FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS
Will my funds on
deposit be safe?
CMS is a registered Futures Commission Merchant (NFA ID #0313199), regulated by
the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As an FCM, CMS must uphold the
highest standards and business practices and is subject to strict financial
requirements and reporting regulations. Interested parties can visit the NFA
web site at any time to review CMS’s standing as an NFA member.
How much money do I
need to open an account?
The minimum amount to open an account is just 200 USD, 200 EUR, 300 AUD, 300
NZD, 300 CAD, 150 GBP, or 25,000 JPY.
How do I open a Live account?
Customers applying for an individual or a managed account may complete the online
application. Follow the instructions on the screen. Print out the last page,
sign it, and submit it along with any other specified required documents by fax
or email to CMS.
You may be asked to
submit additional documentation for the purpose of verifying your identity as
part of our anti-money laundering efforts.
How do I fund my
account?
Once your account is opened, CMS will email you instructions on how to fund
your account. We accept funds by check, wire transfer, or PayPal.
How do I know if my account
has been opened?
Once your account has been opened, you will receive an email from CMS with
instructions for logging in, as well as instructions on how to fund your
account.
When will my funds be
posted to my account?
Your funds will be posted within 1-2 business days if sent by wire transfer,
8-10 business days if sent by check (once we receive it), or 3-4 business days
if sent by PayPal.
How do I withdraw
money from my account?
To withdraw money from your account, you must fill out and submit a withdrawal
request form. Once received, your request will be processed within 2-3 business
days. Please note that funds may be withdrawn by the signatory of the trading
agreement alone. If it is a joint account, then both account holders must sign
the withdrawal request. No third party payments are allowed. Additionally,
funds may be withdrawn by Check only if the account holder resides in the
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What are your trading
hours?
Dealing services are offered from
Can I place orders
over the phone?
Yes, you can place trades over the phone. Please read [Emergency Procedures] to
learn how.
Can I place a trade
via email?
No, we do not allow our customers to place trades via email. In the case of an
emergency, you may place trades over the phone.
What is the maximum
lot size per order at CMS?
The VT platform will allow you to place an order up to 99 lots in size. If you
want to place an order larger than 99 lots, you must call our dealing desk and
place the order by voice. Ultimately, we limit your execution volumes by your
available trading margin.
What happens to my
open positions at the end of the trading day?
CMS automatically rolls over all open positions to the next date at
CMS clients can earn
interest on rollovers, depending on the direction of their positions and
interest rate differential between the two currencies involved. For instance,
the primary interest rates in
How does CMS determine
its prices?
Most if not all retail brokers quote prices
based off of price discovery of the inter-bank market. At CMS we run several
data feeds from our counterparties though algorithms to extract what we believe
are the most accurate prices. As a market maker, CMS can quote any given price
on any given currency pair. Obviously, doing so would not be in CMS' best
interest, but it is important to note that we along with other retail brokers
(Future Commission Merchants) make the market in FX.
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What’s the difference
between a demo and a live trading account?
Demo and Live trading accounts are the same, except that in Demo accounts, you
are not trading any real capital. Additionally, in demo trading, you may find
that most of the trades skip the "Pending Orders" window and
immediately appear in the "Open Position" window. In live trading,
all orders first appear in the "Pending Orders" window. After
confirmation from the dealer that this price exists, the trader's order will
appear in the "Open Positions" window. If the price
changes, the trader will see a popup window with the new price. To
confirm or to cancel this order, the trader should
right-click on the price in the "Pending Orders" window for a menu
and then choose the appropriate selection to accept or to reject the
price and cancel this order. Live accounts are also connected to dedicated and
more robust servers, separate from the ones used by Demo accounts.
please note that simulated conditions may differ from real conditions, and trader should not necessarily expect same results from live trading.
What is hedging? How
do I place a hedge order?
Once a position is already established, you have the ability to take the
opposite side by clicking the “Hedge Box”. As opposed to closing out the
position you now have an opportunity to lock in a profit or a
even a loss. Hedging is a very useful tool for those traders that know how to
use it properly. Hedging an open position involves placing an exactly opposite
trade. Normally, the opposing trades cancel each other out, closing the
position. But with our hedging feature, both trades remain active. For example,
let’s say you bought GBP/USD. You can hedge your position by selling GBP/USD.
Both will remain separate active positions, rather than canceling each other
out. Hedging gives the trader upside potential, whichever direction the market
heads. It is important that you fully understand how hedging works and how to
properly use it before placing any hedge orders. Hedging is an additional
feature we have added for the benefit of our clients, and is by no means a
required action. No additional margin is requested for hedging positions.
What is Trader’s Range?
“Trader’s Range” is a feature that allows you to specify the maximum number of
pip deviation from the current price (in either direction) that you will
accept. “Trader’s Range” is set to 0 by default. This is a very useful feature
to have in a fast moving market to try to reduce the risk of getting re-quoted.
For example:
Normally when the market moves while you are placing an order, you will get a
window asking you to confirm the new price. If you place a trader’s range for
example of 10 and the market moves less than 10 pips, then your orders will
automatically process, without asking you for confirmation.
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How can I enlarge the
chart’s history length?
To enlarge the available history length on the charts, please follow the
following steps:
In the Navigator Window, go to
Options->Properties->General->General Properties.
There you will see History Length field which you can increase up to 2048.
Is there a
way to send orders without having to confirm them?
Please proceed to the following menu: Options->Properties->General->General
Properties
and uncheck the Order confirmations checkbox. You will now be able to send
orders without having to confirm them.
How can I reset my
demo balance?
Please provide us with your demo login user id and we will be more than happy
to reset your demo balance with the amount you specify.
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Can I use VT on my
Apple Macintosh computer?
Unfortunately, the Visual Trading System does not operate on Apple Macintosh
operating systems.
What are the minimum
system requirements for running VT?
Below you will find system requirements for the Visual Trading System.
Minimum System Requirements:
• Pentium class (or similar chip) running at 166Mhz or
higher.
• 128MB RAM.
• Monitor Resolution should be set to 1024x768.
• Windows 98/NT/ME/2000.
• Internet Explorer 5.0 or Netscape v6.x. If you are using AOL, we recommend
that you configure AOL to use Microsoft Internet Explorer for web browsing.
Recommended System requirements:
• Pentium II or Celeron class running at least 300Mhz
or higher
• Monitor that supports 1024x768 with a color depth of 32 bits (16,777,216
colors) or higher resolution.
• 128MB RAM for Windows 98/2000, and 256MB of RAM for
Windows NT.
• A fast Internet connection is vital for currency trading. We recommend that
you install DSL or cable modem.
How do I run VT
through a proxy server?
To insert your proxy settings please follow the following steps:
Double click on the Visual Trading Icon and when the
login screen comes up, please click on Work Offline. Once the Navigator window
comes up, please select Options->Servers->
There you will have an option to select Live or Demo trading. The window that
comes up will allow you to input the address and port of your proxy server.
Please remember that our Demo and Live server requires your proxy server to
have port 80 available.