HYCM is a highly respected broker regulated across multiple jurisdictions and with a long history of providing trading services. This review is impressed that the company has been in business since 1977, giving it over 40 years of experience.
The broker prides itself on meeting high standards, including spreads from just 0.2 pips and an average execution time under 12 milliseconds. It offers more than 300 trading instruments and a full range of account types.
The Headquarters are in London, with additional offices in Cyprus, Dubai, Kuwait, and the Cayman Islands. The parent company, HENYEP Group, has its headquarters in Hong Kong.
What can you trade?
Forex
| Min Deposit | App Support | Max Leverage | Trading Fees |
| £100 | Mid | 1:30 | Mid |
Any forex review will likely praise the range of currency pairs available from the broker, along with its spreads and clear pricing.
At the time of writing this review, the broker supported an impressive 69 forex pairs. This gives it a distinct advantage over other brokers, as many have at least 10 to 20 fewer pairs available. Those who review UK HYCM forex rates will notice spreads from just 0.2 pips, margins from just 0.5 per cent, and maximum leverage of 1:200.
Current and potential clients can review pricing themselves by viewing the Products page, which clearly details the minimum spreads for each instrument and account type.
CFD
| Min Deposit | App Support | Max Leverage | Trading Fees |
| £100 | Mid | 1:30 | High |
Most assets available from HYCM are part of an CFD review, as they are only available via CFDs. By offering stocks, indices, cryptocurrencies, and commodities as Contracts for Difference, broker allows clients to access a range of asset classes on a single platform and to take advantage of leverage.
The index CFDs can have leverage of up to 1:200 and there are more than 15 of the most popular indices from around the world. This type of offering gives clients instant access to the global markets for equity. The 15 available commodities can have leverage of up to 1:133 and span categories such as metal, energy, and agriculture.
Stocks
| Min Deposit | App Support | Max Leverage | Trading Fees |
| £100 | Mid | 1:20 | Mid |
As previously mentioned, you will find some stocks as you review CFD offerings. This is the only way in which stocks are available via the broker, as you cannot directly trade them in the traditional sense.
By choosing to trade share CFDs with HYCM, clients can take advantage of maximum leverage of up to 1:20. There are over 170 shares to choose from, with clearly displayed minimum spreads on the Products page.
Cryptocurrency
| Min Deposit | App Support | Max Leverage | Trading Fees |
| £100 | Regular | 1:2 | High |
This HYCM cryptocurrency review gives clients the chance to make a profit off the volatility and popularity of cryptocurrencies without any physical purchase of the digital asset.
As you review cryptocurrency offerings, you will notice five main cryptocurrencies with a total of 14 total cryptocurrency pairs available. This is a reasonable amount of assets, although some brokers do offer more. Leverage on cryptocurrencies can reach 1:20. As always, this review appreciates the ability to easily compare minimum spreads across account types on the Products page.
What did our traders think after reviewing the key criteria?
Fees
This forex review finds that the broker’s fees are reasonably competitive. The majority of fees come in the form of spreads, although there are also fees for swaps and rollovers. Certain account types also carry fees on certain assets.
Any time that a fee will apply to an action, HYCM will list it clearly on the relevant part of the website, something that this review appreciates as it means there are no hidden fees. Traders will also likely appreciate the fact that there are multiple account types that let you choose whether you prefer fixed or variable spreads.
Account Types
Those exploring a cryptocurrency review will notice that the broker offers multiple account types. This helps it appeal to traders of all experience levels and styles.
Fixed accounts can have spreads as low as 1.8 pips with no commission and have a minimum deposit of $100. There is a minimum trade volume of 0.01 lots. Islamic accounts are available, and Expert Advisors are not available.
Classic accounts have variable spreads starting at 1.2 pips with no commission. The minimum deposit and minimum trade volume are the same. Both Islamic accounts and Expert Advisors are available.
Raw accounts offer raw spreads as low as 0.2 pips along with commissions of $4 per round. The minimum deposit increases to $200. There is still a minimum trade volume of 0.01 lots and availability for EA and Islamic accounts.
Our HYCM UK review suggests VIP accounts for those who plan to trade in higher volumes. This type of account improves spreads on Fixed accounts and adds dedicated account managers and comprehensive market analytics.
Demo accounts are also available to help you test out the platform and hone your trading skills with virtual funds.
Platforms
This review appreciates the presence of familiar platforms for trading, namely MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. The option of using these platforms should help traders feel comfortable with using HYCM. Additionally, it means that clients will be able to find tutorials and additional tips for using the platforms, both from broker and from other sources.
As you review UK platforms, you will likely appreciate the ability to use Expert Advisors with ease on MT4. MetaTrader 4 makes them easy to install for 24/5 trading without third-party bridges. Additionally, MetaTrader 4 is available across a range of devices, including applications from both Google Play and the Apple App Store.
MetaTrader 5 is the other exceptional choice for trading with HYCM and this should help it appeal to more advanced traders. That platform is also available for both Android and iOS devices. Using either MT4 or MT5 gives traders the chance to trade more than 300 instruments across five asset classes.
Usability
Most who look to review HYCM forex, CFD, or other instruments will find the website to be highly usable. It has a clean, professional appearance via the use of grayscale with pops of colour. At the same time, the use of background images helps keep the website exciting without distraction.
The main navigation menu is simple to use with its drop-down menus. This review also appreciates the separate upper menu for major headings, such as the Help Centre and Henyep Group. This allows broker to fit even more navigation within a small space without being overwhelming.
Customer Support
Those who need information to review HYCM CFD trading themselves can find useful information in the Help Centre. This page includes an FAQ section that has answers to the most common questions, including for those who are considering signing up with HYCM and those who already have. The FAQ section is conveniently divided into categories, making it easy to find the relevant information.
The Help Centre also features a link to the Education section of the website, as well as Forms & Documents and Getting Started. It also has a convenient search bar.
The easiest way to contact support is via the live chat function, which is available from the top right of any page on the website. You can also reach the Contact Us page by choosing About from the main navigation menu. The Contact Us page includes a local UK phone number and multiple email addresses, each for a specific category, such as account opening or client support. Clients can also visit the London headquarters.
Payment Methods
As you review HYCM payment methods, you will notice that there are no deposit fees and a range of methods are available. Keep in mind that your payment provider may charge you a fee.
Card payments
Card payments, including Visa and MasterCard, are processed within an hour, offering nearly instant deposits.
Bank wire transfer
Bank wire transfers take between one and seven working days to process.
E-wallets
Also supports several e-wallets. WebMoney, Neteller, and Skrill can all take up to one hour for processing of funds, also offering nearly instant access to the funds.
Best Offers
The Education section on HYCM includes an FAQ section with educational information regarding trading forex, indices, stocks, and commodities. This section is incredibly helpful for beginners but will not have much insight for experienced traders.
There is also a main Education page, offering tutorials, trading tools, trading strategies, and videos to help clients use MT4. Here, you can find lessons for all skill levels, including Advanced Technical Analysis and Basic Forex Terms. There are also eBooks and a Beginners’ Course.
Clients also have the chance to review webinars. There are weekly webinars looking at the week ahead in forex in addition to a range of online workshops. For all webinars and workshops, HYCM includes a detailed description. Clients can view past webinars for additional resources. Traders also have the option to attend in-person seminars run by the broker, with locations around the world.
Regulation & Deposit Protection
This UK review feels that potential clients should feel comfortable having a high level of confidence in the deposit protection and regulation from the broker. In the UK, it is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), with license 186171. As such, clients are entitled to compensation of up to 85,000 GBP in the case of insolvency.
For added peace of mind, HYCM is also regulated and authorised by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) with license number 259/14 and by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) with license number 1442313. In addition, it is also regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) with license number 000048.
The broker also complies with the European Market Infrastructure Regulation, which means that the broker reports derivatives to CFDs and other trade repositories. This reporting is all done with airtight security via UnaVista, which is the LSE global hosted platform and via DTCC for the FCA and CySEC, respectively.
The broker is also MiFID compliant. As such, clients know that it follows strict EU laws that improve transparency, resiliency, and efficiency of financial markets while also improving investor protection.
You can review fund security to gain more confidence in the safety of your funds. All client funds are held in Tier-1 banks in segregated accounts. Broker also follows rigorous data protection standards, making information security of clients the top priority. The broker also hired Moore Stephens and BDO Ltd to be its independent external auditors for annual audits.
Awards
Over the years, many companies have honoured HYCM, with the broker earning more than 20 global awards. These span titles such as “Best Forex Broker,” “Best Trading Platform,” and “Best Customer Service.”
Honours for “Best Forex Broker” include in 2017 and 2018 from World Finance for the Middle East, in Europe in 2018, in the UAE and Europe in 2017, in Northern and Southern Europe in 2015 from the FX Report Awards, in Europe in 2014, in Eastern Asia in 2014 from the FX Report Awards, in the Middle East from World Finance in 2013 and in Northern Europe in 2012, globally from MENA Forex Awards 2012, in the Middle East in 2011, and as “Best Global Broker” in 2011.
Honours for the “Best Trading Platform” include the “Best Forex Trading Platform” from the Global Forex Awards in 2019, “Best Mobile Trading Platform” from World Finance in 2017, “Best Trading Platform” in Dubai in 2017, “Best Retail Platform” from FX Report Awards in 2015, “Best Retail Trading Platform” in 2014 from the FX Report Awards, “Best Mobile Trading Platform” in 2013 from World Finance, and “Best Global Professional Trading Platform” in 2014.
Finally, honours for customer service include “Best FX Mini Account Provider” from World Finance in 2012 and “Best Customer Service Provider” in 2012.
