Oanda Account Types Reviewed

Oanda is one of the main players in the Forex industry. Just like we have stated in our in-depth Oanda review, the broker provides excellent and easy-to-use trading platforms along with powerful research tools, technical indicators and an amazing API offer.

Additionally, Oanda offers a wide range of trading accounts and it’s not always easy to choose one because sometimes, the location of the user determines the kind of account a prospective trader can access. With this article, though, we will guide through all the available Oanda Account Types, helping you choosing the best Oanda account for your trading needs.

Oanda Account Types

Oanda Demo Account

This is the kind of account that is targeted at people who are complete novices to forex trading. It allows them to learn about different aspects of trading without the risks associated with it by replicating the real market and providing you virtual money.

The Oanda demo account trial doesn’t end, meaning traders can use it for as long as they want without having to worry about an expiration date. With our comprehensive discussion of the Oanda demo account, you can get more insight about this type of account. On the other hand, if you already know this broker, you can simply visit the Oanda website and open a free demo account.

Oanda Standard Micro Account

This is the most common Oanda account and it is available to all kinds of traders irrespective of location. It is usually the account most traders tend to go for especially once they have gained some knowledge after practicing with a demo account. One thing that makes this kind of account attractive is that Oanda is a no minimum deposit forex broker, which means the prospective trader does not have to deposit a certain amount with Oanda before they can open a live account. They are only required to make payment after the live account is opened subject to the parameters of the payment provider and the amount of trade position to be opened.

Also available to the trader using a standard account are several assets that can be traded in such indices, bonds, commodity CFDs, and more than 70 pairs of forex currencies. These many options only go to show that there are adequate trading opportunities for traders which if utilized appropriately can contribute to a larger profit margin.

Another remarkable feature, is that Oanda is a no requotes forex broker. That means you won’t face situations in which the broker is unable to execute a trade at your desidered due to a sudden change in the market condition.

Forex spreads start from 0.6pips and considering that the spread is the difference between the ask price and the bid price, a smaller spread like the value for this account indicates that the cost incurred while trading a currency pair on this account will be minimal.

Oanda Core Account (ASIC – Australia)

As already indicated, this kind of account is only available to traders registered under the Australian entity.

Just like the standard account, this type of account has no minimum deposit required, and as such traders can make the deposits at their own pace based on the capital they have available. There is also the advantage of low spread forex trading (which starts from 0.1pips), even lower than that of the standard account thus ensuring that traders don’t have to worry about incurring unnecessary cost on each trade they execute.

An added advantage of this core account is that there is a 3.50 AUD commission per lot traded on forex. Then add the fact that there is an absence of requotes even when sudden changes occur in the market, and you have a well-tailored forex account for traders based in Australia.

Oanda Spread Betting Account (FCA – UK)

This is exclusive to traders located in the United Kingdom and Ireland with its unique features. Oanda though, is one of the few forex brokers offering spread betting.

There are more than 100 instruments available for traders to trade in and with this account, any profit made is free from stamp duty and capital gains tax which means whatever money a trader makes on this account completely belongs to him or her. Also, no minimum deposit is needed to open this kind of account which is always an attractive option particularly for traders that are just about to open a new live account.

With an average spread of 1 pip on all markets, you can be guaranteed that there won’t be too much variation in the amount of spread for every trade performed on this type of account. This indicates that the trader will not have to incur unnecessary costs on executed trades.

Oanda Premium Account

This is an account that is exclusively targeted at experienced traders and corporations.

That’s why, instead of the no minimum deposit requirement that is a feature of the standard account, this account requires a minimum deposit of $20,000. Once this deposit is made, the trader can then have access to the premium account and start enjoying all the benefits that come with it such as free wire transfers, priority customer support, and a personal relationship manager.

Oanda Professional Account

This is another exclusive Oanda account restricted to just traders located in the EU region and the United Kingdom but then as the name implies, it’s not available to just any kind of trader as certain requirements need to be met before a trader can be eligible for this type of account. There are 3 major requirements although a trader just need to meet 2 to be considered eligible:

• The trader must have made an average of 10 transactions of significant size per quarter in the past year.
• A financial instrument portfolio of over €500,000 (in your bank or trading account) which will come due to ample years of trading and earning substantial profit.
• Possess a required amount of experience in the financial services sector. This goes to show that having an adequate background knowledge of how financial markets and tools work along with an adequate understanding of the complex relationship that exists between various market factors is an important requirement for a trader to have access to this type of account.

Another feature of this account is the 100:1 increased leverage on forex which means the profits earned by the trader are geometrically multiplied and conversely when the trader suffers a loss, the losses are quite substantial.

The account does offer negative balance protection. Negative balance protection is an automatic means of adjusting the account balance to zero if it becomes negative after a stop loss is initiated. Due to the high leverage available to users of this type of account, there is potential to lose more than what is invested which is why having negative balance protection is paramount.

Oanda Account Opening: Steps to follow

1. Request an Oanda Trading Account

To request an Oanda trading account, simply log on to their website and apply for an account. However, you are expected to be above 18 years of age and at the same time be a lawful resident of the country you are applying from.  You will need to apply using your email and then creating a password.

2. Verify your Oanda Account

This is usually done fast and a mail will be sent to the email address you used to sign up. You will be required to provide some documents as proof of identity, age, and residence. The documents can either be scanned and then sent or snapped using your smartphone before sending. Depending on the country you are residing in, you may need the following documents:

• Proof of Identity (National ID or Passport): this will show your full name and other perfunctory information about you.
• Proof of residence (Bank statement): this is expected to bear the address of where you are residing which should correlate to your country of residence.

3. Fund your Trading Account

Once your account has been verified and you have provided the necessary information and documents, the next thing is to deposit funds into your trading account. This is done by simply logging into your Oanda account, click on manage funds’ which will take you to ‘deposit’ where you can then deposit the money in any of the following ways:

• Bank Transfer
• Major Credit and Debit Cards (Visa, MasterCard)
• PayPal

Some of the currencies accepted:

• GBP, EUR, USD, CAD, JPY, and more

Minimum Deposit

Your location determines the amount of the minimum deposit with Oanda, as well as the kind of account you open. However, generally, the minimum deposit is $0 but for the Oanda Premium Account, the minimum deposit is $20,000.

Account Base Currency

Despite being a huge forex broker, Oanda only offers USD as base currency. This means that every deposit made with a different currency may be liable of a conversion fee, as well as every withdrawal.

Oanda Account Bonus

Oanda Advanced Trader Program

This loyalty program consists of three tiers with each tier having a required minimum deposit or monthly trading volume. The value of the required minimum deposit increases with each level of tier as well as that of the monthly trading volume. This means the value of tier 3 is higher than that of tier 2 which in turn is higher than that of tier 1.

This program gives access to some benefits such as reduced spreads, reduced forex commissions, more trading tools (VPS, a personal relationship manager). These benefits help a trader to make the most of their trading opportunities and increase the potential of earning a larger profit margin from their trades.

Oanda Account Deposit & Withdrawal

Oanda deposits and withdrawals are typically fee-free but some fees may be charged depending on the currency and method you’re using:

A conversion fee if you are depositing a currency that does not match your base currency which is to be expected. If for example, your base currency is the USD and you’re making a deposit in Australian dollars, it has to be converted to U.S dollars which is bound to attract a fee.

A commission on bank transfers although this varies depending on the bank you are making the transfer from.

For the processing of deposits, it takes about 1-2 days or even less while withdrawals tend to take about two days. So, invariably, deposits reflect faster while withdrawals just take a little bit longer. The payment methods for withdrawals are similar to the deposit methods which signifies that you can withdraw through Master credit and debit cards, bank transfer, and through eWallets.

Oanda Account Management

After opening an Oanda account, it is important that you know how to manage it especially when you forget your password, or you have been inactive for a while.

Oanda Account Inactivity

Sometimes, it is possible for a trader to be inactive on their Oanda account for an extended period and this usually has certain consequences especially when it comes to a live account. Once a trader is inactive for more than 12 months, then an inactivity fee is charged to the live account and it is $10 for each month the account is inactive.

Oanda Account reactivation

Inactive accounts can always be activated again, but to do so, the broker might ask for some documents and the type of account will determine the kind of documents the broker might demand.  Once the necessary documents are provided, the account can then be reactivated.

How to close your Oanda account

A trader might feel he or she is no more interested in operating an Oanda live account and thus decide to close it. To do that, the first step is to withdraw whatever funds are available and then contact the broker support team so that they can do the needful.