Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, better known as CySEC, is a European regulator and is particularly attractive to Contract for Difference (CFD) traders. The regulator exercises rigorous oversight of the brokers, which becomes especially important while dealing with high-risk instruments.
CySEC mandates the brokers to comply with the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) as directed by the European Securities and Market Authority (ESMA) policies.
List Of Best CySEC-Regulated Brokers
ESMA targets to foster robust markets with top-notch investor protection. Retail traders opening accounts with brokers regulated by CySEC get segregated funds, negative balance protection, and access to the Investor Compensation Fund (ICF).
However, not all CySEC-regulated brokers are made equal. Your preferred broker can vary depending on your needs. We have curated here a list of the best of them based on a broad range of factors including the location of headquarters, customer support during European trading hours, trading fees, and account types offered.
1. eToro
With its headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, eToro also has offices in Cyprus, the UK, the US, and Australia. The platform offers nearly 50 FX pairs, over 3000 stocks, 13 indices, 20 commodities, and a variety of CFDs. Forex CFD trades attract no commissions and spreads start from 0.9 pips. eToro has its proprietary trading software that has advanced charts, tools, price alerts, and much else and comes with a flat learning curve. It also has a copy trading feature that allows novice traders to effortlessly mimic the moves of experts.
2. IronFX
Headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus, and founded in 2010, IronFX has proven to be a broker that strictly adheres to the regulator’s guidelines. Their services cater to both novice and expert traders. They offer 7 different account types to match individual personal goals. This also includes their Absolute Zero account which offers commission-free trading spreads starting from 0.3 pips. The platform supports 20 FX pairs with EUR as the base currency, 2 metals, 6 indices, 1 future, and 32 shares. Payments are accepted in EUR, USD, and GBP.
3. XTB
The XTB Group is headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, and was founded in the year 2002 as the country’s first leveraged foreign exchange brokerage house. With offices in 13 countries, XTB is one of the global CFD brokers. XTB offers two accounts with no minimum deposit requirements, though trading costs are on the pricier side compared to other brokers. The platform offers trades on over 2000 financial instruments, including 57 forex pairs. Clients can use the award-winning in-house trading platform xStation 5.
4. Pepperstone
Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, Pepperstone was founded in 2010. The platform offers low trading costs and fast execution. Pepperstone is suitable for traders of all experience levels. They have no minimum deposit requirements and offer spreads as low as 0.10 pips. The platform supports over 60 currency pairs, 14 indices, 15 commodities, and 11 cryptocurrencies. You can also trade on CFDs of over 700 shares. It offers free trading tools including Autochartist and the Smart Trader Toolset. It also offers a well-structured and beginner-friendly educational section.
5. FP Markets
This is another top broker with a head office in Limassol, Cyprus, FP Markets was established in 2005. They support 17 EUR-denominated forex pairs, 2 metals, 5 indices, and over 125 ETF CFDs. The brokerage has implemented MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms. These have advanced technical analysis tools, fast trade execution, and automated trading functionality. They offer free VPS hosting and transparent operations.
6. HF Markets
HFM was formerly known as HotForex. Their accounts have competitive trading fees and minimum deposit accounts are available. The brokerage supports 53 FX pairs, and 40 crypto pairs and allows hedging and copy trading. The broker supports MT4, MT5 platforms, and their home-grown HF Mobile app. They also support over 950 stocks. It has user-friendly trading tools and advanced charts. Access to Autochartist requires a US$100 account balance.
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7. IC Markets
This Sydney, Australia-based broker was founded in 2007. With 180,000 clients in the Forex and CFD market, IC Markets is a market leader with trading volume north of US$1trillion. The platform supports over 2250 CFDs on Forex pairs, commodities, indices, shares, ETFs, futures, and cryptocurrencies. The software is popular for automated trading, which contributes to over 60 percent of total trades in the platform. IC Markets offers competitive commission rates and spreads and superfast execution speeds. They charge no inactivity fees or withdrawal fees.
