losses, investors will incur losses as well.
Trading Platform
Currently, BlackBull Markets provides its investors with only one trading platform, which is the MT4 software. This is also the most widely used platform today. MT4 can be used on computers, mobile applications, and directly on the web.
MT4 Software
As a product of MetaTrader, a company specializing in providing financial services and technology solutions for investors and brokers worldwide, MT4 is designed with a user-friendly interface, easy to use, and provides all the necessary features for trading from basic to advanced, serving all segments of investors and brokers.
- 3 types of price charts and 9 timeframes
- 4 basic pending order types (Buy Limit, Sell Limit, Buy Stop, and Sell Stop)
- Over 30 technical indicators and drawing tools to support chart analysis
- Provides daily economic news directly on the software
- Allows trading EAs (Expert Advisors) and testing trading strategies
- Utilizes support services for forex investment such as buying and selling, exchanging custom indicators, EAs, trading strategies, or buying and selling forex signals, code writing services, freelancers, all available from the MQL5 Community platform of MetaTrader.
WebTrader and Mobile Application
Both platforms include all the features of MT4. WebTrader allows users to use the MT4 platform directly on a web browser without the need to download software to their computers. It has a simple and user-friendly interface. The mobile application is very flexible, lightweight, and convenient. If you want to manage your account by depositing or withdrawing funds, the mobile application is the most suitable choice as it can be used anytime, anywhere. However, for placing orders or analyzing charts, it is recommended to use the MT4 software on a computer or WebTrader for a more accurate analysis.
In addition, BlackBull Markets has partnered with two entities, ZuluTrade and Myfxbook, to support investors interested in social trading. With these two platforms, investors can copy trades from hundreds of professional traders worldwide. Profiles of these traders are publicly displayed on the platforms, and the information typically includes account balance, total number of trades executed, success rate, total profit, losses, and proposed pricing. The investor’s task is to choose the traders that best fit their criteria, pay them, and all trading activities carried out on the selected trader’s account will be replicated exactly on your account without you having to do anything other than ensuring a stable internet connection.
Both ZuluTrade and Myfxbook have ranking criteria and options for selecting different professional traders. Furthermore, investors have the right to customize trading conditions to suit their needs before the replication process begins and can stop copying at any time.
VPS
BlackBull Markets provides free VPS services for any investor with a minimum deposit of $2,000 and a minimum trading volume of 20 lots per month.
Leverage, Commissions, and Spreads
Leverage
All three types of trading accounts at BlackBull Markets apply a maximum leverage ratio of 1:500. However, this is not a uniform ratio for all products; the highest leverage applies to forex and metals, while indices and energy products have a maximum leverage of 1:100.
Additionally, the maximum leverage ratio also depends on the capital in the account; the more money in the account, the lower the maximum leverage ratio used. This is one of the risk management policies for investor accounts.
Currently, a leverage ratio of 1:500 is not considered excessively high in today’s market; many brokers offer maximum leverage ratios of up to 1:2000. However, everything has two sides, and high leverage provides opportunities for significant profits but also increases risk. The choice of trading with high or low leverage depends largely on individual needs and risk tolerance.
Commission Fees
Commission fees are applicable to trades on ECN Prime and ECN Institutional accounts.
- ECN Prime: $6 per lot for each trade (opening and closing).
- ECN Institutional: Negotiable fees.
Spreads
As an ECN and STP broker, BlackBull Markets offers very competitive spreads across its account types.
- The minimum spread starts from 0.9 pips for the EUR/USD pair on ECN Standard accounts. While this is a standard account with basic trading conditions typically offered by most forex brokers for new traders, BlackBull Markets provides a relatively low spread, whereas 1.5 pips is the average spread for this type of account in the market.
- ECN Prime and ECN Institutional accounts offer extremely low spreads, starting from 0.1 pips and 0.0 pips, respectively. With these competitive spreads, BlackBull Markets can certainly compete in the market.
Deposit and Withdrawal Methods
BlackBull Markets offers several deposit and withdrawal methods, including bank wire transfers, Visa/Master cards, Fasapay, Neteller, Skrill, among others.
Deposits:
- Minimum initial deposits range from $200, $2,000, and $20,000, depending on the type of account. There are no specified minimum deposit requirements for subsequent deposits.
- Deposits are free of charge.
- Deposited funds typically appear in the trading account instantly, but wire transfers may take 1-3 business days.
Withdrawals:
- There is a $20 fee for wire transfer withdrawals and a $5 fee for all other withdrawal methods.
- Withdrawal processing times usually range from 3 to 5 business days.
Please note that fees and policies may change over time, so it’s important to check the broker’s official website for the most up-to-date information.
Pros and Cons Summary
Advantages:
- Diverse Trading Accounts: BlackBull Markets offers three types of ECN accounts, providing flexibility for traders.
- Robust Trading Platform: The platform supports social trading and is user-friendly.
- Low Spreads: BlackBull Markets offers competitive spreads.
- Commission-Free Trading (ECN Standard) or Competitive Commissions (ECN Prime).
- 24/5 Live Chat Support: Customer support is available around the clock, with responsive staff.
Disadvantages:
- Lack of Regulatory Approval: The broker is not yet regulated by reputable forex regulatory bodies such as FCA, CySEC, ASIC.
- Limited Trading Products: The range of trading products is somewhat limited.
- High Minimum Deposit: The initial minimum deposit requirement is relatively high, compared to some brokers that accept as low as $10 or $5 for the first deposit.
- Low Maximum Leverage (1:500): The maximum leverage offered is lower than what some other brokers provide (e.g., 1:2000).
- Withdrawal Fees and Slow Processing: Fees are charged for withdrawals, and the processing time for withdrawals can be lengthy.
- Lack of Vietnamese Language Support: The website does not offer support in the Vietnamese language.
While BlackBull Markets offers favorable trading conditions, it has some limitations that may influence Vietnamese traders when considering opening an account with this broker. We hope that our review provides you with a clearer understanding of BlackBull Markets, making your decision to open an account easier and more informed.
