Identify the company behind the account
Start with the client agreement, account-opening page, and legal footer. Record the full company name, company number, registered address, and the country governing your account. A global brand may use several entities with different protections.
Open the regulator’s register yourself
Type the regulator’s official address directly or use a trusted government link. Search by legal name and licence number rather than following a link from an advert, social account, or account manager. Fake register pages can closely copy the real design.
Match every identifying detail
Compare the register with the broker’s website: legal name, licence number, trading names, approved domains, address, phone, and email. A clone firm may copy a genuine name and number while using a different domain or contact details.
Read the status and permissions
A register entry can be active, restricted, suspended, lapsed, or authorised for services unrelated to retail Forex or CFDs. Check permitted activities, client type, geographic scope, and any conditions or restrictions attached to the licence.
Check warnings, clones, and disciplinary history
Search the regulator’s warning list and disciplinary notices for the company, domain, and trading names. Also review dates: a recent warning, restriction, ownership change, or unresolved complaint can materially change the risk.
Map the protection to your real account
Confirm which entity receives your deposit and what rules actually apply to it: client-money segregation, negative-balance protection, complaints, compensation eligibility, and insolvency treatment. Regulation reduces some risks but never guarantees profits or prevents failure.
The 60-second licence check
Do not send money until the legal entity, official register entry, approved website, permissions, and account jurisdiction all agree.
- The exact contracting entity, company number, registered address, and account jurisdiction.
- An independently opened official register and a result for the exact legal entity.
- A complete match for the entity, licence, domain, address, and contact details.
- Current status and explicit permission for the products and clients relevant to your account.
- No conflicting warning, clone notice, suspension, or material enforcement record left unexplained.
- Written protections for the exact entity, product, client category, and country—followed by a small deposit and withdrawal test.
The MyProfitFactor verification rule
If the company name, licence number, website, permissions, or jurisdiction does not match the official register, stop. Do not rely on a certificate image, a sales message, or a link supplied by the broker as your only evidence.
Risk note
Leveraged Forex and CFD trading is high risk. Losses can happen quickly, stop orders may slip, and protections vary by product, broker entity, and country. This guide is educational and is not financial advice.
Primary sources
Official regulator registers are the primary source. Open them independently, search the exact entity, and save the result before funding an account.