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Read our expert analysis of AFX Capital, including its background, regulation, trading conditions, and reports of scam activities from real traders.
AFX Markets Limited hit the wall in 2019 after regulators finally stepped in. On August 27, 2019, the UK High Court placed the firm into special administration following an application by the FCA.
At the time, it had about 1,200 clients and was holding close to £7.5 million in client funds, most of it tied up as margin for trading. Sounds scary, right? Well, it is scary!
The sad part is that the cracks started showing earlier. However, the law was ignoring it until July 2019.
At one time, the company lost its license to operate after multiple regulators raised red flags. That led to regulators in Cyprus, the UK, and Italy all stepping in after discovering 2 big problems:
What looked like a professional broker quickly turned into a regulatory nightmare, leaving traders locked out and scrambling to recover their money.
The red flags were hard to miss.
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued warnings against AFX-linked entities like AFX Markets Limited and AFX Trade LLC for offering services without proper authorization.
Over in Italy, Consob also stepped in, adding AFX Capital Markets Ltd to its warning list of unlicensed firms. That’s how it ends up in the list of scam brokers.
For traders, the biggest blow came when accounts were suddenly frozen. Many couldn’t withdraw their money as the company collapsed.
While the UK’s FSCS opened claims for clients of AFX Markets Ltd, those who had accounts under the Cyprus-based AFX Capital Markets Ltd were left unprotected.
AFX lured traders with big claims like doubling your deposit in just 24 hours. Behind the scenes, sales reps employed hard-selling tactics and manipulative upselling to persuade clients to deposit increasingly larger amounts of money.
Getting your money back was another story. Traders encountered numerous excuses and delays. It ranges from technical issues to verification problems. In some cases, clients were even instructed to deposit additional funds to unlock their withdrawals.
Another trick in the playbook was the promotion of shady automated trading bots and affiliate platforms. These tools were often rigged to show fake profits. It is tricking clients into reinvesting larger sums. Only to lose everything in the end.
It wasn’t just clients who suffered. Employee reviews on sites like Glassdoor painted a picture of a toxic, chaotic workplace led by a bullying CEO. Staff turnover was high, and morale was low even before the collapse.
Today, any company still using the AFX Capital name is almost certainly a scam. The original firm shut down after regulators stripped its licenses and froze its assets.
If you see it pop up again, stay far away.
