Risk scorecard
Each area is scored 0 (clean) to 10 (worst). Higher means more risk.
Regulation
5/10 · ModerateGenuine tier 2 CySEC licence 203/13, confirmed in force with the investigated domain on the regulator's approved list, offset by a 2014 suspension, two 2015 penalties and a non-EU arm outside that licence.
Identity & transparency
4/10 · ModerateCompany, registry number, licence and registered office all published and all matching the Cyprus registrar, but three different Nicosia addresses circulate, the group site misprints its own registration number and the South African licence is registered to the trading name Financix rather than EZInvest.
Withdrawals & conduct
8/10 · CriticalRepeated recent reports of blocked withdrawals and of staff asking for further deposits before releasing funds, partly mitigated by confirmed fast payouts for other clients and by public replies to every complaint.
Reputation
7/10 · HighTrustpilot rating suspended for a guidelines breach with fake reviews removed, 60% one star of 407 reviews, and low aggregator scores, but no regulator warning names this brand anywhere.
Website claims
4/10 · ModerateRegulatory claims are accurate and link to the real register, and the loss rate is disclosed, but one brand identity spans two entities with very different protection and a client reports a false claim of Bolivian supervision.
Operational history
2/10 · LowDomain from 2002, company from 2009, licence from 2013, continuous brand presence and a live MT4 server, so longevity counts in its favour.
Who they are
A quick desk file on the company behind the brand.
- Brand: EZInvest, also marketed as Phoenix Markets, StockSTP and Marches-Financiers.
- Legal entity: WGM Services Limited (Cyprus), formerly named Giona Trading Limited.
- Registered: Cyprus registry number HE 256991, registered 29 October 2009, status active.
- Registered office: Themistokli Dervi 48, Centennial Building, Floor 1, Office 104, 1066 Nicosia, Cyprus. Head office: Ellinas House, 5th Floor, 85 Limassol Avenue, Aglantzia 2121, Nicosia.
- Website: eu.ezinvest.com, part of the ezinvest.com family. phoenixmarkets.com now serves the EZInvest site.
- Only licence for this entity: CySEC 203/13, a Cyprus Investment Firm licence covering order reception, execution and dealing on own account.
- Offers: more than 400 CFDs on currencies, shares, indices, commodities and crypto, on MT4, web and mobile. The site discloses that 60.92% of its retail accounts lose money.
- Not accepted: residents of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
- Age claim: the homepage says over 8 years of experience. The licence dates from 2013 and the company from 2009, so the claim is if anything modest.
- Non-EU arm: world.ezinvest.com is run by Sanus Financial Services (Pty) Ltd, South Africa, registration 2020/659426/07, FSCA licence 51523.
Regulation
Who really oversees this broker, and what each licence is worth to you.
Proof of regulation on an official register: Yes
We confirmed this broker on a genuine regulator’s register.
Licences the broker publishes
Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)
Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), South Africa
Why we reached this verdict
How the evidence adds up.
We could confirm who this broker is and that its licence is genuine. We could not clear its conduct.
- The licence check passed on every leg. We opened the CySEC entity record for WGM Services Ltd on 4 August 2026. Licence 203/13, issued 14 June 2013. The register's approved-website field names eu.ezinvest.com, www.ezinvest.com, www.phoenixmarkets.com and www.phoenixmarkets.fr, and the registered address matches the one printed on the site. That is the opposite of a clone.
- The company exists and is current. The Cyprus registrar shows WGM Services Limited, HE 256991, registered since 2009 and still on the register, at the address the site gives.
- But client money complaints are frequent and recent. On Trustpilot, reviewers dated 7 June, 10 June, 11 June, 8 July and 30 July 2026 describe the same mechanic: deposit pressure from an assigned account manager, then a withdrawal that does not arrive. One reviewer says a 100 dollar withdrawal requested on 10 June 2026 was blocked. Another says the balance shown before a withdrawal request turned negative overnight, and staff asked for a further deposit to release the money. Asking a client to pay in more before releasing a withdrawal is one of the clearest warning signs there is.
- Independent aggregators show the same picture. A broker review database logged 32 complaints against the brand in a three month window to December 2025 and 36 in a three month window to May 2026, on unauthorised trading, deposit pressure and blocked withdrawals, including one user report of a 61,357 dollar loss in February 2026 and one of 535 dollars in April 2026.
- The review record itself has been tampered with. Trustpilot has removed the brand's rating for a breach of its guidelines and states it deleted a number of fake reviews. The surviving distribution is hollow in the middle: 26% five star, 60% one star, out of 407 reviews.
- Regulatory history is not clean. CySEC suspended this licence from 20 November to 22 December 2014 over concerns about client funds and capital adequacy, fined the firm 10,000 euros in March 2015 for continuing to serve clients through ezinvest.com while suspended, and fined it 340,000 euros later in 2015 including for anti money laundering failings and for providing investment management without authorisation.
- Two arms, two very different levels of protection. The Cyprus licence covers the EU site. Everyone else is onboarded through world.ezinvest.com by a South African company, and the brand's own support replies come from a sanusfinancial.com address. Almost every complainant we read is from India, Pakistan or Latin America, so they sit outside the Cyprus licence and outside EU compensation cover entirely.
- What is missing for a scam verdict: no regulator anywhere has published a warning naming this brand or these domains, no licence number is faked or borrowed, and some clients confirm withdrawals paid within a day. That is why we stop at high risk.
Evidence ledger
Every finding, with its source and how strongly it points.
E1CySEC's own register entry for WGM Services Ltd shows licence 203/13, granted 14 June 2013, company registration 256991, head office in Nicosia, and an approved-website list that includes eu.ezinvest.com, www.ezinvest.com, www.phoenixmarkets.com and www.phoenixmarkets.fr. The licence covers reception and transmission of orders, execution on behalf of clients and dealing on own account.
E2The broker's own regulation page names WGM Services Ltd as the operator of EZInvest, states licence number 203/13 and links directly to the CySEC entity record, which is what allowed the licence to be matched to this exact domain.
Moderateeu.ezinvest.com regulation pageE3The Cyprus Registrar of Companies shows WGM SERVICES LIMITED, number HE 256991, a private company registered on 29 October 2009, currently on the register, previously named GIONA TRADING LIMITED, with its registered office at Themistokli Dervi 48, Centennial Building, Office 104, 1066 Nicosia. The same record shows a queue of annual return filings pending since 2019.
E4Trustpilot displays a warning that the company's rating is unavailable because of a breach of its guidelines, and states that a number of fake reviews were removed. The remaining 407 reviews split 26% five star, 11% four star, 2% three star, 1% two star and 60% one star, with 54 reviews in the last twelve months.
E5One star reviews dated 7 June, 10 June, 11 June, 8 July and 30 July 2026 describe the same sequence: an assigned account manager pushes deposits, positions are opened larger than the balance supports, and withdrawal requests stall. One reviewer reports a 100 dollar withdrawal requested on 10 June 2026 that was not released. Another reports the balance turning negative overnight after a withdrawal request, with staff asking for a further deposit before the money could be returned.
E6A broker review aggregator holding the same licence details, WGM Services Ltd and CySEC 203/13, records 32 formal complaints in the three months to December 2025 and 36 in the three months to May 2026, on unauthorised trading, deposit pressure and blocked withdrawals, including a user report of a 61,357 dollar loss in February 2026 and a 535 dollar loss in April 2026. The same page confirms the licence certificate details and a live MT4 server named WGMServices-Live.
E7CySEC fined WGM Services Ltd 10,000 euros by board decision of 2 March 2015, announced 26 March 2015, for breaching the Investment Services and Activities and Regulated Markets Law by continuing to offer investment services through its websites while its licence was suspended. The firm filed and then withdrew a judicial review in 2015.
StrongCySEC decisions registerE8The global arm of the brand is run by a different company: world.ezinvest.com states it is the trading name of Sanus Financial Services (Pty) Ltd, registration 2020/659426/07, of 17 Midas Avenue, Olympus, Pretoria, South Africa, under FSCA licence 51523 dated 10 June 2021, and that it excludes Canada, the EU and EEA, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. The page also names WGM Services Ltd, printing its Cyprus registration number as HE25699 rather than HE 256991, and publishes no link to the FSCA register.
E9The FSCA authorised provider register returns one match for FSP number 51523: SANUS FINANCIAL SERVICES, trading name FINANCIX, status Authorized. The licence therefore exists and is in force, but the trading name recorded with the regulator is Financix, not EZInvest.
E10The ezinvest.com domain was created on 23 December 2002 through eNom, last changed on 10 November 2025 and expires on 23 December 2027. The domain therefore predates both the company and the licence, so there is no age misrepresentation and no sign of a re-registered or drop-caught domain.
E11The live EU site is trading and onboarding, offering more than 400 CFDs on web, mobile and MT4, and discloses in its own risk warning that 60.92% of retail investor accounts lose money with this provider. It claims over 8 years of experience, which is consistent with the 2013 licence date, and states it does not serve residents of the United States, Canada or the United Kingdom.
E12Positive first hand accounts exist alongside the complaints. A reviewer on 22 July 2026 reports a withdrawal requested on a Thursday afternoon and credited by Friday morning with no extra verification requests, and an earlier complainant updated the review in December 2024 to confirm the finance team paid the withdrawal to their bank account. The company replies publicly to negative reviews and directs clients to a named support address.
E13A warning list sweep on 4 August 2026 for the brand names EZInvest and Phoenix Markets, the domains ezinvest.com and phoenixmarkets.com and the legal entities WGM Services Ltd and Sanus Financial Services returned no alert naming this operation. Warnings that exist for similarly spelled firms such as EZmarkets and Ezi-Trade name different domains and different companies, and have not been attributed to this broker.
E14The Phoenix Markets brand resolves to the EZInvest site: www.phoenixmarkets.com serves an EZ-Invest page. Combined with the CySEC approved-domain list, this confirms Phoenix Markets and EZInvest are the same licensed operation rather than two firms.
Moderatephoenixmarkets.com
The other side
The strongest case in this broker’s favour.
The case in this broker's favour is real and we will state it plainly.
- It is genuinely licensed, and by a European regulator. CySEC 203/13 is a tier 2 EU licence with MiFID conduct rules, segregated client money and Investor Compensation Fund cover up to 20,000 euros for eligible retail clients of the Cyprus entity. That is far above the offshore paperwork most complained-about brands rely on.
- Nothing is hidden. The company name, registry number, licence number, registered office and a direct link to the regulator's own record all appear on the site. The Cyprus registry entry matches. Very few dishonest operations publish a verifiable identity like this.
- It is old, not a fresh front. The domain was registered in December 2002, the company in 2009, the licence in 2013. There is no age fabrication and no sign of a recycled or drop-caught domain.
- Withdrawals do work for some clients. A reviewer on 22 July 2026 reports a withdrawal requested on a Thursday afternoon and paid by Friday morning with no extra verification. An earlier reviewer who had complained later updated the review to say the finance team paid out.
- The company answers publicly. Every negative review we read has a reply inviting the client to send an account number for investigation. A firm running a pure exit scam does not usually staff a public complaints desk.
- No regulator warning exists. We searched for alerts naming ezinvest.com, phoenixmarkets.com, WGM Services and Sanus Financial Services and found none as of 4 August 2026. Warnings that surfaced for similarly spelled firms such as EZmarkets and Ezi-Trade belong to different companies and we have not counted them.
- The complaints could be trading losses. The site itself discloses that 60.92% of retail accounts lose money, and several of the accounts we read describe oversized positions and margin calls, which is loss rather than theft. We have weighted only the reports that describe money being withheld.
- Our own database was wrong. It carried this broker as a suspicious clone. The register check refutes that, and we say so.
What would change this
What we would need to see to revise the verdict.
Concrete things that would move this verdict in either direction.
- Toward a scam verdict: any national regulator publishing a warning that names ezinvest.com, world.ezinvest.com or phoenixmarkets.com.
- Toward a scam verdict: a CySEC or FSCA decision, suspension or licence withdrawal against WGM Services Ltd or Sanus Financial Services (Pty) Ltd over client funds or withdrawals.
- Toward a scam verdict: documented evidence that staff demanded a fee, tax or extra deposit as a precondition for releasing a withdrawal, backed by payment records rather than recollection.
- Toward a scam verdict: the site going dark or freezing withdrawals brand wide while still taking deposits.
- Toward a clean verdict: CySEC or the South African FAIS Ombud confirming that the complaint cases were investigated and paid out, with a sustained fall in fund-access complaints over two quarters.
- Toward a clean verdict: Trustpilot restoring the brand's rating after the guidelines breach is resolved, alongside an organic review pattern rather than a 26% five star and 60% one star split.
- Toward a clean verdict: the group separating the two arms clearly at sign-up, so a non-EU client is told in plain words that the Cyprus licence and EU compensation cover do not apply to their account.
Check it yourself
Official registers and warning lists. Verify every claim first-hand.
CySEC register entry for WGM Services Ltd (licence 203/13)
The regulator's own record, with the licence date and the list of approved websites.
CySEC decision: administrative fine on WGM Services Ltd
The 2015 penalty for serving clients while the licence was suspended.
Cyprus Registrar of Companies entry HE 256991
Confirms WGM Services Limited exists, is active and was registered in 2009.
FSCA authorised financial service provider search (South Africa)
Enter FSP number 51523 to see the non-EU arm, Sanus Financial Services.
EZInvest reviews on Trustpilot
Shows the suspended rating, the guidelines breach notice and the review split.
The broker's own regulation page
Where the licence number and the link to the CySEC record are published.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about this broker’s safety.
Is EZInvest (Phoenix Markets) a scam?
We found no evidence that it is a fake or cloned broker. The operator, WGM Services Limited, holds a genuine Cyprus licence, 203/13, and the regulator's own record lists eu.ezinvest.com and phoenixmarkets.com as approved websites for that licence. We still rate it high risk, because clients on several platforms describe deposit pressure and withdrawals that do not arrive.
Is EZInvest regulated, and by whom?
Yes. The EU site is operated by WGM Services Limited under Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission licence 203/13, issued on 14 June 2013 and in force when we checked on 4 August 2026. The global site, world.ezinvest.com, is operated by a different company, Sanus Financial Services (Pty) Ltd, under South African FSCA licence 51523.
What is the difference between eu.ezinvest.com and world.ezinvest.com?
They are the same brand run by two different companies. The EU site falls under the Cyprus licence, with EU conduct rules, segregated client money and compensation cover up to 20,000 euros for eligible retail clients. The global site falls under a South African licence with no EU protections and no investor compensation scheme. Check which one you are signing up to.
Why is Phoenix Markets listed under EZInvest?
Phoenix Markets is a trading brand of the same Cyprus company. CySEC's record for licence 203/13 lists www.phoenixmarkets.com and www.phoenixmarkets.fr as approved websites of WGM Services Limited, and phoenixmarkets.com now serves the EZInvest site. It is a rebrand, not a separate firm.
Can I withdraw my money from EZInvest?
Some clients can and do. One reviewer in July 2026 reported a withdrawal paid the next morning. But many others report requests that stall, including a 100 dollar withdrawal reported as blocked in June 2026, and several say staff asked them to deposit more before the money would be released. Test a small withdrawal before you commit further funds.
Is my money safe with EZInvest?
If your account is with the Cyprus entity, client money rules and compensation cover apply, which is meaningful protection. If your account is with the South African entity, neither applies. In both cases the volume of current complaints about account handling means you should treat any deposit as money at real risk.
Who owns and runs EZInvest?
The EU business is WGM Services Limited, a Cyprus private company registered as HE 256991 on 29 October 2009, formerly named Giona Trading Limited, with its registered office at Themistokli Dervi 48, Office 104, Nicosia. The non-EU business is Sanus Financial Services (Pty) Ltd, registration 2020/659426/07, at 17 Midas Avenue, Olympus, Pretoria, South Africa.
How old is EZInvest?
The ezinvest.com domain was registered in December 2002, the Cyprus company in 2009 and the CySEC licence in 2013. The homepage claim of over 8 years of experience is consistent with, and slightly below, those dates. There is no sign of a young site pretending to be old.
Has EZInvest ever been fined by a regulator?
Yes. CySEC suspended the licence between 20 November and 22 December 2014 over concerns about client funds and capital adequacy. In March 2015 it fined WGM Services Ltd 10,000 euros for continuing to offer services through ezinvest.com during that suspension, and later in 2015 imposed a 340,000 euro penalty covering anti money laundering failings and providing investment management without authorisation.
Why has Trustpilot removed EZInvest's rating?
Trustpilot states the rating is unavailable because of a breach of its guidelines and that it removed a number of fake reviews for this company. Of the 407 reviews that remain, 26% are five star and 60% are one star, with almost nothing in between. That shape usually means the review page has been managed rather than left to grow naturally.
Is EZInvest a clone of another broker?
No. A clone displays a licence that belongs to somebody else. Here the licence number, the company name, the registered address and the website all match on the regulator's own record. Our internal database had previously flagged this broker as a suspicious clone, and this investigation refutes that.
What should I check before depositing with any broker like this?
Look up the licence number on the regulator's own register, not on the broker's site, and confirm your exact domain is listed. Confirm which legal entity your contract names. Read the withdrawal terms. Refuse anyone who trades for you or who asks for extra money to unlock a withdrawal. Then deposit a small amount and withdraw part of it before doing anything larger.
What do I do if I have already lost money here?
Send a written complaint to the company and keep a copy. If your account is with the Cyprus entity, escalate to CySEC and then the Cyprus Financial Ombudsman. If it is with the South African entity, escalate to the FSCA and the FAIS Ombud. Tell your bank or card provider quickly. Ignore anyone who offers to recover your funds for an upfront fee.
What we recommend
The practical takeaway from everything above.
Treat this as a regulated broker you should still approach with caution, and check which company would actually hold your money.
- Find out which entity you are signing with before you deposit. If your account sits with WGM Services Ltd under CySEC 203/13 you have EU rules and compensation cover. If it sits with Sanus Financial Services in South Africa, you do not.
- Verify the licence yourself on the CySEC register entry linked below. Match the company name, the number 203/13 and the approved website list against whatever site you are on.
- Never send extra money to release a withdrawal. No supervised broker needs a fresh deposit before it can pay out what is already in your account. That request is where most of these complaints begin.
- Do not let anyone trade for you. Several complaints describe an account manager opening or closing positions. Keep control of your own orders and refuse verbal instructions.
- Start small and test a withdrawal early, before you increase a deposit, and keep every statement, ticket and chat log.
- If you are already stuck: file a written complaint with the company, then escalate. EU clients go to CySEC and the Cyprus Financial Ombudsman. Clients of the South African arm go to the FSCA and the FAIS Ombud. Report card or bank payments to your provider quickly.
- Ignore anyone who contacts you offering to recover your funds for a fee. That is a second scam that targets people who lost money to the first.
This is an independent assessment of risk, not a legal ruling. Scores and verdicts follow the Wikilix broker-safety methodology and can change as new evidence appears. Review scores are treated with caution when a broker’s reviews look manipulated. Last reviewed August 4, 2026. If any detail here is out of date or incorrect, or you represent this broker, please contact us.