MetaQuotes Software Corp.
- Founded
- 2000-01-01 in Cyprus
- Headquarters
- Cyprus
MetaQuotes Software Corp. is a privately held Cypriot software company widely regarded as the world’s leading developer of trading platforms for the financial services industry. Founded in 2000 by Nicolas Soria, the company initially released a simple forex charting application called FX Charts. Over the next two decades, MetaQuotes evolved its technology through successive generations of platforms, culminating in the globally dominant MetaTrader 4 (released 2005) and the multi‑asset MetaTrader 5 (released 2010). These platforms are licensed to hundreds of brokers, banks, exchanges, and hedge funds, enabling millions of retail and institutional traders to execute forex, stock, and futures trades. MetaQuotes also created the MQL4 and MQL5 programming languages, which underpin a vast ecosystem of algorithmic trading robots, indicators, and the MQL5.com community – the largest online hub for algorithmic traders, attracting over 7 million monthly unique visitors. Headquartered in Cyprus, the company maintains representative offices in multiple countries and continues to invest in product innovation, such as analytics tools for brokers and machine‑learning enhancements to its trading engine. MetaQuotes’ B2B model, centred on licensing fees and revenue‑sharing agreements, has made it a cornerstone of the global retail forex and CFD industry.
Detailed Review
Founding and Early History
MetaQuotes Software Corp. was established in November 2000 and introduced its first product, FX Charts, the same year. This simple yet robust platform allowed brokers to offer forex trading with real‑time quotes and charting at a fraction of the cost of competing solutions. The company quickly gained market traction and released a second‑generation platform that incorporated the MQL scripting language, enabling traders to create automated trading robots. The third generation, branded MetaTrader, expanded support to futures and introduced mobile trading applications for Windows CE and Palm OS.
MetaTrader 4 and 5
A landmark moment came in 2005 with the launch of MetaTrader 4 (MT4). MT4 featured a radically redesigned architecture, the MQL4 programming language, built‑in strategy tester, and an integrated development environment for Expert Advisors (EAs). It rapidly became the de facto standard for retail forex trading, with thousands of brokers offering it and millions of traders relying on its reliability, customizability, and community‑driven ecosystem.
In 2010, MetaQuotes released MetaTrader 5 (MT5), a multi‑asset platform supporting forex, stocks, and futures. MT5 introduced a faster, more scalable engine, advanced analytical tools (30 technical indicators, 24 analytical objects), and the MQL5 language. It also included built‑in economic calendars, depth‑of‑market data, and a strategy tester that supports multi‑currency backtesting. Despite MT5’s technical superiority, MT4 retained a large user base due to its simplicity and vast library of third‑party EAs.
Ecosystem and Community
Beyond the trading platforms, MetaQuotes built a comprehensive infrastructure: the MQL5.community portal serves over 7 million monthly visitors and hosts a marketplace for trading robots and indicators, a Trading Signals copy‑trading service, a knowledge base, and forums. The company also developed TeamWox, a CRM and business‑management system targeted at small and medium businesses, and offers broker‑facing analytics tools integrated with MT5.
Business Model
MetaQuotes operates on a B2B licensing model. Brokers pay recurring fees for platform deployment and support, and the company also shares revenue from trading volumes executed on its platforms. In 2021, the company reported revenue of approximately USD 1.57 million and EBITDA of USD 197,496 (per Preqin data), though these figures likely understate its actual size given the private nature of the company and the prevalence of its platforms.
Recent Developments and Recognition
The company has been recognised for its innovation, winning two awards at the Finance Magnates London Summit 2025. It regularly sponsors major industry events such as iFX EXPO International (Gold Sponsor in 2026) and iFX Expo Asia (Gold Sponsor in 2025). MetaQuotes continues to enhance its offerings, integrating the OpenBLAS linear algebra library into MQL5 to support machine‑learning‑driven trading strategies, and expanding its presence in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Controversies and Leadership
MetaQuotes has faced scrutiny over the use of its platforms for unregulated or high‑leverage trading, but it maintains a neutral stance as a software provider. The company remains privately owned and is led by co‑CEOs Peter Park and Renat Fatkhullin. No significant changes in strategy or ownership have been reported since inception.
Key Products
TeamWox
CRM and business management system for small and medium enterprises (not core trading product).
FX Charts
First product; a simple forex charting and trading platform launched in 2000.
MetaQuotes Platform (2nd generation)
Introduced MQL scripting language for automated trading, released around 2001.
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)
Fourth‑generation platform launched in 2005; became the global standard for forex trading. Features MQL4, integrated strategy tester, and EA development tools.
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)
Multi‑asset platform launched in 2010 supporting forex, stocks, and futures. Includes MQL5, advanced analytical objects, depth‑of‑market, and economic calendar.
MQL4 / MQL5
Proprietary programming languages for creating trading robots (Expert Advisors) and custom indicators, released with MT4 (2005) and MT5 (2010).
MetaTrader Market
Online marketplace for trading robots and technical indicators.
Trading Signals
Copy‑trading service allowing users to follow and replicate trades of experienced traders.
MQL5.community
World’s largest algorithmic trading community; features knowledge base, forums, and developer resources.