eToro Social Trading Review for Beginner Investors

eToro TradingI have been using eToro for the past four years for copy trading and building my portfolio that generates me passive income. I have written this review to help beginner investors to understand how eToro works so that they can make an informed decision whether this platform is suitable for them to use for trading and building passive wealth.

eToro is one of the world’s leading social trading and online broker site. Founded in 2007, it is based mainly in Limassol, Cyprus. It was established by the brothers Ronnen and Yoni Assia.

It is currently used by 5 million people from 170 countries. Even with this already high user count, the company’s growth prospect is still increasing with new account holders signing up daily. These users are able to trade indices, currencies and commodities in the platform.

It is mainly regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. Its operations in other countries are also monitored by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Markets in Financial Instruments Directive and Financial Conduct Authority.

eToro Social Trading Review for You

What exactly is social trading? In a nutshell, it is the process of enabling stock, commodities, crypto currency and foreign exchange traders to use online platforms to trade their accounts. Through these platforms, they will be able to get information from other retail traders and use it to decide how to trade. They can also interact with other traders and learn from other users trading strategies. You will know more about the platform in this eToro trading platform review.

Features of eToro

Through eToro, users can connect with other users to trade while learning and sharing their own knowledge. The highest ranking traders are listed on the landing page of the mobile app. Under each high ranking trader, the number of copiers, win ratio and gain percentage is also listed.

CopyTrader. This provides users with the chance to easily copy the top traders in the network. The process is automatic and makes everything easier for the user to replicate.

Personal Investment Program. Through this program, the clients will be able to build and monetize the portfolio that they have so they can earn income and profits.

Mobile App. The network’s mobile app has merged the features and functionalities of their OpenBook and WebTrader platforms so that you can trade even on your smartphone or tab devices.

What You Need to Know About an eToro Account

OPENING AN ACCOUNT. The minimum deposit amount for an eToro account is dependent on the region and country of residence of the prospective user. It mainly ranges from $100-$50,000. In the Arabic countries, for example, the minimum deposit is at $200. In some areas, particularly in Europe, it can be 40 percent of the realized equity.

PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP. If you deposit $20,000 or more, you will automatically become a Premium member. What does this mean? You will be getting special privileges and benefits that are not available to other users. This includes your own Payoneer credit card, a personal account manager and faster processing of your withdrawals.

CHOOSING A BROKER. When trying to pick which broker you are going to work with, one major consideration you will have to weigh is the cost of trading. There are two factors you have to think about: the commissions and the spreads.

PRACTICE ACCOUNTS. If you are still not sure about the whole thing, you can first get a practice account. This practice account gives you access to the social trading platform. In these practice accounts, you will be given a virtual currency amounting to $100,000 so you can get a feel if the platform is right for you.

DIVERSE INVESTMENT CHOICES. The great thing about eToro as a social trading platform is the diversity of the investments you can trade. You can trade mainly in currency (all currencies are converted to US dollars upon deposit). But if you want to try out other investments, you can trade for stocks, commodities like crude oil and even precious metals like gold. Spanish and Italian stocks, along with Chinese and Russian ADRs are also available. Apart from this, eToro is among the first social trading platforms to welcome bitcoin, though it is still listed as a stock.

eToro Education Center

eToro is equipped with an education center where the clients can learn about maximizing their earnings. The education center has videos, webinars and training courses that discuss a wide range of topics that will help in making the trading experience great for users.

Among the most popular features of the education center is the eCourses, where the users will be able to know the tricks of the game at their own terms and pace. The WebTrader platform also has a news screen that keeps you updated about the world of Forex in real time.

Deposits and Withdrawals

HOW TO DEPOSIT. As already mentioned above, trading is only done in U.S. dollars. This means that even when you deposit in your local currency, you will still have to trade in American dollars.

The payment methods available for an eToro account include PayPal, debit and credit cards (preferably MasterCard, Visa or Diner’s Club), bank transfers and WebMoney.

HOW TO WITHDRAW. Withdrawing is relatively easy. You just have to go to the cashier’s section of the platform. Click on the withdrawal button and fill out the form.

Processing of payments can take at least five days, with each withdrawal costing $25. For those who are withdrawing for the first time, there are special requirements that you have to fulfill depending on the area you are in.

Customer Support

The telephone support of eToro is toll free for callers from the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Cyprus. You can contact them from Monday to Friday, no matter what time it is. Questions can also be sent via email though there is a 48-hour maximum response time for that. Customer support is available worldwide in the English, French, Spanish, German and Italian languages.

Promotions to Watch Out For

If you want to be able to enjoy a 100 percent spread rebate and a 2 percent management fee, you have to register to be a Popular Investor.

Conclusion

There is a reason why eToro is a popular social trading platform. It is a fantastic choice for those who want to be able to be in contact with other currency, stock and commodities traders. This also helps beginner investors to learn from the best around the world through eToro social trading.

What attracted me to eToro was the ability to copy trades of experts in the field of stocks, currency and commodities. Firstly I am not an expert and secondly I don’t have to sit in front of a computer whole day long following the markets. I simply visit eToro once a month and check performance of traders I am following. If their performance is not upto my expectations I stop copying them and find new traders to copy.

With eToro I can spread my risk over large number of stocks and currencies. This is a far better way of trading than taking advice of people whose track record I am not sure about. With eToro I can see the performance of the trader I am copying with history that goes back several years and their risk score. I try and find traders who give high returns with low risk score.

My suggestion is that you should open a free account and do practice trading by copying expert traders or if you are an expert then make your own trades. You upgrade to a paid account only if you are happy with the services they provide. I am writing this because I am one happy customer.