Forex brokers regulated in South Africa
When it comes to trading currency, there are many things that you need to take into consideration before you begin. One of the things that you will need to think about is whether or not the broker that you want to work with is regulated. A regulated broker is one that has been recognized by a governing body.
This means that they have proven to meet certain standards and requirements when it comes to their business practices and operations. Whether you’re new to trading or just looking for a new forex broker, researching the different brokers available can seem like an overwhelming task. That’s why we have put together this list of reputable and trustworthy brokers that are regulated in South Africa. We also discuss different factors to consider when choosing an FSCA regulated forex broker.
Warning:
There is a high level of risk involved when trading leveraged products such as Forex/CFDs. Between 65% and 82% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
What is FSCA Regulation?
FSCA stands for Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). This is the governing body that is responsible for regulating the financial services industry in South Africa. The FSCA has implemented certain regulations for forex brokers operating in South Africa. There are also certain standards that forex brokers need to meet. This is to ensure that forex brokers are running a legitimate business. The FSCA regulations also protect consumers from fraudulent brokers or any broker that is not running a legitimate business.
When a forex broker is regulated, it means that they have gone through a vetting process that the FSCA has implemented. This means that the FSCA has reviewed their business practices and operations. They have also met certain requirements that the FSCA has set out. The FSCA has also audited the broker’s trading operations and records. This ensures that they are compliant with the FSCA regulations. Once a broker has been reviewed, audited, and approved, they will receive an FSCA license. This license allows them to legally operate as a forex broker in South Africa.
List of FSCA Regulated Brokers
Below we list some of the top FSCA-regulated forex brokers.
Exness
Exness Trading Company has been working in the Forex market since 2008. The broker’s activity is managed by Nymstar Limited, a company registered in the Republic of Seychelles. The service is regulated by licenses of CySEC (Cyprus Securities Commission), FSCA (Financial Sector Conduct Authority), FCA (Office of Financial Regulation and Supervision of Great Britain) and FSA (Office of Financial Regulation and Supervision of the Republic of Seychelles). The broker holds the leading position in Forex ratings. The company’s monthly trading turnover totals $325.8 billion USD. The broker currently has CFDs available for cryptocurrency, stocks, more than 120 currency pairs, energy and metals. Exness’s service provides favorable working conditions for traders: low commission, instant execution of orders and withdrawal of funds. An infinite leverage makes it possible to earn on small deposits up to $999. There are several options for opening an account depending on the traders’ needs. A demo account is available - a training account that is useful for both beginner level traders and professional traders.
Tickmill
Tickmill brokerage introduces a new standard in the provision of brokerage services. The focus on innovation is what the company is proud of and why traders choose it. The trading conditions of the broker are appreciated by fans of scalping and passive trading with the help of robots because Tickmill provides minimal spreads. The company has earned many awards. Thus, for two years in a row (2018 and 2019), it was awarded the “Best Execution Broker” title, and it also won the “Most Transparent Broker” title in 2019.
FxPro
The FxPro broker was registered in July 2006 in Cyprus. The company’s activities are licensed by financial regulators: CySEC (Cyprus), Bahamas SCB, FCA (UK), and South African FSCA. FxPro is successfully operating in more than 170 countries for retail and institutional clients. The broker has received more than 85 awards, including “Best Forex Trading Platform” and “Best Trading Platform”. FxPro has become known for providing the best trading tools. With FxPro broker, traders can trade more than 70 currency pairs, futures and stocks (Twitter, Apple, Google). The company has stock indices, metals and energy resources at its disposal. FxPro sets high safety standards with the client's funds being kept in large international banks. They are insured and separated from the broker's equity.
HFM (HotForex)
HFM is a broker owned by the HF Markets Group, offers a wide variety of account types, and has the widest selection of trading assets and high-quality software. HFM also has favorable trading conditions and instant execution of orders. Plus, a solid list of tools and services allow everyone to choose the best option. The broker's reliability is confirmed by the license of several regulators. The company's work experience in the financial, brokerage and other services market is over 10 years. Within that time, HFM has received 35 prestigious awards. For trading, MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 trading terminals are used.
FBS
FBS (fbs.com) is an international broker operating in 190 countries. The brokerage company has been on the market for over 10 years, and during this time it has earned about 40 international awards. It is regulated by the CySEC under license number 331/17 and FSCA. The broker provides flexible conditions for Forex trading. In addition to classic currency pairs, the company's clients can trade indices, futures contracts, exotic currencies, and metals. FBS is especially popular in Asian countries such as India, Malaysia and Indonesia.
AvaTrade
AvaTrade was founded in 2006 in Dublin, Ireland. The company has offices in 10 countries. It currently has over 300, 000 registered users and processes more than 2 million transactions every month. These factors contribute to AvaTrade being a reliable and trusted broker. They are accredited across five continents and are one of the market leaders. The broker is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), the Japanese FSA, and the South African FSCA. AvaTrade holds accreditation by the Central Irish Bank, the Abu Dhabi Financial Services Regulatory Authority, and the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission. AvaTrade allows traders to trade stocks, securities, indices, cryptocurrencies, and currency pairs. In total, the offer more than 1,200 tools to customers.
FXCM
FXCM Markets company incorporated in Bermuda and provides a wide range of financial services for traders almost all over the world. The company was founded in 1999 and registered in Great Britain. It is regulated by the independent nongovernmental organization of Great Britain — Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the South African FSCA. Broker’s registered license number — 217689. The FXCM Group has several significant awards such as: prizes in the "Best Trading Tools” category and the "Best Customer Support 2018" by FXEmpire.
FXTM
Broker FXTM (pronounced "ForexTime") started in 2011. It provides an opportunity to make a profit through active trading or investment programs. The company is regulated by CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission), South African FSCA (Financial Sector Supervision Authority), UK FCA (Financial Conduct Authority), and FSC (Mauritius Financial Supervisory Commission). The broker has received many awards, including "Best Trading Conditions" (2018, 2019) and "Most Innovative Broker" (2018).
Over 2 million traders worldwide cooperate with ForexTime (FXTM). The minimum deposit on the Micro account is $10, which allows novice traders to master the basics of trading and study the operational principles of the Forex market with comfort and without large investments.
Markets.com
Established in 2008, Markets.com has grown to become one of the most trustworthy Forex&CFD brokers. Markets.com is fully regulated by the FCA, ASIC, FSCA, CySEC, and the BVI FSC. The company accepts customers globally and offers every customer unmatched smooth trading services. With Markets.com, one can trade with more than 2,200 trading tools, and use multiple technical and analytical tools on an innovative Investment platform.
How to Check FSCA Regulation
If you want to find out whether a broker is regulated, you will need to do a little bit of research. This can be a little tricky to do, but it’s not impossible. The first thing that you will need to do is find out which governing body is responsible for regulating forex brokers in your country. In South Africa, this is the FSCA.
Once you have this information, you will need to find out how to find the license number of the broker that you are interested in. You can do that by logging into the broker’s website or by visiting their contact page. You can also find this information on the FSCA website.
FSCA Regulated Brokers Trading Limitations
The FSCA places certain limitations on the amount of leverage that can be offered by any forex broker. This is to protect consumers and ensure that they are not getting into a position that they cannot handle. The amount of leverage that a broker can offer is generally dependent on two things. First, it is dependent on the experience level of the trader. Second, it is dependent on the amount of equity that the trader has in their account.
The FSCA places a maximum level of 50:1 as the amount of leverage that can be offered to beginner traders. This means that these traders can only be offered 50 times more that they have in their account. For more experienced traders, the FSCA places a maximum level of 100:1. This means that these traders can only be offered 100 times more than the amount of equity in their account. The FSCA also places a minimum amount of equity that must be in your account before you can trade. This is to ensure that you have enough funds in your account to cover any potential losses.
How to Choose a FSCA (South Africa) Regulated-Broker
When you are trying to determine if a broker is reliable and legitimate or not, there are a few things that you can do. First, you should visit the FSCA website and look up the broker’s license. You can find this information by searching for the company on the FSCA website. Once you have the broker’s name and the company name, you can search for it on the FSCA website. Once you have the broker license number, you can search for it on the FSCA website. You can then click on the company name to see a list of all of their licenses.
You can also visit online forums and online communities for people who trade forex. This is an excellent way to find out what other traders think about a particular broker. You can also visit online review sites where people have left their opinions of the broker. Pay special attention to the negative reviews, which tell you the particular program the client had with the broker and what they would like to see improved.
Trading Fees
Pricing or transaction costs are obvious factors to consider when choosing a broker. Retail investors now have access to institutional-grade pricing thanks to fierce competition among the best brokers worldwide.
Forex traders may choose from several broker commission fee structures, such as fixed or variable spreads. Standard accounts offer wider spreads, yet traders pay no commission fees, while ECN-style trading accounts offer ultra-competitive spreads as low as 0.0 pips.
Brokerage Fees And Commissions ExplainedSupported Assets
Before choosing a forex or CFD broker, check the list of tradable currency pairs. Brokerages should offer all major currency pairs, cross-currency pairs, and commodity currency pairs at a minimum. Trading exclusively in these instruments doesn't require traders to maintain a long list of minor pairs from distant places they don't care about.
When a shock event or another market mover hits a particular region, a broker with a robust list may be willing to offer customers the chance to trade pairs that aren’t as popular.
Trading Platforms
You can access the forex markets through trading platforms. It allows you to trade instruments, which is what forex trading is all about. A broker may operate MT4 or MT5, or both. Because of its powerful, yet simple user interface, MetaTrader (MT4) brokers are particularly attractive to investors.
Apart from MT4/MT5, reputable brokers also offer proprietary trading platforms that have unique features designed to enhance your trading experience. It is very important for investors to be careful when dealing with brokers who run proprietary trading platforms that are less reputable or unregulated.
It is sometimes known that such platforms are manipulated in order to work against investors. An example of a manipulation would be the widening of spreads, the hitting of stop-losses early, or the failure to execute take-profit orders on deadline.
How to Choose a Forex Broker?Conclusion
When it comes to trading, it is important that you work with a broker that is reputable and trustworthy. One of the best ways to ensure that you are trading with a reliable and trustworthy broker is by making sure that they are regulated. When you choose a broker that is regulated by the FSCA, you can rest assured knowing that they are operating legally and that you are in good hands.
FAQ
Does South Africa regulate or legalize forex trading?
Yes. Traders who trade forex through an entity licensed by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) are permitted to do so legally.
What is the FSCA?
The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) is the financial regulator in South Africa. It regulates all Forex brokers in the country. Brokers regulated by the FSCA are required to keep client funds separate from their operating funds. A regular audit ensures that client funds are not misused.
How do you check if the broker is regulated by FSCA?
First, identify the FSP registration number on the broker's homepage to determine whether the broker is authorized by the FSCA.
Does the FSCA ensure the safety of funds?
In the event that a broker goes bankrupt, South African traders may lose their investments. Regulated brokers belong to compensation schemes that ensure that funds are safe in the event that they are unable to meet their financial obligations. Further, client fund safety refers to the fact that a broker does not use client funds for operations, but only for activities that have been approved by the client.
Methodology for compiling our ratings of Forex brokers
Traders Union applies a rigorous methodology to evaluate brokers using over 100 quantitative and qualitative criteria. Multiple parameters are given individual scores that feed into an overall rating.
Key aspects of the assessment include:
Regulation and safety. Brokers are evaluated based on the level/reputation of licenses and regulations they operate under.
User reviews. Client reviews and feedback are analyzed to determine customer satisfaction levels. Reviews are fact-checked and verified.
Trading instruments. Brokers are evaluated on the range of assets offered, as well as the breadth and depth of available markets.
Fees and commissions. All trading fees and commissions are analyzed comprehensively to determine overall costs for clients.
Trading platforms. Brokers are assessed based on the variety, quality, and features of platforms offered to clients.
Other factors like brand popularity, client support, and educational resources are also evaluated.
Find out more about the unique broker assessment methodology developed by Traders Union specialists.
Team that worked on the article
Oleg Tkachenko is an economic analyst and risk manager having more than 14 years of experience in working with systemically important banks, investment companies, and analytical platforms. He has been a Traders Union analyst since 2018. His primary specialties are analysis and prediction of price tendencies in the Forex, stock, commodity, and cryptocurrency markets, as well as the development of trading strategies and individual risk management systems. He also analyzes nonstandard investing markets and studies trading psychology.
Dr. BJ Johnson is a PhD in English Language and an editor with over 15 years of experience. He earned his degree in English Language in the U.S and the UK. In 2020, Dr. Johnson joined the Traders Union team. Since then, he has created over 100 exclusive articles and edited over 300 articles of other authors.
The topics he covers include trading signals, cryptocurrencies, Forex brokers, stock brokers, expert advisors, binary options. He has also worked on the ratings of brokers and many other materials.
Dr. BJ Johnson’s motto: It always seems impossible until it’s done. You can do it.
Mirjan Hipolito is a journalist and news editor at Traders Union. She is an expert crypto writer with five years of experience in the financial markets. Her specialties are daily market news, price predictions, and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). Mirjan is a cryptocurrency and stock trader. This deep understanding of the finance sector allows her to create informative and engaging content that helps readers easily navigate the complexities of the crypto world.