Exante: Is It A Scam? Broker Review & SEC

Table of Contents

What is Exante

Exante, a next-generation European investment firm established in 2011, offers a multi-asset trading platform that provides access to over 50 global financial markets and a vast range of financial instruments. Headquartered in Malta and regulated under stringent EU directives, Exante is known for its high security, client-centric approach, comprehensive business solutions and an alleged SEC Scandal.

Its proprietary trading platform, available in multiple languages and forms, is celebrated for its intuitive design and customization options. Despite some limitations, Exante’s commitment to innovation and client security has earned it multiple industry awards and a reputation as a versatile brokerage firm.

The latest award won is the “Best Investment Company Malta & Cyprus 2023”

Who Are Exante

Exante was founded by a visionary trio: Alexey Kirienko, Gatis Eglitis, and Anatoly Krizazev. These disruptive technology experts harnessed their extensive market knowledge and software development skills to democratize access to global financial instruments. With roots in Malta and expansions in Cyprus and Hong Kong, Exante emerged as a trailblazer, especially in the early days of cryptocurrency.

The founders’ diverse backgrounds—from Kirienko’s statistical arbitrage expertise to Eglitis’ international financial experience and Krizazev’s software development acumen—converged to create a brokerage service that elevated the industry standard, emphasizing innovation, security, and client accessibility.

Who Is Alexey Kirienko?

Alexey Kirienko is the innovative force behind Exante, known for his application of probability theory to finance. A prodigy in the world of investment, Kirienko’s early fascination with game theory and statistics led him to securities trading during his university years. His academic pursuits in mathematics and statistics, paired with his industry insights, laid the foundation for sophisticated trading strategies, catapulting him to prominence within the trading community.

Co-founding Exante in 2011, Kirienko’s vision was to create a transparent, trader-friendly platform, offering access to global markets through advanced financial infrastructure. His leadership has steered Exante to impressive growth, numerous awards, and a reputation for ethical practices.

Who Is Gatis Eglitis?

Gatis Eglitis, the Executive Director of Exante, boasts a rich academic background with degrees from the University of Latvia and Copenhagen Business School. His expertise in international economic relations and finance paved the way for his pivotal role in Exante’s establishment and expansion.

Eglitis’ international experience in trading and business development, particularly at Saxo Bank, has been instrumental in transforming Exante into a global financial service provider. His insight into complex financial instruments and the needs of sophisticated investors helped fill a niche in the market, propelling Exante to meet the demands of aggressive investment managers and hedge funds.

Who is Anatoly Krizazev?

Anatoliy Knyazev, co-founder of Exante, is a mathematician and software engineer whose expertise has been pivotal to the firm’s technological edge. With degrees in Mathematics and Computer Science, Knyazev’s early career at Netcracker Technology Corp. honed his skills in software development.

His foray into trading, driven by a keen interest in algorithmic strategies and arbitrage, led to the inception of Exante alongside co-founders Alexey Kirienko and Gatis Eglitis. Knyazev’s profound insights into cryptocurrency and its potential to unify global financial markets have positioned Exante at the forefront of the cryptocurrency debate, further underscoring his role as a visionary in the fintech sphere.

Who is Exante for?

Exante tailors its services to meet the unique needs of a wide range of clients, from private investors to large financial institutions:

Private Investors: Offering direct access to over 50 global markets, Exante enables private investors to trade a multitude of instruments, including stocks, ETFs, bonds, and cryptocurrencies, all from a single multi-currency account.
Wealth Managers: Exante provides wealth and asset managers with the tools necessary for multi-account management and detailed reporting, allowing them to introduce new instruments to their clients and maintain high-touch investor relations with round-the-clock customer care.
Family Offices: Catering to financial agencies managing high net worth family investments, Exante offers flexible jurisdiction options, easy asset transfers, and robust investor protection on its award-winning platform.
Banks and Financial Companies: Exante serves banks and large financial organizations seeking third-party brokerage services with a focus on regulatory compliance, rapid setup and onboarding, market-proven technology, and comprehensive reporting.

Exante’s commitment is to ensure best execution, a personalized user experience, and premier service for its professional traders and institutional clients. Exante’s UK-based entity primarily serves Elective Pro and Institutional clients in the UK and Gibraltar, excluding retail client onboarding.Read ore.

What Are Exante’s Account Types?

Exante offers a variety of account types tailored to different trading needs:

Demo Account: Available for both individual and corporate users, the Exante demo account offers a €1,000,000 virtual balance for practice trading across 50+ global exchanges. There’s no time limit, and balances can be adjusted by contacting support.
Individual Account: Designed for solo traders, this account provides access to over 400,000 assets across more than 50 markets, with a minimum deposit of €10,000.
Corporate Account: Similar to the individual account in terms of market access and asset range, but tailored for corporate entities with a higher minimum deposit of €50,000.
Joint Account: Up to four clients can share this account type, each needing an individual account and compliance clearance. It offers the same extensive market and asset access.
MAM/PAMM Account: Aimed at professional traders managing multiple clients, this account allows simultaneous orders across various sub-accounts and offers diverse allocation methods, along with full market and asset access.

Currently, Exante does not provide an Islamic account option.

Is Exante A Scam?

Exante is a well-established broker, regulated by multiple reputable authorities. It holds licenses from the UK’s FCA, Cyprus’ CySEC, Malta’s MFSA, and Hong Kong’s SFC, ensuring adherence to stringent financial regulations.

Some clients have reported issues with withdrawals and identity verification, but these are not uncommon in the industry and can often be attributed to regulatory compliance. With its strong regulatory framework and commitment to investor protection, Exante demonstrates the hallmarks of a legitimate brokerage firm.

Despite this, in 2015 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accused the trading platform provider of organising an insider-trading ring based on the use of hacked financial news updates.

Exante SEC Case

In 2015 when the SEC erroneously implicated them in an insider trading scandal. Misidentified as a hedge fund, Exante’s actual role as an execution-only broker meant they could not have engaged in the alleged insider trading activities. This misunderstanding stemmed from a complex case involving numerous funds and leaked insider information, where some of Exante’s clients were involved, leading to the mistaken charges against the company itself.

The SEC’s charges were based on a fundamental misinterpretation of Exante’s business model. As an execution-only broker, Exante’s operations are limited to executing client orders without taking proprietary positions. Their involvement in the scandal was incidental and non-complicit, as they were merely providing brokerage services. Exante’s proactive and transparent engagement with the SEC led to a correction of the record and the eventual withdrawal of all charges, reaffirming Exante’s commitment to regulatory compliance and ethical business practices.

Is Exante Safe?

Exante is considered a safe broker, underpinned by robust regulatory oversight from several respected bodies such as CySEC, FCA, MFSA, and SFC. It offers multiple layers of protection to its clients, including the European Deposit Guarantee Scheme, which compensates up to €20,000 per client in case of broker insolvency. Additionally, Exante practices fund segregation, ensuring clients’ funds are kept separate from the broker’s assets, and provides negative balance protection, preventing clients from losing more than their account balance when trading on margin or with leveraged derivatives. These measures collectively contribute to Exante’s reputation as a secure platform for investors.

Full Exante Broker Review

Exante boasts an impressive array of over 1,000,000 financial instruments, encompassing equities, bonds, commodities, options, futures, and currencies. This diverse portfolio ensures that traders can find the instruments that best suit their investment strategies.

Equities: Access to over 24,000 stocks and ETFs from global exchanges.
Commodities: Trading options for precious and industrial metals.
Bonds: A wide selection of private and government bonds.
Options: Over 900,000 options across various markets.
Futures: Direct access to over 30 global futures exchanges.
Forex: Over 50 FX pairs, including major, minor, and exotic pairs.

Platform Compatibility and Features

The EXANTE trading platform stands as the company’s flagship trading solution, offering direct market access and a network of 1,100 servers worldwide for optimal performance.

The platform is universally compatible, functioning seamlessly on desktop (Windows, macOS, Linux), mobile (iOS, Android), and web browsers. It boasts a suite of customizable tools and modules, such as:

Instruments Module: A tree-like structure for easy navigation of available instruments.
Click-Trade and Order Modules: Facilitates quick trading and detailed order placements.
Basket Trader: Enables portfolio management and bulk order execution.
Exchange Module: Convenient currency conversions within a multi-currency account.
Summary and Portfolio Modules: Provides an at-a-glance view of account status and open positions.
Margin Report: Tracks margin utilization.
Orders and Trade Blotter Modules: Offers detailed insights into order status and executed trades.
Watchlists and Chart Modules: Real-time monitoring and charting of selected instruments.
Market Depth and Option Board Modules: Provides market insights and specialized options trading analysis.

Additional Tools and Setup

This platform enhances the trading experience with tools like the Bond Screener and integration options for third-party applications. Setting up the platform is straightforward, requiring a simple download and installation process.

Fees and Commissions

The broker boasts transparency with no costs for account opening, maintenance, or closure, and free custody of securities. However, inactivity fees and withdrawal charges apply, with the latter fixed at €30 per withdrawal. Notably, Exante allows currency conversions without spreads on the exchange rate, setting it apart from some competitors.

Summary and final scores

EXANTE positions itself as a premium brokerage, catering predominantly to seasoned traders and institutional clients. This is highlighted by its minimum deposit requirement of €10,000 for individual traders and a significant €50,000 for corporate entities.

The high entry point might put off beginners or those with less cash to spare, who are just looking to dip their toes into the trading world.

Their suite of services caters to the sophisticated trader, offering access to the OTC market, derivatives trading, short selling, integrated margining, and margin trading. Despite this focus, the platform also delivers competitive terms for trading shares and ETFs, with US shares starting at $0.02 per share and those on the London Stock Exchange at a commission of 0.05%.

Despite some negative reviews seemingly due to following the regulations tightly and an unfortunate mischaracterisation by the SEC, Exantes reputation holds strong. Highlighted by the numerous international awards won every year. Exante Is a safe broker, not a scam. Who looks to provide an innovative platform to those who can afford it.

Reliability: 5/5
Platform Usability: 5/5
Financial Instrument Diversity: 5/5
Customer Support: 4/5
Commissions: 4/5