XM vs Altcoin Trader: Fees, Security, Features & Which to Choose (2025)

Trying to choose between XM and Altcoin Trader This side-by-side comparison reveals total cost (fees + spreads), security & licenses, coins/derivatives, deposits/withdrawals, and app quality. In 2 minutes you’ll see who wins for beginners, active traders, and long-term holders. Clear pros/cons, a quick verdict, and safe links to get started.

Last updated on September 5, 2025

XM

Altcoin Trader

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Available Countries

United States

Europe

Yes

Latin America

Yes

India

Yes

China

Yes

Canada

United Kingdom

United States

Yes

Europe

Yes

Latin America

Yes

India

China

Yes

Canada

Yes

United Kingdom

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XM is ideal if:

For flexibility seekers: Ideal if you want access to a wide range of global markets (forex, CFDs, commodities, indices, stocks, crypto) across popular platforms like MT4 and MT5.
For fair-play traders: Perfect if you value consistent execution—no requotes or rejections—and the same conditions for all clients, regardless of account size.
For support-driven users: Great for those who appreciate multilingual, round-the-clock support and educational tools (like live webinars and market insights).

Altcoin Trader is ideal if:

Ideal for newcomers seeking simplicity: Its intuitive interface and straightforward trading make onboarding smooth and stress‑free.
Perfect if you want seamless ZAR access: Supports direct South African Rand deposits and withdrawals tied to local banking systems.
Great for those who value passive earnings: Offers an interest‑bearing feature that lets you earn on crypto holdings without lock‑ins.

XM isn’t ideal if:

If you want full asset variety: XM lacks futures, physical stocks, and a broader crypto selection—so it's not the best fit if you're seeking non-CFD exposure or niche instruments.
If payment flexibility matters: No PayPal or similar e-wallet options, and withdrawing profits often requires bank transfers only.
If transparency is crucial: Being privately held, XM doesn’t publish public financial disclosures, which may concern traders looking for operational transparency.

Altcoin Trader isn’t ideal if:

Not for multi-fiats or passive earners: Only accepts South African Rand and lacks earning tools like staking or interest accounts.
Not for advanced traders: Platform design is basic—missing advanced order types, robust charting, or professional trading tools.
Not optimal for large-volume traders: Lower liquidity and trading volume compared to big exchanges may affect execution of bigger trades.

Fees & Total Costs

Spot Maker/Take

XM does not use a maker-taker pricing model for spot crypto trading; instead, it offers crypto CFDs with transparent spreads rather than volume-based fees or native-token discounts.

AltCoinTrader applies a flat fee of 0.10% for both maker and taker spot trades, regardless of your trading volume; there are no volume-based tiers or discounts for using any native token.

Futures/Derivatives

XM provides CFD-based derivatives (including forex, commodities, indices, crypto) rather than traditional futures, with no separate maker/taker fees and funding costs rolled into overnight swap rates depending on account type and position.

The platform does not offer any futures or derivatives trading—so there are no associated maker/taker fees or funding costs to consider.

Average Spreads on Liquid Pairs

XM’s crypto spreads vary dynamically with market conditions, and while they aim to keep spreads competitive, specific figures for pairs like BTC/USDT or ETH/USDT are not publicly listed to ensure evergreen relevance.

AltCoinTrader does not publicly disclose average spreads for these pairs; given its focus on ZAR-based markets, spreads may vary, and the platform does not advertise this metric prominently.

Fiat Deposits & Withdrawals

Clients can deposit and withdraw using credit/debit cards, bank transfers, and e-wallets like Skrill or Neteller, typically with no internal fees and processing that ranges from instant (e-wallets) to a few business days (cards or wire).

You can deposit and withdraw South African Rand via EFT, bank transfer, Capitec Pay, and similar local methods—with deposit fees around 0.5% (capped at R95), and withdrawal fees set at 0.5% plus a fixed R16 (also capped at R95); deposits are typically credited within one to three days, depending on your bank.

On-chain Withdrawals

XM does not offer on-chain crypto withdrawals—crypto exposure is available only via CFDs—so there are no network-level (like BTC, ETH, TRX) withdrawal fees.

Withdrawal fees for cryptocurrencies are network-based and vary by coin—e.g., a BTC withdrawal costs approximately 0.00057 BTC—indicating a fixed fee per network rather than dynamic gas-based pricing.

Hidden Costs

XM imposes inactivity charges after a period without trading, and currency conversion fees may apply if your deposit or withdrawal currency differs from your account base; there are no known express-KYC charges.

Although there are no explicit inactivity or express KYC fees mentioned, non-ZAR conversions may involve indirect conversion costs, and fee transparency for different services (like instant processing) isn’t fully clear—so always check within your account before proceeding.

Real-World Cost Example: “€500 BTC

Because XM trades crypto via CFDs rather than outright purchases, a “€500 BTC buy” isn’t executed as a direct asset acquisition—costs would come from the spread and any overnight financing, with no actual crypto withdrawal involved.

Suppose you purchase the equivalent of €500 in BTC via the market; you’d pay roughly 0.10% in trading fee plus a spread embedded in the quote, and if withdrawing immediately you’d incur the fixed BTC withdrawal fee—altogether reflecting trading, conversion, and withdrawal without outlining exact amounts to keep it evergreen.

Crypto Offering & Trading Features

Number of Coins & Pairs

XM offers 58 crypto CFDs, covering many major and minor cryptocurrencies across USD, EUR, and GBP denominated pairs; top-volume pairs include BTC/USD, ETH/USD, XRP/USD, LTC/USD, and BCH/USD.

AltCoinTrader supports approximately 37 unique cryptocurrencies across around 48 trading pairs, with the top 20 pairs by volume dominated by ZAR-based markets—including notable pairs like XRP/ZAR, BTC/ZAR, USDT/ZAR, and ETH/ZAR.

Product Range

XM provides CFDs only—no actual spot, futures/perps, options, ETFs, staking, lending, grid or DCA bots—though it does support copy trading via MQL5 alongside its usual CFD offerings.

AltCoinTrader focuses on basic spot trading and includes a passive income product called “Easy Save,” but it does not offer margin or derivatives, crypto ETFs, lending, copy trading, grid bots, or automated DCA tools.

Liquidity

XM does not publish direct liquidity metrics like 24-hour volume or order-book depth, relying instead on its CFD pricing aligned with underlying markets via its partner liquidity providers.

Liquidity is modest, with 24-hour trading volumes in the low-to-mid million-dollar range; although exact order book depth isn’t publicly shown, it’s likely thinner than on major global exchanges, especially for BTC and ETH markets.

Tools

XM supports standard order types—including limit, stop, and OCO—offers alerts and advanced charting through MT4/MT5 platforms; it does not feature a proprietary TradingView interface or public API/WS, but use of Expert Advisors is permitted.

The platform provides market and limit orders, slightly more advanced charting via TradingView Basic, and API access; however, features such as stop or OCO orders, price alerts, WebSocket data, or advanced charting tools are notably limited or absent.

Geographic Restrictions by Product

XM restricts certain products in specific regions—crypto CFDs and copy-trading are unavailable to clients in the UK and EEA, and access to CFDs depends on local regulator policies.

Being South African-based, AltCoinTrader’s features are tailored mainly to ZAR-speaking regions, with no support for derivatives or advanced instruments—there are no explicit regional blackouts, but advanced products simply aren’t offered anywhere.

Innovation

XM does not offer launchpad, launchpool, staking pools, earn programs, or flexible-vs-locked yield products; its innovation focus remains on expanding CFD choices and platform features like copy trading.

AltCoinTrader doesn’t support token launch mechanisms or pools, but it does offer an innovative passive yield feature via Easy Save, which allows flexible, interest-like returns on idle crypto without lock-ins—offering a rare, flexible-earn option among regional exchanges.

Security, Regulation & Custody

Operating Entity & Jurisdiction

XM is run by Trading Point Holdings Ltd (founded 2009), headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus, and operates through specialized regional entities tailored to the EU, Australia, Middle East, and global markets.

AltCoinTrader (Pty) Ltd, founded around 2015 and headquartered in South Africa, operates under South African law with a visible company registration—making it a locally regulated and established crypto service provider.

Licenses/Registration

XM is regulated under CySEC (Cyprus / EU), ASIC (Australia), DFSA (Dubai), and IFSC (Belize), aligning with EU MiFID II standards but not specifically registered as a VASP under MiCA.

AltCoinTrader is officially licensed by the South African Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) as a Category I/II Crypto Asset Service Provider (CASP), and also registered as a Financial Service Provider (FSP), reflecting compliance with local and FATF-aligned regulatory standards.

Custody

XM entrusts client funds to top-tier third-party banks in segregated accounts, and although it mentions independent audits and risk controls, it does not provide public Proof of Reserves or disclose cold-storage percentages.

AltCoinTrader manages its own custody of user assets, employs a statutory audit confirming that client reserves exceed liabilities, and holds a major portion of assets in cold storage—though it doesn’t publicly provide a full-proof of reserves report.

Insurance & Protection Funds

EU-based clients via XM’s CySEC arm benefit from the Investor Compensation Fund (cap applies), and the broker enforces negative balance protection—but it does not highlight private insurance schemes.

There is no publicly detailed insurance policy or external protection fund advertised—such coverage is either not offered or not transparently disclosed on the platform.

Incident History

XM has maintained a largely clean record with no major hacks or enforcement actions reported by tier-1 regulators, and any operational interruptions are either internal or compliance-related, with no publicized fines.

There are no known reports of major hacks or regulatory fines, although a small number of users have complained about account issues or fund access delays on review platforms—no confirmed systemic security breaches.

Risk Controls

XM supports strong risk safeguards including mandatory KYC, negative balance protection, and secure execution infrastructure, though features like granular API permissions, IP whitelisting, or sub-account hierarchies are mostly available via MetaTrader plugin tools rather than a proprietary interface.

The platform enforces standard risk controls like two-factor authentication (2FA) and OTP-based withdrawal verification; more advanced tools such as whitelisting addresses, sub-account management, anti-phishing measures, or granular API permissions are not prominently featured.

Transparency

XM provides detailed legal documents, execution statistics, and quarterly summaries available to clients, but does not publish public wallet addresses, real-time monthly financials, or explicit service-level agreements.

AltCoinTrader does not appear to publish monthly financial or transparency reports, does not offer publicly auditable wallet addresses, nor sets formal SLAs—though it does voluntarily participate in regulatory audits and maintains compliance processes under financial law.

Deposits, Withdrawals, KYC & Support

Fiat Deposit Methods

XM accepts bank wires, Visa/MasterCard, and e-wallets like Skrill, Neteller, Google Pay, and Apple Pay; the minimum deposit is around $5; e-wallet/top-up deposits are instantaneous, cards take up to a few business days, and bank wires typically reflect within 1–5 business days.

AltCoinTrader accepts fiat deposits via local bank transfers and Ozow instant EFT, requiring a minimum of around R100 (approx. $6), with no stated maximum; processing usually happens within a few hours to one business day, depending on method and bank operations.

Supported Fiat Currencies & Conversion

KYC (Verification Levels)

XM enforces a full KYC flow requiring identity, selfie, and proof of address before enabling deposits and withdrawals; there is no tiered access—full verification is mandatory to unlock all account functionalities.

AltCoinTrader uses multi-tiered verification

Withdrawals

XM processes withdrawals via the same channel used for deposit (e-wallet, card, or wire), with processing typically within 24 hours and final receipt depending on method (e-wallets same day, cards/wires 2–5 business days); crypto networks aren’t used since XM operates via CFDs.

Crypto withdrawals depend on the chosen network (ERC-20, TRC-20, etc.) and follow standard network protocols; fiat ZAR withdrawals offer a “near-instant” service (R250K max outside banking hours; R5M during) taking 5–15 minutes to process but up to 24 hours to reflect, and must be sent to a personal bank account in your name.

Customer Support

XM provides multilingual support via live chat and email, reportedly operational 24/5 (depending on your region), with relatively fast response times and a rich repository of educational content and FAQs online.

Support is available via email, tickets, and phone during South African business hours (typically weekdays, 9

Languages & Localization

XM supports Spanish-language interfaces and customer support, displays pricing in your account’s base currency (including EUR), and operates under local regulatory regimes to ensure compliance in each jurisdiction.

The platform is presented in English, displays fees and balances in ZAR, and is fully oriented toward South African regulatory standards, offering smooth localization for users in that region while showing limited adaptability for others.

App Quality & Stability

XM’s mobile and web apps—built on the tried-and-true MetaTrader frameworks—are praised for reliable performance and regular updates; while exact crash data isn’t public, user feedback indicates smooth stability and ongoing enhancements.

AltCoinTrader’s mobile app is generally stable and feature-rich in terms of basic trading, earning a middling performance score; while it supports TradingView charts, APIs, and indicators, there’s no public data on crash rates—user feedback indicates reliable stability but limited advanced features.

Experience, Performance & Ecosystem

UX/UI

XM exclusively uses MetaTrader platforms—MT4, MT5, WebTrader, and mobile apps—without separate “Lite” or “Pro” versions. MT4 offers a smooth start for beginners, while MT5 brings deeper tools, though mastering either still requires some adaptation to their interfaces.

AltCoinTrader features a clean, beginner-friendly interface with a shallow learning curve and no separate Lite or Pro modes—making it simple and consistent for users of all levels.

Performance

XM leverages MetaTrader’s known reliability, delivering fast executions with minimal delays—even during busy periods. While traffic surges or market jitters can slightly slow processes, major slowdowns are rare, and KYC flows remain consistent, avoiding backlog surges during bull runs.

The exchange typically handles order submissions quickly and remains solid even during market swings, though occasional slowdowns or verification delays may occur during surges of activity or peak trading periods.

Education

XM provides a free demo environment with live-market simulation and unlimited practice funds. Educational resources include multilingual webinars, live trading rooms, and webinars—many available in Spanish alongside a full demo system for hands-on learning.

While the platform offers helpful webinars, detailed FAQs, and guided support, it lacks a built-in demo or simulator and currently doesn’t provide structured educational content in Spanish.

Community

XM fosters a growing community via its multilingual referral initiative—with cash rewards for both referrer and referee. While it lacks its own Discord or Telegram groups, it maintains active engagement through webinars, its “Refer a Friend” program, and content hubs.

AltCoinTrader does not host public forums or Discord/Telegram channels, but it does run a referral program alongside its support-driven community engagement through its helpdesk and email support.

Integrations

XM supports algorithmic automation via Expert Advisors within MetaTrader, but does not provide native TradingView integration, tax-report tools, or accounting dashboards—external utilities must be linked manually.

The platform includes basic charting with TradingView Lite integration, but it doesn’t yet support external trading bots, tax tools, or accounting package integrations.

Who Each One Is Best For

XM is perfect for traders who value platform flexibility and automation (via MT5/MT4), appreciate structured learning with multilingual education, and thrive in a regulated, straightforward CFD trading environment—without the need for fancy separate modes or built-in finance tools.

AltCoinTrader is ideal for South African beginners or casual traders seeking secure, straightforward ZAR-based buying and basic earning, but less suitable for advanced traders craving sophisticated tools or broader language and automation support.