Is ThinkMarkets Regulated? Is it safe? - TU Expert review
License is the most important document you have to consider when choosing a broker. Many traders, who would like to start working with ThinkMarkets try to check whether it is regulated. Traders Union experts have already done that. In this article, you will learn whether ThinkMarkets is regulated, what regulatory authorities supervise the broker and whether it is safe to work with the company in general.
Short summary about the broker ThinkMarkets
ThinkMarkets was launched in 2010 and has grown to offer Forex & CFD trading services globally since then. ThinkMarkets is duly licensed by the FCA (629628) in the UK, ASIC (ACN: 158 361 561) in Australia, CySEC (215/13) in Cyprus, JFSA (1536) in Japan, FSCA (49835) in South Africa, and the FSA (SD060) in Seychelles. With ThinkMarkets, one can trade more than 3,500 global assets, including Forex, Indices, Commodities, Shares & ETFs, CFDs, and Crypto CFDs. ThinkMarkets is an award-winning broker with offices in several countries of the world, in particular in Johannesburg (South Africa), Tokyo (Japan), Limassol (Cyprus), Dubai, London (the United Kingdom), and Melbourne (Australia).
| 💰 Account currency: | EUR, USD, AUD, CHF, GBP, JPY, CAD, NZD, SGD |
|---|---|
| 🚀 Minimum deposit: | $500 |
| ⚖️ Leverage: | Up to 1:500 |
| 💱 Spread: | From 0.0 pips on ThinkZero, from 0.4 pips on Standard |
| 🔧 Instruments: | Forex, CFDs on stocks, CFDs on indices, precious metals, commodities, cryptocurrency, ETFs & Futures |
| 💹 Margin Call / Stop Out: | 50%/50-100% |
Pros and cons of ThinkMarkets
👍 Advantages of trading with ThinkMarkets:
•narrow market spreads - from 0.0 pips;
•minimum deposit of $0 on the Standard account;
•regulated in countries with a high level of control over the activities of Forex brokers;
•availability of the social trading platform ZuluTrade for copying trades of successful traders.
👎 Disadvantages of ThinkMarkets:
•there are no cent accounts;
•there are no bonus programs, contests nor promotions that are held among its clients;
•trading terminals often freeze;
Why is it important to work with a regulated broker?
License is a document that certifies that a broker operates legally and guarantees fulfillment of its obligations to the traders. A financial license is issued by a financial regulatory authority of a country (the National Bank) or a specialized authority (for example, Securities Commission, Futures Trading Commission, etc.). It is important to choose licensed brokers for the following reasons:
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A license guarantees that the broker operates in compliance with the rules of the financial regulator that issued the document.
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In order to obtain the license, a broker must comply with certain requirements, for example, the size of the authorized capital or personnel qualification. It is simply not lucrative for scammers to comply with such requirements.
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A broker’s license provides access to real markets, and you can be sure that the quotes are real and up-to-date.
The best option is to work with a broker that holds the license of the jurisdiction, where the trader resides. You can also choose a company with a financial license of another reliable jurisdiction, for example, the U.S. or the European Union.
Is ThinkMarkets Regulated? Broker’s license
Security (Protection for Investors)
The ThinkMarkets broker is part of TF Global Markets Limited, a holding company, which has six licenses: FCA (UK), ASIC (Australia), CySEC in Cyprus, JFSA in Japan, FSCA (South Africa) and FSA (Seychelles).
These regulators act strictly within the legal framework of the state under whose jurisdiction they fall. The broker-licensee is obliged to responsibly fulfill its tasks, ensure the transparency of all transactions, and further ensure the safety of its clients' money.
👍 Advantages
- Keeping traders' funds in segregated accounts with verified state banks
- Negative balance protection
- Availability of insurance for $1 million in the event of company bankruptcy
👎 Disadvantages
- A private trader cannot file a claim if the amount is insignificant
- Mandatory verification of identity, credit card, and bank account with the provision of personal information and copies of documents
Brokerage fees
Broker’s regulation is the most important choice criterion. However, before you start working with the broker, it is also important to analyze its commissions and fees. TU analysts have studied the commissions and fees charged by ThinkMarkets, which you can see below.
To identify explicit and hidden ThinkMarkets commissions, the Traders Union specialists have carefully analyzed the trading conditions of this broker. The company does not charge any fees for deposits or withdrawals. At the same time, there is no information on the number of fees charged by payment systems on the website. The ThinkZero Forex & Metals account has a brokerage commission of USD 3.50 per lot each way.
| Account type | Spread (minimum value) | Withdrawal commission |
| ThinkZero | From $1 | No |
| Standard | From $4 | Yes, under certain conditions |
Brokers that are similar to ThinkMarkets
Many brokers operate legally, obtaining relevant licenses and permissions. However, when choosing a broker, it is important to compare their trading conditions. TU experts have prepared a comparative analysis of ThinkMarkets conditions with its closest competitors.
Comparison of ThinkMarkets with other Brokers
| ThinkMarkets | RoboForex | Pocket Option | Exness | FreshForex | IC Markets | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Trading platform |
ThinkTrader, MT4, MT5 |
MT4, MT5, R MobileTrader, R StocksTrader, R WebTrader |
Pocket Option, MT5, MT4 |
Exness Trade App (mobile), Exness Terminal (web), MetaTrader5, MetaTrader4 |
MT4, MobileTrading |
MT4, cTrader, MT5, TradingView |
Min deposit |
No |
$10 |
$5 |
$10 |
No |
$200 |
Leverage |
From 1:1 |
From 1:1 |
From 1:1 |
From 1:1 |
From 1:1 |
From 1:1 |
Trust management |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Accrual of % on the balance |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Spread |
From 0 points |
From 0 points |
From 1.2 point |
From 1 point |
From 0 points |
From 0 points |
Level of margin call / stop out |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
Execution of orders |
Instant Execution |
Market Execution, Instant Execution |
Market Execution |
Market Execution, Instant Execution |
Market Execution, Instant Execution |
Market Execution |
No deposit bonus |
No |
No |
No |
No |
$30 |
No |
Cent accounts |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
No |
ThinkMarkets’ terms and conditions are aimed at Western traders who use their own free capital to trade.
The minimum deposit in RoboForex is $10. Leverage up to 1:2000. Traders choose RoboForex for reliability, favorable trading conditions, minimum spreads, and commission fees. The company is recommended for beginner traders and experienced investors.
Pocket Option offers a wide range of trading instruments and copy trading services. It constantly improves its service quality and expands the list of assets and trading platforms. The broker is suitable even for novice traders without significant capital due to the low initial deposit. Experienced traders who work with CFDs and binary options can also use Pocket Option’s services.
Exness broker is a trusted broker partner that is compliant with all relevant terms. Exness complies with all payment obligations and pays money earned.
FreshForex is a reliable Forex broker providing a standard set of trading tools. The company is a good option for traders of all levels, from beginner to professional traders. It is mid-range in terms of size and number of registered traders and they are reliable based on our research and analysis.
IC Markets Trading Company is a great broker for scalping enthusiasts, automated trading lovers, and beginner traders.
Conclusions
ThinkMarkets is a quite reliable broker for trading. ThinkMarkets operates on the license of a reliable jurisdiction and its operation is regularly monitored. However, the company does not offer the best trading conditions compared to competitors. You can choose this broker and not worry about the safety of your funds, but there are better options in terms of trading conditions.
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FAQ
How difficult is it to obtain a brokerage license?
The procedure for obtaining a license differs depending on the jurisdiction, but it is very difficult and expensive to get the document in a reliable jurisdiction. This is why only reliable brokers obtain licenses.
Why is it not recommended to work with offshore brokers?
Offshore brokers have to meet minimum requirements for obtaining a license and reporting, which is why often scammers get such licenses.
Can an offshore broker be reliable?
Yes, although there are not many of such brokers. There are brokers with a good reputation, but with an offshore license. You still need to be very cautious when working with such companies.
How do I check a broker’s reputation?
In order to check a broker’s reputation, you need to read user reviews. However, it is recommended to only use independent websites for that.
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Team that worked on the article
Mikhail Vnuchkov joined Traders Union as an author in 2020. He began his professional career as a journalist-observer at a small online financial publication, where he covered global economic events and discussed their impact on the segment of financial investment, including investor income. With five years of experience in finance, Mikhail joined Traders Union team, where he is in charge of forming the pool of latest news for traders, who trade stocks, cryptocurrencies, Forex instruments and fixed income.
Olga Shendetskaya has been a part of the Traders Union team as an author, editor and proofreader since 2017. Since 2020, Shendetskaya has been the assistant chief editor of the website of Traders Union, an international association of traders. She has over 10 years of experience of working with economic and financial texts. In the period of 2017-2020, Olga has worked as a journalist and editor of laftNews news agency, economic and financial news sections. At the moment, Olga is a part of the team of top industry experts involved in creation of educational articles in finance and investment, overseeing their writing and publication on the Traders Union website.