Brokers
Choosing a broker.
A broker is the company through which trades are placed. Leveraged products such as forex and CFDs are high risk, and promoting them is regulated in the UK, so broker partners appear here only once the broker has approved how it is presented and supplied its current risk warning.
No broker partnerships are live at the moment. No broker link on this website earns a commission today.
The checklist below applies to any broker, partner or not.
Seven things to check about any broker
- Is it authorised?Search the exact legal entity on the FCA Register. A firm using a similar name, or an offshore entity, is not the same thing.
- Which entity holds the account?Large brokers operate several entities in different countries. The one that signs the client agreement decides which protections apply.
- Is client money protected?Ask whether client money is held in segregated accounts and which compensation scheme, if any, covers the account.
- What does it really cost?Compare spreads, commission, overnight financing, currency conversion, inactivity and withdrawal fees, not just the headline spread.
- What are the leverage limits?Retail clients in the UK face leverage limits and negative balance protection. Higher leverage elsewhere usually means weaker protection, not a better deal.
- Can the platform be tried first?A demo account shows how orders, stops and fills behave before real money is involved.
- Is the promotion honest?Be wary of bonuses, guaranteed returns, pressure to deposit, or anyone who contacts you first about trading.
Check any firm on the FCA Register and read the FCA's ScamSmart guidance. Trading leveraged products carries a high risk of losing money rapidly.