Risk scorecard
Each area is scored 0 (clean) to 10 (worst). Higher means more risk.
Regulation
9/10 · CriticalNo licence in force: ASIC AFSL 302792 was cancelled in 2020, UK FRN 798776 ended in 2022, the Vanuatu arm is off the VFSC list, and MAS lists the firm on its Investor Alert List.
Identity & transparency
7/10 · HighThe companies are real and registered, but ownership ran through a Samoan parent whose stated owner the liquidators doubted, and assets and records were withheld from them.
Withdrawals & conduct
9/10 · CriticalThe same unpaid-withdrawal failure appears on two platforms from September 2020 to 2022, with amounts and dates. A liquidation suspended withdrawals, and investors claim about A$360 million against about A$6 million in trust.
Reputation
9/10 · CriticalRated about 1.8 out of 5 on both Trustpilot and Forex Peace Army, with record court penalties, an MAS alert and investigative press coverage.
Website claims
6/10 · HighIts ASIC licence claim was true while the licence lasted, but its promise of segregated trust funds did not hold for the many clients whose deposits went through offshore processors or agents.
Operational history
8/10 · CriticalA history going back to 2005 that ended in court-ordered liquidation in 2020, with every licence gone and the brand's web addresses abandoned.
Who they are
A quick desk file on the company behind the brand.
- Brand: USGFX, also marketed as USG, USG UK, UK USG and USG FX Global.
- Legal entity: Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd (in liquidation), ACN 117 658 349, ABN 79 117 658 349. Former name: Waterview Financial Group Pty Ltd.
- Registered: Australia, 21 December 2005, according to ASIC company data. Last trading address: G03, 135 Macquarie Street, Sydney NSW 2000.
- Owner: Union Standard Group International Holdings Limited of Samoa. The liquidators name Soe Hein Minn of Myanmar as the ultimate beneficial owner.
- Website: usgfx.com was taken offline at ASIC's request after the collapse. An unrelated party re-registered the domain in August 2024, and it now forwards to a Japanese affiliate site.
- Only licence: none today. ASIC AFSL 302792 was cancelled in 2020. The UK sister company (FRN 798776) has not been authorised since December 2022. The Vanuatu arm is not on the VFSC licensee list.
- Offers: nothing. The company stopped trading on 8 July 2020. Before that it offered forex and CFDs on MT4 and MT5, with leverage up to 1:500.
- Not accepted: its former website said its information was not aimed at residents of the United States or Japan.
- Age claim: no current claim. The company dates from 2005, and its website was online from at least February 2011.
Regulation
Who really oversees this broker, and what each licence is worth to you.
Proof of regulation on an official register: No
We could not confirm this broker on any genuine regulator’s register.
Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
Vanuatu Financial Services Commission (VFSC)
Why we reached this verdict
How the evidence adds up.
The verdict rests on court, regulator and liquidator records that name Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd, its licence number and usgfx.com directly. Client reports show the same withdrawal failure again and again.
- Court penalties. On 11 June 2026 the Federal Court ordered A$156.7 million in penalties against Union Standard. They were part of A$300.2 million in total, the highest penalties ever secured in an ASIC matter. The court held Union Standard liable for the unconscionable conduct of its authorised representatives, EuropeFX and TradeFred, whose customers lost more than A$83 million. It also penalised Union Standard for marketing CFDs to customers in China when it knew, or ought to have known, that they faced liability under Chinese law (ASIC 26-117MR).
- Licence cancelled, company in liquidation. Administrators were appointed on 8 July 2020. The court ordered a winding up on 3 September 2020, and ASIC cancelled AFSL 302792 on 14 September 2020 (ASIC 20-216MR).
- Owner obstructed the liquidators. According to the liquidators' notice on usgfx.com, the shareholder and its owner refused to hand over the MT4 and MT5 platforms. The notice says they were in contempt of Federal Court orders and failed to deliver the company's assets and records.
- Money missing. ABC News reported in November 2022 that investors claim about A$360 million, while only about A$6 million was held in trust. Many deposits went through overseas money processors or agents that the Australian records do not show.
- Withdrawal pattern. On Trustpilot and Forex Peace Army, clients in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, the UK, Brazil and Europe describe the same failure from September 2020 to 2022. Withdrawals stayed pending for months while support blamed a regulatory transition. One client was charged inactivity fees while a withdrawal sat unpaid. A Singapore client reported USD 12,000 stuck from 25 January 2021.
- Regulator warning. MAS added Union Standard and usgfx.com to its Investor Alert List on 3 January 2019, well before the collapse. ABC News also reported that angry investors held staff hostage in the Shanghai office in 2017.
- Unauthorised follow-up site. In January 2021, emails from a usgfx.global address told former clients to send money to a bank in Puerto Rico. The liquidators said they had not authorised the site, and the accounts were later frozen at their request.
ASIC also banned the company's director and former responsible manager, John Carlton Martin, for 10 years over Union Standard's compliance failures (ASIC 21-119MR).
Note on operating history: the 20.9-year track record rests on company incorporation alone. No domain registration date could be established, so this is an upper bound rather than a confirmed age.
Evidence ledger
Every finding, with its source and how strongly it points.
E1MAS has listed Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd on its Investor Alert List since 3 January 2019. The entry gives the address G03, 135 Macquarie Street, Sydney, the phone number +61 2 9251 1395 and the website usgfx.com.
E2On 11 June 2026 the Federal Court ordered A$156.7 million in penalties against Union Standard for breaches between 2018 and 2020. These include liability for the unconscionable conduct of its representatives EuropeFX and TradeFred, whose customers lost more than A$83 million, and for marketing CFDs to customers in China.
E3ASIC cancelled AFSL 302792 on 14 September 2020. On 3 September 2020 the Federal Court had ordered the company wound up and appointed BRI Ferrier as liquidators.
E4The liquidators' notice on usgfx.com says trading stopped on 8 July 2020 and that withdrawals were suspended and must be claimed in the liquidation. It says the shareholder and its owner refused to hand over the MT4 and MT5 platforms, were in contempt of Federal Court orders and failed to deliver the company's assets and records.
E5ABC News reported that investors claim about A$360 million and that only about A$6 million was held in trust at the collapse. Many deposits went through overseas money processors or agents not shown in the Australian records, and the liquidators doubted the stated owner's identity.
E6ASIC banned John Carlton Martin, Union Standard's director and former responsible manager, from financial services for 10 years. The ban relates to the company's failure to provide services efficiently, honestly and fairly and to control its representatives.
E7The Trustpilot page for usgfx.com has 47 reviews rated 1.8 out of 5. One-star reviews from September 2020 to October 2023 describe withdrawals pending for weeks or months and support citing a regulatory transition. One describes inactivity fees charged while a withdrawal sat unpaid.
StrongTrustpilot, usgfx.comE8Forex Peace Army lists USGFX as out of business, with 45 reviews rated about 1.8 out of 5. Reviews from 2021 include a USD 12,000 withdrawal pending from 25 January 2021 and money stuck for 10 months in accounts placed through a fund manager.
E9In January 2021, emails from a usgfx.global address told former clients to send money to First Bank of Puerto Rico. The liquidators said they had not authorised the new site and that the shareholder controlled it from overseas.
E10Accounts held at First Bank in Puerto Rico by the group's Vanuatu arm, USG Global, were frozen at the liquidators' request.
E11In June 2020 the usgfx.com regulation page claimed client funds were held in segregated trust accounts at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The small sum later found in trust contradicts that promise.
E12Most five-star Trustpilot reviews come from one-review accounts posted in tight date clusters, and several name account managers. Two from September 2020 praise same-day payouts, weeks after the Australian company suspended withdrawals.
E13The FCA register shows Union Standard International Group Limited, FRN 798776, as no longer authorised since 16 December 2022. Its trading names were USG UK, UK USG and United Strategic International, and the register lists USDTFX Limited as a clone of the firm.
ModerateFCA Financial Services RegisterE14FinanceFeeds reported in December 2022 that the UK firm's website still said it was authorised and regulated by the FCA after the authorisation ended. It also reported that the controlling shareholder had become sole director.
ModerateFinanceFeeds, 29 December 2022E15Companies House shows that company 10702813, formerly Union Standard International Group Limited, was renamed Spectre Financial Group Trading Ltd on 17 February 2024. Its accounts are overdue and there is an active proposal to strike it off. Soe Hein Min was a director in 2019 to 2020 and again in 2021 to 2023.
ModerateUK Companies HouseE16The VFSC's current list of 67 licensed financial dealers does not include Union Standard International Group Ltd or number 41706.
E17ASIC's dataset of current AFS licensees has no entry for licence 302792 or for Union Standard.
E18The .com registry record shows usgfx.com was registered on 8 August 2024 through GMO Internet's Onamae.com, with Japanese name servers. This is a fresh registration made after the broker's own registration lapsed.
E19usgfx.com now forwards to ewarrant.co.jp. Its company profile names EワラントFX合同会社, formerly USGFX合同会社, set up in March 2025 in Shibuya, Tokyo, which publishes rankings of offshore forex brokers.
Moderateewarrant.co.jp company profileE20usgfx.global now carries unrelated copy-trading affiliate content that promotes other brokers.
Weakusgfx.globalE21ASIC company data lists Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd, ACN 117 658 349, registered on 21 December 2005 and now under external administration. Its former name was Waterview Financial Group Pty Ltd.
E22In December 2019 usgfx.com stated that its products were issued by Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd, ACN 117 658 349, holder of AFSL 302792. The site advertised leverage up to 1:500.
E23Union Standard held a genuine ASIC licence until 2020, and its UK sister company was FCA authorised from 2018 to 2022. USGFX was a real supervised broker, not a clone.
E24In December 2020 the group's Vanuatu arm said more than half of withdrawals had been processed and blamed regulator restrictions for the delays.
The other side
The strongest case in this broker’s favour.
USGFX began as a genuine, supervised broker, not a sham, and parts of the record are less damning than the headline figures.
- It was not a clone. Union Standard held a real ASIC licence for many years, and its UK sister company was authorised by the FCA from November 2018 to December 2022.
- Most of the unconscionable conduct the court described was carried out by two authorised representatives, EuropeFX and TradeFred. Union Standard was liable for them as the licensee, and for its own marketing in China.
- Court-appointed liquidators now run the Australian company, and their job is to recover money for clients and creditors. ASIC let them keep a dispute scheme and compensation arrangements running until September 2022.
- In December 2020 the group's Vanuatu arm said more than half of withdrawals had been processed. It blamed regulator restrictions and frozen accounts for the rest.
- Some Trustpilot reviewers praised fast payouts. However, most of those five-star reviews come from one-review accounts posted in tight clusters.
None of these points explains the missing client money, the owner's contempt of court orders, or the unauthorised site that asked clients to wire funds abroad.
What would change this
What we would need to see to revise the verdict.
The verdict would soften only if the question of the missing money were answered in clients' favour.
- Liquidator reports showing that client money was traced, recovered and paid back in full or close to it.
- An appeal that overturns the Federal Court's liability findings or the A$156.7 million penalty.
- Evidence that the shortfall came from genuine trading losses, not from money handled outside the company's records.
- MAS removing Union Standard and usgfx.com from its Investor Alert List.
Even then, the company cannot trade again. Its licence is cancelled and it is being wound up.
Check it yourself
Official registers and warning lists. Verify every claim first-hand.
FCA register: Union Standard International Group Limited (FRN 798776)
Shows the UK sister company as no longer authorised since 16 December 2022.
MAS Investor Alert List: Union Standard
MAS warning entry naming Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd and usgfx.com, listed 3 January 2019.
ASIC 20-216MR: AFSL 302792 cancelled
ASIC's notice cancelling the licence on 14 September 2020.
ASIC 26-117MR: record penalties against Union Standard
The Federal Court's June 2026 penalty orders, as reported by ASIC.
ASIC 21-119MR: Union Standard director banned
Ten-year ban on the company's director and former responsible manager.
BRI Ferrier: Union Standard liquidation
The liquidators' page for claims, circulars and court documents.
ABN Lookup: Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd
Australian business record linked to ACN 117 658 349.
Companies House: company 10702813
The UK sister company, renamed Spectre Financial Group Trading Ltd in 2024.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about this broker’s safety.
Is USGFX a scam?
Yes, treat it as one. USGFX collapsed in 2020 and ASIC cancelled its licence. In June 2026 the Federal Court ordered Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd to pay A$156.7 million in penalties. Clients describe withdrawals that were never paid, and investors claim hundreds of millions of dollars.
Is USGFX a fraud?
We assess the risk of fraud around USGFX as high, but no court has made a fraud finding against the company. The Federal Court found it liable for systemic unconscionable conduct by its authorised representatives and for breaching its duty to act efficiently, honestly and fairly. Its liquidators reported that the owner defied Federal Court orders and withheld the company's assets and records.
Is USGFX still operating?
No. Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd stopped trading on 8 July 2020 and has been in court-ordered liquidation since 3 September 2020. Its website was taken offline at ASIC's request, and the usgfx.com domain now belongs to an unrelated Japanese company.
Is USGFX regulated?
No. ASIC cancelled Australian Financial Services Licence 302792 on 14 September 2020. The FCA has not authorised the UK sister company, Union Standard International Group Limited (FRN 798776), since 16 December 2022. The Vanuatu arm is not on the VFSC's current list of licensed dealers.
Can I get my money back from USGFX?
Only through the liquidation. Clients of the Australian company should contact the liquidators, BRI Ferrier, with their deposit records and account statements. Investors claim about A$360 million, far more than the funds found, so a full refund is unlikely.
Who owned USGFX?
The Australian company was owned by Union Standard Group International Holdings Limited, a company registered in Samoa. The liquidators name Soe Hein Minn of Myanmar as the ultimate beneficial owner, and they told ABC News they doubted his true identity. Companies House lists a Soe Hein Min as a director of the UK sister company in 2019 to 2020 and again in 2021 to 2023.
What did the Federal Court decide about Union Standard?
In December 2024 the court found Union Standard liable for the unconscionable conduct of its representatives, EuropeFX and TradeFred. It also found Union Standard liable for marketing CFDs to customers in China when it knew, or ought to have known, that they faced liability under Chinese law. In June 2026 the court ordered A$156.7 million in penalties against Union Standard, part of A$300.2 million across the three companies.
What is usgfx.com now?
The domain was re-registered on 8 August 2024 through a Japanese registrar and now forwards to ewarrant.co.jp. That site belongs to EワラントFX合同会社, formerly USGFX合同会社, a Japanese company set up in March 2025 that publishes rankings of offshore forex brokers. We found no connection between it and the collapsed broker.
Is usgfx.global connected to USGFX?
It was. In early 2021 a usgfx.global site linked to the owner told former clients to send money to a bank in Puerto Rico, and the liquidators said they had not authorised it. Today usgfx.global carries unrelated copy-trading content, so do not treat it as the broker.
Is USGFX a clone?
No. USGFX was the real company, not an impersonator. However, the FCA register lists USDTFX Limited as a clone of the UK sister company. Both main USGFX web addresses are now used by unrelated sites, so anyone using the name today is not the original firm.
Why is USGFX on the MAS Investor Alert List?
MAS listed Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd, with its Sydney address and usgfx.com, on 3 January 2019. The list names unregulated firms that people may wrongly believe MAS has authorised. USGFX was not licensed to serve Singapore residents.
How long did USGFX operate?
The company was registered in Australia on 21 December 2005, and its website was online from at least February 2011. It stopped trading in July 2020, so its long history ended in liquidation.
What should I check before depositing with any broker?
Find the licence on the regulator's own register, not on the broker's website, and confirm that the entity name and website listed there match. Check warning lists such as the MAS Investor Alert List and the FCA warning list. Read recent withdrawal reviews on more than one site.
What we recommend
The practical takeaway from everything above.
Do not send money to anything that uses the USGFX, USG or Union Standard name.
- If you were a client of the Australian company, contact the court-appointed liquidators, BRI Ferrier, through their official Union Standard page. Ask whether claims are still open, and keep your deposit records and MT4 or MT5 statements.
- If you dealt with the UK company (USG UK or UK USG), ask the Financial Ombudsman Service or the FSCS whether your case is eligible. The FCA register says these routes can apply to firms that were once authorised.
- Ignore anyone who offers to recover USGFX money for an upfront fee. Such offers have appeared among USGFX reviews, and fee-first recovery is a common follow-up scam.
- Treat usgfx.com, usgfx.global and similar addresses as unrelated sites. They do not belong to the broker or its liquidators.
- Before funding any broker, find its licence on the regulator's own register. Check that the entity name and website listed there match the site you are using.
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 November 6, 2026. If any detail here is out of date or incorrect, or you represent this broker, please contact us.
What traders say about USGFX
Comments on USGFX are posted on its profile
Nobody has commented on USGFX yet. If you have traded with them, your experience helps the next reader decide.
Write the first comment