HYCM (Henyep Markets) Review
While its storied history is impressive, when it comes to forex and CFDs trading in Europe and its surrounding countries, HYCM fails to impress.
Top Takeaways for 2020
After spending five months testing 30 of the best forex brokers for our 4th Annual Review, here are our top findings on HYCM:
- Founded in 1977, HYCM is regulated in two tier-1 jurisdictions and two tier-2 jurisdictions, making it a safe broker (average-risk) for forex and CFDs trading.
- Compared to pricing leaders such as CMC Markets and FOREX.com, HYCM is expensive and not recommended for discount trading.
- HYCM is a plain-vanilla MetaTrader broker that offers terrible customer service. Compared to industry leaders such as IG, CMC Markets, and Saxo Bank, HYCM left us unimpressed.
Overall Summary
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Overall | |
| Trust Score | 84 |
| Offering of Investments | |
| Commissions & Fees | |
| Platform & Tools | |
| Research | |
| Mobile Trading | |
| Customer Service | |
| Education |
Is HYCM Safe?
HYCM is considered average-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 84 out of 99. HYCM is not publicly traded and does operate a bank. HYCM is authorised by two tier-1 regulators (high trust), two tier-2 regulators (average trust), and one tier-3 regulator (low trust). HYCM is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Securities Futures Commission (SFC) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Learn more about Trust Score.
Regulations Comparison
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 1977 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No |
| Bank | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 2 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 1 |
| Trust Score | 84 |
Offering of Investments
The following table summarizes the different investment products available to HYCM clients.
Offering Comparison
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Forex: Spot Trading | Yes |
| Currency Pairs (Total Forex pairs) | 69 |
| CFDs - Total Offered | 225 |
| Social Trading / Copy-Trading | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency traded as actual | No |
| Cryptocurrency traded as CFD | Yes |
Commissions & Fees
The forex trading costs at HYCM depend on the type of account established, ranging from the Fixed, Classic, or Raw account type. Offerings include its Raw and Classic account types from its UK entity. Meanwhile, the spreads on the EUR/USD at 1.8 pips for its fixed spread account are higher than the Raw and Classic accounts, which have more competitive pricing, with 0.6 pips average spreads for August 2018.
Compared to its EU-based brands, HYCM offers lower margin rates through its entities regulated by the CMA in the Cayman Islands, and by the DFSA in the UAE.
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Fees Comparison
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Minimum Initial Deposit | $100 |
| Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard | N/A |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | N/A |
| Active Trader or VIP Discounts | Yes |
Platforms & Tools
HYCM is a MetaTrader-only broker offering the MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5) platform suite but falls short compared to the best MetaTrader brokers.
Henyep Securities offers a separate platform for its Hong Kong and China exchange-traded securities offering, although we did not test that platform for this review as it is not provided across all the firm's entities, including HYCM.
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Research
HYCM provides slightly more than the bare minimum for forex traders to conduct FX market research. For example, HYCM provides customers access to Trading Central – a popular service for automated technical analysis – available as an MT4 indicator, a daily newsletter, as well as via access to a dedicated web portal. The broker also streams daily market analysis videos and provides access to an economic calendar on its website.
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Mobile Trading
Since Henyep is a MetaTrader-only broker, it provides both the standard iOS and Android versions of the MT4 app. No proprietary mobile app is offered.
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Customer Service
To score Customer Service, ForexBrokers.com partnered with customer experience research group Customerwise to conduct phone tests from locations throughout the UK. For our 2020 Review, 330 customer service tests were conducted over six weeks.
Results
- Average Connection Time: <5 minutes
- Average Net Promoter Score: 2.1 / 10
- Average Professionalism Score: 1.5 / 10
- Overall Score: 2.22 / 10
- Ranking: 20 th (22 brokers)
Final Thoughts
HYCM brings over 40 years of operations and a lineup of global brands. Despite its respected history, the forex broker struggles to differentiate itself beyond a basic MetaTrader experience. Compared to industry leaders such as IG and Saxo Bank, there few reasons to open an account with HYCM.
About HYCM (Henyep Markets)
Founded in 1977, Henyep has a long-standing reputation for providing financial services across global capital markets, and it is an experienced member of multiple exchanges in Hong Kong, where it has its headquarters. In 1998, Henyep obtained European regulation with Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) where, it remains regulated under Henyep Capital Markets (HYCM).
HYCM is a MetaTrader broker offering over 200 instruments to its retail forex and CFD traders. The broker's Hong Kong entity, Henyep Securities, provides retail and institutional stock market investors access to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and regional exchanges in mainland China.
HYCM Trading Features
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes |
| Proprietary Platform | No |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes |
| Web Platform | No |
| Social Trading / Copy-Trading | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | No |
| cTrader | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 51 |
| Charting - Drawing Tools (Total) | 31 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes |
| Watchlists - Total Fields | 7 |
| Order Type - Trailing Stop | Yes |
HYCM Research Features
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary | No |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | No |
| Weekly Webinars | No |
| AutoChartist | No |
| Trading Central (Recognia) | Yes |
| Delkos Research | No |
| Social Sentiment - Currency Pairs | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes |
HYCM Mobile App Features
| Feature | HYCM |
|---|---|
| Android App | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes |
| Trading - Forex | Yes |
| Trading - CFDs | Yes |
| Alerts - Basic Fields | Yes |
| Watch List | Yes |
| Watch List Syncing | No |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 |
| Charting - Draw Trend Lines | Yes |
| Charting - Trend Lines Moveable | No |
| Charting - Multiple Time Frames | Yes |
| Charting - Drawings Autosave | No |
| Forex Calendar | No |
2020 Review Methodology
For our 2020 Forex Broker Review we assessed, rated, and ranked 30 international forex brokers over a five month time period. Each broker was graded on 105 different variables and, in total, over 50,000 words of research were produced.
While encouraged, broker participation was optional. Each broker had the opportunity to complete an in-depth data profile and provide executive time (live in person or over the web) for an annual update meeting.
All data submitted by brokers is hand-checked for accuracy. Ultimately, our rigorous data validation process yields an error rate of less than 1% each year, providing site visitors quality data they can trust. Learn more about how we test.
Forex Risk Disclaimer
"There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in losses." Learn more.
About the author: Steven Hatzakis Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Research for ForexBrokers.com. Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1,000 published articles about the online finance industry. Steven is an active fintech and crypto industry researcher and advises blockchain companies at the board level. Over the past 20 years, Steven has held numerous positions within the international forex markets, from writing to consulting to serving as a registered commodity futures representative.
