Company news

Today, March 7, 2023, MetaQuotes has announced that MetaTrader 4/5 apps have been reinstated in the AppStore. It has taken around six months for MetaQuotes to resolve the issues that caused the MT4/MT5 apps to be removed from the Apple Store.

This is great news for the vast majority of brokers whose clients have been suffering from this inconvenience for half of a year. However, we believe it is unlikely to change MetaQuotes' policy for new White Labels, which was implemented last year before the MT apps were removed from the AppStore. We are convinced that MetaQuotes will continue to be careful about ensuring new White Labels comply with regulations to keep the company away from such troubles.

Therefore, we urge new forex broker startups to be mindful in choosing their jurisdiction, banks, and all other legal details or be ready to work with other trading platforms like cTrader that are more tolerant to compliance.

Starting a new forex broker company can be a daunting task, but with the right tools and resources, it can be a lucrative business venture. In 2023, there are several key elements that every new forex broker company will need to get started. In this article, we will discuss the basic kit for starting a new forex broker company in 2023.

1. Trading Platform

The first and most important tool you will need to start a new forex broker company is a trading platform. A trading platform is the software that traders use to access the forex markets and execute trades. There are several trading platforms available, but for a new broker, a white label solution is often the best option.

A white label trading platform is a pre-built solution that can be customized with your own branding and logo. This can save you time and money on development costs, and allow you to launch your platform quickly. One popular white label trading platform is c-Trader, which is known for its speed, reliability, and advanced charting tools.

2. Jurisdiction

Choosing the right jurisdiction is crucial when starting a forex broker company. The jurisdiction you choose will determine the regulatory framework you operate under, as well as the taxes you will pay and the banking services available to you. Some popular jurisdictions for forex brokers include Cyprus, the UK, and Belize.

When choosing a jurisdiction, it is important to consider factors such as the regulatory requirements, the reputation of the jurisdiction, and the cost of doing business. You should also consider working with a local legal or regulatory expert to ensure that you are fully compliant with all laws and regulations.

3. CRM

A CRM (customer relationship management) system is essential for managing customer data and interactions. For forex brokers, a CRM can help you track client activity, manage deposits and withdrawals, and handle customer support inquiries. One of the most sophisticated multi-module CRMs for forex brokers is UpTrader. It is designed specifically for forex brokers and includes modules for risk management, payment processing, and back-office operations.

Having a reliable and sophisticated CRM system can help you streamline your operations and provide better service to your clients. It can also help you identify trends and patterns in customer behavior, which can inform your marketing and sales strategies.

4. Website

A website is essential for any forex broker company. Your website is your storefront, and it is often the first point of contact that potential clients will have with your company. Your website should be professional, easy to navigate, and informative. It should also be optimized for search engines to ensure that potential clients can find you online.

When designing your website, it is important to consider factors such as the user experience, mobile responsiveness, and the content you will include. You may also want to consider incorporating educational resources such as trading guides, webinars, and market analysis to help attract and retain clients.

In conclusion, starting a new forex broker company requires careful planning and the right tools and resources. By investing in a white label trading platform like c-Trader, choosing the right jurisdiction, using a sophisticated CRM like UpTrader, and designing a professional website, you can launch your forex broker company with confidence and set yourself up for success in 2023 and beyond.

Originally published on finextra

At UpTrader, we often come across forex brokers who struggle with stagnant sales growth. To address this challenge, they may try various approaches such as improving their software, adding new assets, changing their workforce, or seeking out new Forex CRM systems. While all of these strategies have their merit, let's explore some marketing advice that can be helpful beyond software solutions.

Stop chasing all the clients!

One of the initial steps to take is to assess whether you are segmenting your customers and tailoring your approaches to them accordingly. Establishing a precise understanding of your target audience will serve as the bedrock of your marketing strategy and sales team. It's plausible that your business solely focuses on one type of client, such as significant clients from Asia, managed PAMM account investments, or products and services for traders, investors, and clients with any deposit amount. Depending on your answer, your sales funnel may take on different forms - one funnel for each customer type or a single one. These funnels may differ significantly in tone, content of emails, products offered, services launched, marketing promotions, trading conditions, and sales methods. If your brokerage offers multiple products, you should classify clients into different categories, identify primary target audiences, and develop strategies for each group. Neglecting to segment customers can lead to indistinct advertising, ambiguous offers, and an excessive amount of website traffic. As a result, the client does not find anything for themselves and gravitates towards a competitor with a clearer offer. Separate funnels for different segments help increase the conversion of leads into customers and keep the customer with the

Narrow Your Target Market, then Expand

The following point builds upon the previous one. There is nothing inherently wrong with narrowing down your target market. In fact, doing so allows you to focus on what your team does best. By honing in on a specific audience, you can better understand their needs and tailor your products and services to meet their demands. This targeted approach requires effort and attention to detail, but it often results in a more efficient and effective marketing strategy.

Once you have successfully established a strong presence in your chosen market, you can then consider expanding to new regions or broadening your audience. This can involve developing new products or services that cater to a different demographic, or simply applying the knowledge and experience you have gained from working with your initial audience to a new market. By taking a measured and strategic approach to expansion, you can ensure that your business continues to grow while maintaining the high standards and personalized service that set you apart in the first place.

Choose a flagship product

This point is in line with the previous two and serves as a complement to them. When a customer selects your company over others, your main product should be apparent to them. What is your best product, and why is it your number one? From our experience, many brokers overlook highlighting their primary product, which is the showcase of their company. Instead, they offer an array of options, assuming that more options equate to better choices. While having several choices is advantageous, a potential client may become overwhelmed with the number of options and become indecisive. To make the decision-making process easier for the client, you should make the initial choice for them. After they select you, you can offer them much more. If you attract experienced traders who can make their own choices, ensure that you have a license because professionals are well aware of the consequences of non-compliance.

Conclusions: As a Forex CRM Provider, UpTrader constantly observes brokers struggling with building their marketing strategy. The most successful ones are those who follow the simple rules that have been described above. We believe that good marketing can make both companies and clients happier.

Payment system integration is quite routine for our company, we do it regularly. Despite the fact that UpTrader CRM already has more than 50 payment systems integrated, each new client always asks to add another one. This is not a problem, we have a process for it. However, a recent pattern has emerged that has caused significant delays in our cozy, well-honed integration process. Before, it took no more than 2 weeks, and now it can stretch up to 3 months. According to our observations, if a request to add the same payment comes from two different clients two weeks apart, then it will be difficult to integrate it. And here's why.

First, we have already added all the good payment systems: Appex, Skrill, B2BinPay, CoinBase, FasaPay, help2Pay, Neteller, Payeer, PayZa and so on. This means that when a request for a new one comes in, it will most likely be a small local company that will require a lot more of our attention because of their non-standard code or limited resources on their part. In addition, there is a high probability that no one except one or two customers will use it. 

Second, such payment systems often have incomplete API documentation, making the integration process very difficult. Written poorly by young developers, they require significant resources from our side to make them work, which may involve rewriting large sections of code to adapt to their non-standard API. 

Third, the payment system’s support team may take a long time to respond to our requests, because they receive a large number of simultaneous requests and do not have enough time to process them.

As we see it, this often happens when an advertising campaign is launched. A new payment system is released, and they want to quickly attract customers. An advertising campaign is launched offering lower than usual commissions, for example, 5%, and starting from a certain volume, 3%. Brokers respond to this ad. And since the campaign is held within a certain timeframe, the support team receives many requests simultaneously and simply cannot cope with the flow. As a result, the response time increases with each new request, since the resources of the support team are limited. Depending on the success of the campaign, the integration time can stretch up to 3 months. Clients don't see the other side of the equation and get nervous that a profitable payment system cannot be launched.

Another option is also possible, a much simpler and more likely one:

A new payment system emerges, not requiring any KYC compliance or with very low KYC standards. Brokers start plugging in because no one wants to comply with KYC. Everyone wants to connect this payment system as quickly as possible, which again leads to a technical support collapse on the side of the payment system itself, because it is often poorly developed as well. All in all, after all the fuss and agonizing waiting times, we consider it a good result if it does not close after 2-3 months. It is much more frustrating, however, if it does and then all that effort is wasted.

A few tips

If the ad campaign is super profitable, be prepared to save money but lose time. Apart from you, many companies responded to the campaign, which means that the integration on the side of the payment system will not be fast. Do not alert your clients that you have a new payment system until you have tested it yourself. Be patient, everything will be fine. If the KYC requirements of a payment system are suspiciously low, be prepared for it to cease to exist in a few months. So don't bet too high on it in your road map.

Contrary to skeptics’ expectations and predictions, the volume of cryptocurrency transactions continues to grow. The so-called stablecoins show the greatest stability, as they are used in payments more often than super volatile Bitcoin or Ethereum. Let us remind you that Bitcoin was losing more than 60% of its value last November. It does not make much sense to use such currencies in transactions. Stablecoins, tied to fiat and backed by bank reserves, are a different story. According to coinmarketcap.com, the most popular stablecoins with the largest capitalization are currently Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), and Binance USD (BUSD). Taken together, these findings allow us to make long-term predictions for the continuous increase in cryptocurrency transactions, and this is a good sign for Forex brokers. 

Why Forex brokers are better off with a crypto gateway 

Those brokers who don't yet have a cryptocurrency gateway to accept payments should take care of it now. Regulators are closely monitoring financial companies. As a result,  licenceless brokers can no longer accept payments by bank cards. This means that if a company cannot have a bank account, accepting Visa or Mastercard payments is not available to it. As an option, the broker can accept payments through electronic payment systems and other intermediaries who charge exhorbitant commission, easily in the 8-10% range. Also, due to the tightening regulation in the financial sector, customers from some countries in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East no longer have access to bank processing. In addition, cryptocurrency holders are interested in working with companies that are willing to accept it. From what we have seen in recent years, the trend of financial overregulation is going to continue all over the world. So if a broker wants to expand their geography and get more varied customers, gain a competitive advantage or just stay afloat, it is better to start learning how to work with cryptocurrency now.

In our previous articles, we talked about the pros and cons of accepting cryptocurrencies and how to automate these payments in your company.

Is accepting cryptocurrency always a good thing for a company, and which companies are better off avoiding cryptopayments altogether?

What is a cryptocurrency payment gateway?

A cryptocurrency payment gateway is a service that allows merchants to accept cryptocurrency as a payment method. Crypto gateways make it easy for businesses to accept cryptocurrency as payment alongside fiat money and settle transactions in real time.

Crypto gateways are growing in popularity due to the widespread use of cryptocurrencies and the security benefits they provide. Many companies are starting to accept cryptocurrency payments to get ahead and enter new markets. 

With UpTrader Pay already built into the UpTrader CRM, every broker can automate cryptocurrency payments in literally two clicks. If your company uses another CRM, integrating UpTrader Pay crypto gateway is just as easy because it's a standalone product.

So what are the pros and cons of accepting cryptocurrency?

Most often, brokers accept payments directly to their own wallets. This way, they are able to completely avoid some sensitive issues. For instance, cryptocurrency transactions exclude chargebacks and risks associated with intermediaries. Every broker has probably encountered a situation where large amounts of money are stuck with payment intermediaries for months and sometimes years. In some cases, this money is never returned and the broker bears reputational and financial costs.  

The difficulty with accepting payments in cryptocurrency may arise for licensed brokers who avoid dealing with cryptocurrency so as not to anger the regulators. The best way for them to de facto not deal with cryptocurrency is to use cryptocurrency gateways such as BitPay, PayPal, and Coinbase Commerce. In return, companies get fiat currency into their bank accounts and stay within legal bounds. This way, companies can offer customers alternative payment methods and eliminate uncertainty related to cryptocurrencies.

Accepting cryptopayments automatically

Manually accepting crypto payments may overburden your financial department, because processing these transactions is quite a task: you need to compare the requested amount in the CRM and in the wallet, then you need to identify the customer who made the request by the amount they requested, and often two sums are not the same. Then you have to call your customers to find out who transferred the money, and so on. Of course, it is better to automate the process, and we have already written a piece on how to do this:  

Connect crypto gateway or how to start accepting crypto without stress.