8  Best CySEC Regulated Forex Brokers 2024

How to compare CySEC-regulated brokers

CySEC is a tier 2 financial regulatory agency from Europe. They are a modern and well-funded organization and often the first to make regulatory changes needed to protect would-be traders and maintain fairness in the CFD industry. Generally speaking, CySEC-regulated brokers can be considered safe. Still, some few CySEC-regulated brokers have a history of controversy, and the regulator has only taken limited action on behalf of clients and partners. But it is essential to look at the detail of each broker to find out what differentiates them from each other. When comparing CySEC-regulated brokers consider:

Regulation: While your broker is CySEC-regulated, your trading account may not be. It is increasingly common for CySEC-regulated brokers to onboard clients onto a different license where trading conditions, like leverage, can be increased without CySEC oversight. While this is not fundamentally bad, the trader should know their trading account is regulated and that CySEC will not enforce their regulations in overseas territories. If you value the regulatory oversight of CySEC, don’t trade that for adjusted trading conditions.

Platform choice: Traders have a wide range of industry platforms to choose from, each with pros and cons. When comparing brokers, always consider the platform options, as unique features or a wide variety of platforms could change your trading experience. 

Trading costs: Every broker will charge for their services, but each will have different pricing models and costs. While ECN brokers will charge a smaller spread and a commission based on volume, market maker brokers will charge a wider spread. We compare brokers by looking at what 1 lot of EURUSD costs to trade and would encourage traders to do the same in comparing costs. 

MetaTrader 4 is still the industry standard, but many brokers offer MetaTrader 5 and their proprietary platforms. ECN/STP brokers will often support cTrader as it is built specifically for market execution and only allows for minimal broker interference.

Minimum Deposit: The minimum deposit could change by account type, with higher minimum deposits often linked to better conditions. Always consider the minimum deposit specific to the account type you may open. 

Deposit and Withdrawal Methods: Most brokers accept credit cards and bank transfer payments, and many accept online payments through Skrill and Neteller, and some will also accept Bitcoin. Always check the withdrawal fees before making a deposit. 

Broker Regulation and Why it’s Important

Regulators are essential in all financial markets because they set the rules that guarantee a level playing field. They also enforce those rules by requiring members to submit regular reports and have independent audits, most good regulators will also have an investigations department and will conduct unannounced visits to regulated companies to ensure day-to-day operations are compliant. Regulators also have the power to impose penalties on members, including fines, sanctions and even revoking a company’s operating licence, thereby putting them out of business.

What is interesting about the Forex market is that there is no legal requirement for brokers to be regulated. CFD Forex trading is an Over the Counter (OTC) derivatives market – this means that there is no central exchange and no overall regulator with oversight for the market.

Having a wholly unregulated market is a bad idea and leads to massive consumer fraud, as happens on a smaller scale in regions with poorly regulated local Forex industries. Instead of having a single regulator, countries and regions regulate the brokers who reside in their territory. As each regulator has different abilities and priorities, Forex regulation is not uniform, and brokers must abide by different rules depending on which country/countries they are legally resident.

What is CySEC?

CySEC is the financial regulatory agency of Cyprus. It was founded in 2001 and when Cyprus joined the EU in 2004 CySEC became part of the pan-European MiFID (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive). MiFID is an EU law the harmonises regulation for financial services across the member states, allowing for financial firms registered in one state to essentially have a “passport” to operate in all the other EU states.

In terms of the Forex industry, this means that any Forex broker registered in Cyprus can market to, and accept business from, all EU citizens.

As the Cyprus financial regulator, CySEC has many crucial obligations in the financial sector – most of them outside the Forex industry – these are:

• To review applications for and provide operating licenses to supervised financial companies – and revoke these if necessary.
• To supervise and regulate the operation of and all transactions on the Cyprus Stock Exchange
• To carry out all necessary investigations in view of the exercise of its duties under the law as well as on behalf of other foreign competent Authorities.
• To impose administrative and disciplinary sanctions provided by the law.
• To issue regulatory Directives and Decisions.
• To cooperate and exchange data and information with foreign supervisory authorities.

How CySEC protects Forex traders

Most Forex brokers in Europe are based in Cyprus. They are subject to CySEC’s regulations, so it follows that many millions of Forex traders are directly impacted not only by CySEC’s rules but also by how well they enforce them. The most important regulatory benefits for customers of a CySEC-regulated broker are as follows:

• Segregated Funds: All trader funds are kept in a segregated trust account, which the broker cannot access. This prevents the broker from using trader funds for operational purposes. It also ensures that in the case of broker bankruptcy, trader funds can be returned.
• Capital Adequacy: CySEC requires all regulated brokers to hold enough capital to meet the capital adequacy ratio requirement. This decreases the likelihood of broker failure in the event of significant losses.
• Reports and Auditing: Because brokers are required to submit regular financial compliance reports to CySEC, it is very difficult for brokers to hide any wrongdoing. Similarly, because these brokers are also subject to independent audits and visits from CySEC investigators, any malfeasance will be exposed.
• Compensation Fund: All CySEC-regulated brokers are required to join the Investor Compensation Fund Scheme. Under this scheme, traders are liable for compensation of up to 20,000 EUR in the case of broker bankruptcy.
• Insurance Coverage: CySEC demands that all licenced brokers maintain insurance coverage of at least 1.5 million EUR for losses resulting from negligence.
• Transparency: CySEC expects to have a complete overview of all products that a broker is planning to offer, and that these products are the same as the products offered to clients.

These protections are enshrined in regulatory law, and brokers who are found to be in contravention are penalised and can even have their operating licence removed altogether.

A useful resource for traders, CySEC hosts an up-to-date list of brokers that are legally allowed to operate in their jurisdiction. If you are concerned that a broker may be operating illegally, check CySEC’s regulated entities list.

CySEC also publishes warnings on unregulated brokers operating illegally. Many illegal brokers will often disguise themselves as regulated brokers, so it is important to check here if you are concerned.

CySEC and ESMA: Restrictions on Trading Conditions

In March 2018, the European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA – an EU taskforce which examines EU-wide financial risk) announced new regulations on all CFD trading in the EU; these regulations were a directive at the supranational level – meaning that all EU members were required to abide by the regulations and enshrine them in domestic law.

Cyprus, as an EU member state, must also abide by this new set of regulations, and all CySEC-regulated brokers will have the following restrictions as a result:

• Leverage Restriction: Maximum leverage of 30:1 on major currency pairs, 20:1 on all other pairs, 5:1 on equities, 2:1 on cryptocurrencies
• Negative Balance Protection: All brokers must guarantee negative balance protection for all traders
• No Bonus: All bonuses, promotions or any other type of trading incentive are banned
• Margin Call: Brokers will be required to close a client’s open positions when the account equity reaches 50% of the required minimum margin by all open positions.
• Risk Warning: All brokers will be required to display a standard risk warning showing what percentage of clients lose money with them.

While traders and brokers were unhappy with the restriction on leverage, industry experts agree that the new ESMA regulations protect traders from making huge losses without critically damaging broker profits.

CySEC vs FCA

The Financial Conduct Authority is the United Kingdom’s financial regulator and is generally upheld as the best and strictest national regulatory authority in the world. Most good brokers will be regulated either by CySEC, the FCA or sometimes both.

On paper, there is little difference between CySEC or FCA regulation – though the licencing fee for CySEC brokers is only 7,000 EUR, compared to 25,000 GBP for the FCA. Aside from that, both regulators require segregated accounts, membership of a compensation fund and high capital adequacy standards. All brokers regulated by both authorities will have the same leverage restrictions and other constraints required by the ESMA regulation – though whether this continues to remain the case once the United Kingdom leaves the EU remains to be seen.

The differences between the two regulators are mainly anecdotal. While the FCA is seen as unimpeachable when it comes to protecting consumers and being tough on brokers, many traders complain that CySEC is too broker-friendly and that it gives away operating licences too easily. CySEC also has a history of being easy on badly behaved brokers, with industry commentators noting that fines being levied by CySEC tended to be smaller than those handed out by other EU regulatory organizations.

But since 2016, CySEC has made sweeping changes to both the registration and regulation processes of all registered entities. Changes include more transparency regarding existing listed entities, tougher fines and regular unannounced onsite visits from CySEC investigators to check compliance. This has led to a surge in broker suspensions and license revoking, and CySEC is gradually losing its image as a light-touch regulator.

All CySEC Brokers

This is our list of all CySEC-regulated brokers we have reviewed. They are ordered by their overall rating, placing the best overall broker at the top of the list. 

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Broker	Broker Score	CySEC Licence	Regulators	Beginner Friendly	Min. Deposit	Max. Leverage (Forex)	Cost of Trading	Fees	Total # CFDs	No. of FX Pairs	Crypto Pairs	Platforms	Compare
	4.68 /5 Read Review	092/08		Excellent	USD 100	30:1	USD 7	Fees Included in Spread	1009	56	25	MT4, MT5, markets.com
	4.62 /5 Read Review	400/21		Excellent	USD 100	200:1	USD 7	Fees Included in Spread	5648	91	8	MT4, MT5, FOREX.com Web Trader, TradingView
	4.61 /5 Read Review	388/20		Excellent	USD 0	30:1	USD 10	From 7 USD / lot - Razor Account	1275	100	19	MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView
	4.59 /5 Read Review			Excellent	USD 100	400:1	USD 9	Fees Included in Spread	872	55	20	MT4, MT5, Avatrade Social, AvaOptions
	4.58 /5 Read Review	278/15		Excellent	USD 100	30:1	USD 6	6 USD/lot	209	62	8	MT4, MT5
	4.56 /5 Read Review	362/18		Excellent	USD 200	30:1	USD 8	7 USD / lot - Raw Spread Account	1744	64	18	MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView
	4.53 /5 Read Review	246/14		Excellent	AUD 100	500:1	USD 10	7 USD / lot	846	55	100	MT4, MT5, TradingView
	4.53 /5 Read Review	183/12		Excellent	USD 0	500:1	USD 10	6 USD / lot - Zero Account	1230	53	40	MT4, MT5, HFM Trading App
	4.45 /5 Read Review	120/10		Excellent	USD 5	1000:1	USD 6	Fees Included in Spread	1554	57	60	MT4, MT5
	4.44 /5 Read Review	433/23		Excellent	USD 0	500:1	USD 10	7 USD / lot - PRO account	188	70	11	MT4
	4.43 /5 Read Review	629628		Excellent	USD 0	500:1	USD 11	7 USD / lot - ThinkZero Account	4150	46	27	MT4, MT5, ThinkTrader
	4.40 /5 Read Review	371/18		Excellent	AUD 100	30:1	USD 7	6 USD / lot - RAW Accounts	10162	70	11	MT4, MT5, cTrader, IRESS
	4.39 /5 Read Review	169/12		Excellent	USD 0	30:1	USD 7	Fees Included in Spread	5211	57	49	xStation5
	4.39 /5 Read Review	078/07		Excellent	USD 100	200:1	USD 14	9 USD / lot	2241	70	30	MT4, MT5, cTrader, FxProEdge
	4.37 /5 Read Review	372/18		Excellent	USD 25	500:1	USD 6	Fees Included in Spread	249	52	30	MT4, MT5, OctaTrader
	4.37 /5 Read Review	357/18		Excellent	EUR 100	500:1	USD 7	6 USD round turn commission	905	73	57	MT4, cTrader, Skilling Trader
	4.33 /5 Read Review	331/17		Excellent	USD 5	3000:1	USD 7	6 USD / lot - ECN Account	254	37	100	MT4, MT5
	4.28 /5 Read Review	201/13		Excellent	USD 100	500:1	USD 8	1.8 - 3 USD per lot	3996	82	42	MT4, MT5, MT Supreme
	4.28 /5 Read Review	392/20		Standard	USD 50	400:1	USD 13	None	306	45	7	MT4, TradeStation
	4.24 /5 Read Review	138/11		Standard	USD 1	500:1	USD 7.80	None	1033	80	11	cTrader
	4.21 /5 Read Review	261/14		Standard	USD 15	1000:1	USD 15	8 - 10 USD / lot - PRO Account	181	43	4	MT4, MT5, cTrader
	4.12 /5 Read Review	259/14		Standard	USD 100	500:1	USD 12	8 USD / lot - Raw Account	310	70	30	MT4, MT5
	4.02 /5 Read Review	079/07		Standard	USD 25	400:1	USD 18	Fees Included in Spread	193	63	20	MT4, MT5
	3.97 /5 Read Review	093/08		Excellent	USD 50	500:1	USD 19	10 USD / lot - ECN Account	262	56	66	MT4, MT5
	3.88 /5 Read Review	121/10		Standard	USD 0	500:1	USD 6	None	104	71	14	MT4
	3.87 /5 Read Review	383/20		Standard	USD 50	500:1	USD 15	Fees Included in Spread	151	50	14	MT4, MT5
	3.80 /5 Read Review	202/13		Standard	USD 250	400:1	USD 40	Fees Included in Spread	602	48	0	MT5, Sirix
	3.70 /5 Read Review	127/10		Standard	USD 100	30:1	USD 20		50	50	0	MT5
	3.68 /5 Read Review	204/13		Standard	USD 250	1000:1	USD 17	Fees Included in Spread	539	47	30	MT4, MT5, NAGA Web App
	3.64 /5 Read Review	25/10		Standard	USD 50	1000:1	USD 22	On select STP/ECN Accounts	285	83	0	MT4
	3.63 /5 Read Review	209/13		Standard	USD 10	1000:1	USD 20	0,007% / Trade - Zero Account	79	33	15	MT4
	3.60 /5 Read Review			Standard	USD 5	400:1	USD 5	None	514	49	15	MT4, MT5
	3.60 /5 Read Review	118/10		Standard	USD 0	1000:1	USD 6	6 USD / lot	8071	43	9	MT4, MT5, cTrader
	3.53 /5 Read Review	344/17		Standard	USD 500	200:1	USD 16	Fees Included in Spread	102	49	10	MT5
	3.52 /5 Read Review			Standard	USD 500	30:1	USD 7	5 USD / lot	311	42	5	MT4, MT5
	3.52 /5 Read Review	227/14		Standard	USD 100	30:1	USD 19	Fees Included in Spread	2215	55	12	MT4, MT5, Sirix

Conclusion

As the regulator with the most EU-registered brokers, CySEC has a critical role in the Forex industry, and millions of traders rely on their ability to ensure a fair trading environment.

While in the past, this ability has been questioned, currently, CySEC is seen as a leader in the Forex regulatory world, and brokers with CySEC regulation should be considered safe and secure places for trading.

Forex Risk Disclaimer

Trading Forex and CFDs is not suitable for all investors as it carries a high degree of risk to your capital: 75-90% of retail investors lose money trading these products. Forex and CFD transactions involve high risk due to the following factors: Leverage, market volatility, slippage arising from a lack of liquidity, inadequate trading knowledge or experience, and a lack of regulatory protection. Traders should not deposit any money that is not considered disposable income. Regardless of how much research you have done or how confident you are in your trade, there is always a substantial risk of loss. (Learn more about these risks from the UK’s regulator, the FCA, or the Australian regulator, ASIC).

Our Rating & Review Methodology

Our overall Forex Rankings report and Directory of CFD Brokers to Avoid are the result of extensive research on over 180 Forex brokers. These resources help traders find the best Forex brokers – and steer them away from the worst ones. These resources have been compiled using over 200 data points on each broker and over 3000 hours of research. Our team conducts all research independently: Testing brokers, gathering information from broker representatives and sifting through legal documents. Learn more about how we rank brokers. 

Editorial Team

 

Chris Cammack
Head of Content

Chris joined the company in 2019 after ten years experience in research, editorial and design for political and financial publications. His background has given him a deep knowledge of international financial markets and the geopolitics that affects them. Chris has a keen eye for editing and a voracious appetite for financial and political current affairs. He ensures that our content across all sites meets the standards of quality and transparency that our readers expect.

 

Alison Heyerdahl
Senior Financial Writer

Alison joined the team as a writer in 2021. She has a medical degree with a focus on physiotherapy and a bachelor’s in psychology. However, her interest in forex trading and her love for writing led her to switch careers, and she now has over eight years experience in research and content development. She has tested and reviewed 100+ brokers and has a great understanding of the Forex trading world.

 

Ida Hermansen
Financial Writer

Ida joined our team as a financial writer in 2023. She has a degree in Digital Marketing and a background in content writing and SEO. In addition to her marketing and writing skills, Ida also has an interest in cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks. Her interest in crypto trading led to a wider fascination with Forex technical analysis and price movement. She continues to develop her skills and knowledge in Forex trading and keeps a close eye on which Forex brokers offer the best trading environments for new traders.

 

Vanessa Marcos
Financial Writer

Vanessa joined the team in 2023. Born and raised in southern Portugal, she has a BA in Journalism and a Master’s in Literary Theory, both from Lisbon University. Since 2011, she has worked in social media, copywriting, content management, ghost-writing, and SEO. Vanessa loves to write, and although she is a generalist in digital marketing, she always draws on her creativity in her work. She is constantly researching new subjects and finds the analytical depth of Forex trading fascinating.