Before strategy, there is a simpler question: is the company holding your money safe? These guides show you how to check that yourself. We never recommend, rank or name brokers, so every guide teaches the checks rather than giving a list.
Start with how to check a broker’s licence on the regulator’s own register, what the different regulation tiers mean, and how clone firms copy real company names and websites. Then the money side: deposit methods and their risks, KYC checks, account types, bonus conditions, swap costs, and what negative balance protection does and does not cover.
When things go wrong, there are step-by-step guides for a withdrawal that is stuck, a broker that will not pay, profits cancelled for “abusive trading”, and how to complain properly. Read the guide on recovery scams before you answer anyone who promises to get your lost money back: they target people who have already lost once.
The same section covers signal groups, paid mentors and copy trading, because the warning signs are similar: guaranteed results, pressure to deposit, and someone earning from your trading volume.
The three-step complaint route (broker, regulator, ombudsman), a written complaint template, evidence list, and checked official links for the UK (FOS), Australia (AFCA), the EU (FIN-NET) and India (SEBI SCORES, only for SEBI-regulated entities).
Why gold's swap is usually tripled on Wednesday (T+2 value dates), how to find the triple-swap day in MT5 and cTrader, worked costs per night and per week, and when it matters for your trades.
Why scam victims get targeted again, the tricks recovery scammers use, what the FCA, FTC, ASIC and Indian authorities say, a 12-point checklist, and the free official routes.
The normal withdrawal process step by step, what pending, processing and approved mean, documents brokers may ask for, the refund-to-source rule with an example, and when waiting turns into a problem.
Profit removed after a winning trade? Price errors, latency arbitrage, bonus abuse, news-spike rules and cross-account hedging, what terms usually say, how to ask for evidence and how to complain.
How introducing brokers and affiliates are paid (per lot, per sign-up, revenue share), why per-lot pay can reward more trading, the signs of a conflict of interest, questions to ask, and how this site is paid.
How copy trading works, why your results differ (slippage, lot maths, minimum lots, the master's drawdown), worked gold examples, and the red flags of login-sharing and profit-split account management offers.
Card, bank transfer, e-wallet and crypto deposits compared on speed, fees and dispute rights; the refund-to-source rule for withdrawals; crypto risks (no chargeback, wrong network); and a worked fee example.
Why KYC exists (anti-money-laundering rules), the documents brokers usually ask for, common rejection reasons, typical timings, withdrawal checks, and how to spot a fake verification request.
Lot-volume withdrawal conditions, the true cost of meeting them, how removing a bonus can trigger a stop-out (worked gold example), and the EU, UK and Australian restrictions on incentives.
Cent, standard and raw-spread + commission accounts explained, with a worked total cost per round turn for 0.10 lot of gold at busy and quiet hours, and the simple break-even rule.
How clone firms copy a real firm's name, address and reference number; the domain, email and phone checks against the register; look-alike web addresses; and what to do if you think you found a clone.
What a licence really protects: leverage caps, negative balance protection, client money rules, ombudsman and compensation schemes (FSCS, CySEC ICF, AFCA), and the gaps to check with any regulator.
Licence, segregated money, negative balance protection, the real gold spread at busy and quiet hours, commission, swap, contract size, margin, stop-out, execution, deposits, withdrawals, support and a small test deposit.
Measure execution on XAUUSD from your own history: spread log, slippage per order type, news vs quiet, cost per round trip at 0.1, 1 and 5 lots, and a spreadsheet layout.
How a Monday gap can take a gold account below zero, what negative balance protection covers in the EU, UK and Australia, and the steps to take if your account is in deficit.
Why providers raise gold margin before weekends and events, cut leverage on large positions or change the XAUUSD contract spec, what that does to open trades, and the checks to make.
Five checks on your own trade history that separate the spread, slippage and market sweeps from a genuine price error, plus how dealing models work and how to raise a price dispute.
Search the regulator's own register, match name, number, website and phone, check warning lists and IOSCO's I-SCAN, and spot clone firms. A ten-minute licence check.
Withdrawal rejected, pending for weeks or account frozen? The usual causes, an 8-step plan, how complaints and ombudsman schemes work, and the recovery scams to avoid.
Ten warning signs in gold signal and XAUUSD Telegram groups, plus a step-by-step checklist to verify any provider yourself.
11 min read
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if a broker is regulated?
Search the company name and licence number on the regulator’s own website, then check that the web address and phone number listed there match the site you are using. Clone firms often copy a real firm’s name.
Do you recommend any brokers?
No. XAUUSD Global does not recommend, rank or review brokers and has no affiliate deals. The guides teach the checks so you can decide yourself.
Someone says they can recover my lost trading money. Is it real?
Be very careful. Recovery offers that ask for an upfront fee are a well-known follow-up scam. Report losses to your regulator and the police instead.