About GFCRS
Who we are
Retail trading in foreign exchange and contracts for difference is international. Investors often deal with firms based in another country, under rules they do not know, and find it hard to get a clear answer when something goes wrong.
GFCRS was set up to offer two things in that market: a published set of standards that firms can voluntarily commit to and be assessed against, and a structured, free process through which investors can raise disputes with the firms that have made that commitment.
We are a private organisation. Firms join us voluntarily, and our role comes from the membership agreement each member signs, not from any law. That agreement requires members to cooperate with our complaint process, to provide the information we ask for and to respond to our findings.
Our mission
To raise standards of conduct among forex and CFD firms, and to give investors a fair, free and understandable way to resolve disputes with them.
What we do
Forex and CFD firms that want to become members apply to us and are assessed against the GFCRS Membership Standards. We look at their authorisations, how they hold client money, how transparent their terms and pricing are, how they handle complaints and how they treat customers. Members are reviewed every year.
Each member firm receives a numbered membership certificate with a QR code and a digital signature. Anyone can check online, at any time, whether a certificate is genuine and whether the membership is still current.
Investors who cannot settle a complaint with a member firm can bring it to us free of charge. We review the evidence from both sides, help the parties reach an agreed solution and, where that is not possible, record a reasoned outcome.
We publish notices when a firm's membership is suspended or ends, and warnings about people or websites that falsely claim to be connected with GFCRS.
Our limits
It matters that investors understand exactly what GFCRS membership means, and what it does not.
How we work
Funding
GFCRS is funded by the application and annual membership fees paid by member firms. Fees are set out in principle in our Membership Standards and are the same for every firm in the same membership category.
Investors never pay. Filing, tracking and resolving a complaint with GFCRS is free of charge. We do not take a share of any settlement and we never ask an investor for a fee, a deposit, a tax or a “release payment”.
Fee income is kept separate from complaint handling. Case handlers and members of the Independent Review Committee are not paid by reference to any firm’s fees, and a firm’s fees cannot affect the outcome of a complaint against it. Our Governance & Independence page explains these safeguards.
Contact us with questions about our work, membership or the complaint process. If you want to complain about a member firm, please use the complaint form so that your case receives a reference straight away.
GFCRS is an independent private organisation. It is not a government body, financial regulator, ombudsman or statutory compensation scheme. GFCRS membership is not a licence or regulatory authorisation and does not guarantee a firm's conduct or an investor's funds.