Pepperstone is a solid choice for both beginner and experienced traders, with excellent research opportunities and access to MetaTrader 5, as well as an extensive range of educational materials. Although Pepperstone started in Melbourne, it is now UK-based and regulated by both the FCA and ASIC, as well as CySEC, CMA, DSFA and SCB. Providing brokerage services since 2010, Pepperstone offers low fees alongside no minimum deposit amount – one of its bestselling features. Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 78.8% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. It offers a 20% welcome bonus up to $10,000, according to regulation and a free 21-day demo account with $100,000. Instruments include:
Metals Commodities Stocks FX Options Oil ETFs Options Crypto currencies CFDs Indexes Shares Spread betting Indices Forex Bonds
AVATrade EU Ltd is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. (No.C53877) Ava Trade Markets Ltd. is regulated by the B.V.I Financial Services Commission. It is also highly regulated in Australia, South Africa, Japan, Middle East, Cyprus and Israel You can not trade with AvaTrade in the US, North Korea, New Zealand, Iran or Belgium. Mínimum deposit of $100, no withdraw limit and no fees.
Its strong points include:
No minimum first-time deposit No commissions Several payment methods for deposits and withdrawals Tight spreads from 0.5 pips
It offers one of the best execution speeds in the industry with low latency below 0.004s. It utilizes the most advanced technology to improve users’ trading efficiency – users can automate trades, build integrations and create trading apps using ActivTrades’ market-leading CFD and spread betting technology. Exceptional trading infrastructure is available on ActivTrader and MetaTrader 4 and 5. ActivTrades invests deeply in specially developed educational materials for its clients – including webinars, regular outlooks, manuals, etc. Type of offers: ActivTrades focuses on well-developed products in its trading portfolio. Customers can choose from over 1,000 CFD or spread betting instruments across forex, indices, shares, commodities, financials and ETFs. It also offers investing solutions for its institutional partners. Spread betting allows UK residents ONLY to trade the prices of financial instruments, including forex, indices, commodities and LSE shares. Spread betting and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when spread betting and/or trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread betting and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money To get started with Moneta Markets, you will need a $200 minimum deposit, but you’ll get access to forex, shares, indices, commodities and cryptocurrencies, as well as various CFDs. When trading with MetaTrader 5, you can choose an STP account with the fees built into the spread or an ECN account that has lower spreads and a $3 per lot, per side commission on forex. Traders can deposit funds for free in a variety of ways, but you can only make withdrawals via bank transfer. The lack of top-tier regulation and ‘newness’ of Moneta Markets might make new traders a bit wary, but the huge range of trading instruments combined with a simple user interface and lots of education make it a good choice if you have confidence in your strategies.
There are lots of different trading instruments available through Vantage Markets, including forex, indices, cryptocurrencies, commodities and CFDs, and traders can change their leverage and use scalping or hedging strategies. There are no fees for account management, which means no deposit or withdrawal fees. For a standard account, the trading fees are built into the spread, and in Raw or Pro account types, there is a commission but much lower (and sometimes even zero) spreads. With Vantage Markets, active traders who have a minimum account balance of $10,000 can take advantage of the rebate system, making it more cost effective for professional traders.
Using MT5, traders get access to hundreds of trading instruments for forex and CFD trading, where strategies like scalping and hedging are welcome. The minimum deposit is set at $200 (or equivalent in local currency), and there are no deposit, withdrawal or inactivity fees. Admiral Markets offers unbeatable customer support and more than 21 years of trusted history as a broker, which makes it a great choice for beginner traders.
Although there is a limited selection of trading instruments and the trading costs are slightly higher than the industry average, FXCM has a range of advanced trading tools and also offers algorithmic trading.
SwitchMarkets has the benefit of offering a wide range of services and trading options, but it is based offshore and relatively unregulated.
One of the most popular selling points for the beginner trader is that it offers great educational tools – perfect for helping those just starting out. XTB offers traders access to xStation, a proprietary trading platform that is considered to be powerful, fast and full of different tools. Although the MT4 platform is no longer available in the UK, traders can choose to use it in global offices.
As a financial services provider, a broker is a middleman that allows access for retail and professional traders to trade currency in different ways. Forex brokers sometimes deal in other trading instruments, like stocks, EFTs, CFDs and cryptocurrency, as well as foreign exchange, and to do this, they provide a place for traders to buy and sell. One of the most popular trading platforms is MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and the newer iteration, MetaTrader 5 (MT5). Sometimes brokers will have their own proprietary trading platform, one that has been developed specifically for use with that broker and offers different trading options and capabilities. MetaTrader 5 is a multi-functional trading platform that can be used for trading more than just forex. This is one of the main upgrades from the MT4 offering, which was focused on just forex trading. MT5 is popular amongst advanced and day traders, with functionality in a web, desktop or mobile app. As an upgrade to MT4, MT5 offers more opportunities for multiple charts, more indicators and analytical objects and more timeframes. Other features such as EAs (expert advisors) and copy trading are particularly advanced and easy to use on MT5. Although MT5 is the newest software made by the popular MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 4 is still the more popular platform. When you are looking for a broker that allows access to the functionality and trading ability of MetaTrader 5, then there are many options available, all with slightly different fees, costs and regulations.
What to Look For in an MT5 Broker
Trustworthiness
Putting your money into a broker to make trades in foreign currency means you have to trust that your money is safe. Although any type of trading comes with an inherent risk of losing, you will want to make sure that the broker you use is trustworthy – and there are a few ways that you can ease your concerns. Firstly, you need to know that the broker has a good reputation. This can be deduced from things like how long they have been providing services and what other traders think about the services that the broker provides. Look out for independent broker reviews for the ones you are considering using, rather than what its website claims. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, is the regulation of the broker. Each country or region has a financial authority that ensures every financial institution follows specific rules and is regulated and monitored to ensure transparency. In the UK, this is the Financial Services Authority, and the US has National Futures Association, as well as the Commodity Futures Trading Association. Australia has ASIC, and Cyprus has CySEC. These agencies are only connected to brokers who meet regulatory standards, so they are a good indicator that the broker you are considering is trustworthy.
Fees
The cost of trading is an important consideration for traders, both new and experienced. You can access MT5 for free, but when you use a broker, there will be fees, as that is where they make their money. There are separate categories of fees to look out for.
Account Fees
These are costs that are associated with opening and managing your trading account. These include things like deposits, withdrawal and inactivity fees. These are set by the broker and can be different depending on the country the trader resides in and what type of trading account they open.
Trading Fees
These are what make up the cost of individual trades, and each trade you make will have specific costs attached. These fees might be presented as a commission per trade, or they can be built into the spread. Sometimes brokers will charge both – but what you will pay for the trade is usually dependent on the account they have.
What Is the UX/Customer Experience Like?
For both new and experienced traders, the interface that the broker provides is important. Customization of charts, the provision of research and educational materials and things like mobile access can make a real difference to the ease of use. Another thing to consider is how much education is available from the broker. Even the most experienced traders might need to brush up on their knowledge, so learning opportunities on the platform should be available. This can be in the form of basic instructions on using the platform, but you should look for a broker that takes their education provision seriously, with video and written lessons on different trading subjects. Customer service is also something to look for. If a problem arises while you are using the platform, you will want to be able to access support when you need it.
Do They Allow Your Preferred Type of Trading?
The availability of the broker you have chosen to undertake different strategies might affect your decisions. If you prefer to trade using leverage or if scalping is your strategy, then you want to be sure that the broker will allow it. Another part of this is the availability of the trading instruments that you want to use. Some brokers might not offer as many currency pairs, or they might not give you the opportunity to trade stocks, shares or cryptocurrency. Although MT4 is primarily aimed at the forex market, MT5 takes the fast and reliable software and algorithms and allows for trading on multiple assets. MT5 offers more functionality, technical analysis and a range of different ways of trading, and many traders think that it is more efficient and easier to use – although the tools, charts and trading strategies might be considered better for more advanced traders to take advantage of. Traders might need to put aside $100 to $200 as a minimum account opening deposit to use the services of a broker. The more trades you make, the more favourable the fees become, and you can take advantage of different opportunities like active trader rebates and other benefits. Despite the benefits of MT5 and the improvements that have been made for advanced traders, it is still not as popular as MetaTrader 4, which is why you will find more MT4 brokers in the UK and beyond. It can be downloaded onto both Windows and Mac operating systems with updated software, and it can be used as a web program, a desktop version and a mobile application (available on both Android and iOS). Some brokers are more appropriate for new traders, while others cater more for the experienced or professional trader. User reviews are also an effective way to learn more about the broker. Firstly, MT5 is a multi-asset platform, which means that you can trade a whole range of instruments, unlike MetaTrader 4 which limits the trading you can make. You can make hedge moves on MT5, unlike MT4 where the positions were more about netting. With the possibility of making multiple trades, even in the opposite direction. You can use different order types too. For more experienced traders, you can create your own analytical resources and technical indicators. This also means that Expert Advisors and algorithmic trading robots can be used. There are more built-in indicators in MetaTrader 5 as well as an economic calendar and access to all the financial news services, so you can learn more about your own trades and forecast the movements of different prices. For research purposes and more knowledge about your trades, you can access more than just tick volume data – the number of price changes, but also the number of lots that have been traded in that time. From a technical point of view, MT5 is considerably faster than MT4, with different capabilities that make it run smoother when you are making trades. This means that you can make lightning-fast decisions on trades without risking lag ruining the process. However, working with MT5 is not just about the platform. You need to make sure that you choose an appropriate broker that suits the way you trade, has the right level of fees and has great customer support and educational offerings. Choose the right broker – one that is well-regulated, has a good reputation and helps you trade in the way that you want – so that you can make the most of the improved functionality of MetaTrader 5.
