Forex Brokers who accept South African based traders have steadily grown in numbers over the past decade, and financial companies are finding more and more clients in this region. The brokers below were not only evaluated on the quality of their trading platform on offer, but also their affordability.
Here is an overview of the 27 Best Regulated, Most Affordable Forex Brokers and Trading Platforms available in South Africa.
Alpari
Min Deposit: USD 100
Alpari International is the business name of Exinity Limited which is by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of the Republic of Mauritius and offers traders more than 250 tradable assets across Forex, Stocks, Indices, Metals, Cryptocurrencies and Futures, across the MetaTrader suite of trading platforms.
Four main types of trading accounts are on offer: Standard MT4, Micro MT4, Pro MT4 and ECN MT4/5. A Stocks Trading account, as well as a swap-free account, the use of a free demo trading account and an Alpari Invest account is also made available.
Customer support is available 24/5 via Live Chat, Telegram, Email and phone.
FBS
Min Deposit: $1
FBS is a Forex and CFD broker which is authorised and regulated by the International Financial Services Commission (IFSC) of Belize and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). FBS offers users the option to trade on Forex, Indices, Stocks, Metals and Energies on the MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and FBS Trader trading platforms for PC, Mac, Web, Android and iOS with a maximum 1:3000 leverage, copy trading services and a range of bonus promotions.
Five different trading accounts are available – Cent, Micro, Standard, Zero Spread and ECN. Each account offers different features and benefits respectively. A demo trading and swap-free accounts are also available.
Customer Support is available 24/7 via a Call-back service, online Live Chat, Telegram, Viber and Facebook Messenger.
IG
Min Deposit: $250
IG Group was founded in 1974 and is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the U.K. and the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) in Australia.
The country of a traders residency will determine which account type they can open. In most countries, they will only be able to trade forex, CFDs and options. Traders can choose between two trading platforms, IG’s proprietary trading platform or MetaTrader 4.
IG offers the following education resources
- Demo account
- Platform tutorial videos
- General educational videos
- Webinars
- Live sessions
Customer Service is available 24/7 via Phone, Live Chat and Email.
XTB
Min Deposit: $250
XTB is a European broker which was founded in 2002, and has offices in 13 countries across the globe. XTB is regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 522157) and has been listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange since 2016.
XTB is a fintech company which combines financial services with innovative technology and it offers clients two platforms to choose from
- xStation 5
- MT4
Traders can choose from 25 crypto CFDs (9 individual coins or 16 crypto pairs) which are available 7 days a week (from 3am Saturday to 9pm Friday). Traders can buy or sell digital coins with 2:1 leverage and 365-day expiry.
| Trading Features: | Accounts offered: | Funding methods: |
| Allows scalping | Demo account | Credit cards |
| Allows hedging | Micro account | Bank Transfer |
| Offers STP | Mini account | PayPal |
| Low min deposit | Standard account | Skrill |
| Guaranteed stop loss | Islamic account | Payoneer |
| Offers Negative Balance Protection | Neteller |
XTB support a wide range of languages including English, Spanish, Czech, Chinese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovenian, Turkish, Arabic, and Russian.
FXCM
Min Deposit: $300
Forex Capital Markets Limited or FXCM is a Spread Betting, CFD and Forex trading broker, authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority under the Forex Capital Markets Limited and is part of the Leucadia Company, which offers users the ability to trade on Forex, Forex Baskets, Indices, Commodities and Crypto on its own proprietary Trading Station platform for Desktop, Web and Mobile, as well as on MetaTrader4, NinaTrader and ZuluTrade.
FXCM offers traders 4 main types of trading accounts to choose from, including Spread Betting, CFD Trading, Active Trader and Professional Clients. A Free Demo account is also made available.
Customer Support is available via Live Chat, Phone, Email and SMS.
IQ Option
Min Deposit: $10
IQ Option is a forex & binary options broker with offices based in the UK, Cyprus, and the Seychelles, and regulated by the FCA and CySEC. IQ Option offers traders three trading account to choose from, Retail, Professional and Demo.
IQ Option offers the following underlying assets for FX trading.
| 90+ Currency Pairs | Based on major and minor world currencies. |
| 17 Crypto Pairs | Based on Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Litecoin, Ripple, Dash, Zcash, Qtum, Cardano, OmiseGo, Stellar, EOS, IOTA, NEO, NEM, TRON. |
| 5 Indices CFDs | Based on baskets of different blue-chip stocks. |
| 3 Metal CFDs | Based on Gold, Silver and Platinum. |
| 2 Energy CFDs | Based on Crude Oil (WTI, Brent). |
| 1 Soft CFD | Based on Wheat. |
| 130+ Stock CFDs | Based on shares of US, UK and EU companies. |
| 28+ ETF CFDs | Based on exchange-traded funds containing various tradable assets. |
IQ Option offers the following underlying assets for Binary Options trading (unfortunately, not available for EU residents).
| 30+ Currency Pairs | Based on major and minor world currencies. |
| 2 Indices BOs | Based on DFMGI, TelAviv-25. |
| 2 Metal BOs | Based on Gold and Silver. |
| 20+ Stock BOs | Based on shares of US companies. |
Payment methods accepted include all the usual options like VISA, MasterCard, Skrill and Neteller, plus a range of other online money transfer services, including AstroPay, Qiwi, and WebMoney. IQ Option’s trading platform is web-based and supports both binary options and forex & CFD trading within the same user interface.
Customer support is available 24/7 via email and local phone numbers in 13 countries.
Exness
Min Deposit: $1
Exness is authorised by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) of Seychelles and was founded in 2008. Traders have the ability to trade on Forex and CFDs on Crypto, Metals, Energies, Stocks and Indices on the MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 trading platforms for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iOS and the Exness Web Terminal.
Exness offers traders 5 different trading accounts to choose from. Standard Accounts include the Standard and Standard Cent. Professional Accounts include Raw Spread, Pro and Zero. Demo accounts and Islamic swap-free accounts are also available. Exness offers over 105 different instruments to trade, including over 103 currency pairs.
Exness supports a wide range of languages including English, Russian, Chinese, Urdu, Malay, Indonesian, Hindi, Arabic, Bengali, Farsi, Tamil, Vietnamese, Thai, Korean, and Spanish via Live Chat and Email.
Axitrader
Min Deposit: $5
Regulation: ASIC, FCA, DFSA
Broker type: STP, ECN
Leverage: up to 1:500
Platforms: MetaTrader4
Instruments: Currencies, Crypto, Indices, Metals, Energies, Softs
Axitrader is an online forex brokerage regulated by entities in Australia, the UK, and Dubai, in addition to an unregulated entity in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
Assets available for trade include
- 80+ Currency Pairs
- 6 Crypto Pairs
- 12 Indices Cash CFDs
- 11 Indices Futures
- 18 Metal Spot CFDs
- 1 Metal Future
- 2 Energy Spot CFDs
- 3 Energy Futures
- 3 Soft Futures
Customer Support is available via phone, live chat and phone.
XM
Leverage: 1:30 to 1:888 *Depends on the entity of the group
Regulation: CySEC, ASIC, IFSC
Min. Deposit: $5
HQ: Cyprus, Australia, Belize
Platforms: MT4, MT5, XM WebTrader
Founded in: 2009
XM operates with clients from over 196 countries and offers support in 30 languages. The main branch located in Cyprus is regulated by CySEC. 1.5 Million Traders and investors choose XM and their wide range of XM trading products on offer. Five main account types are on offer – Micro, Standard, XM Ultra Low Account, Shares Accounts and Islamic Accounts which follow Shariah Law. Traders can select the base currency of their preference from a large selection on offer. This range includes South African Rand (ZAR), Singapore Dollar (SGD) and other global currencies.
Customer Support is available via live chat, email and phone.
Forex Time (FXTM)
Min Deposit: $10
FXTM or ForexTime was founded in 2011 and is a registered brand name of Exinity Limited, regulated by the Financial Services Commission of Mauritius with license number C113012295. FXTM offers users seven different accounts types where the execution method, range of markets, available platform, and commissions and fees may vary. Three accounts are offered under the Standard category. FXTM also offers swap free and Islamic certified accounts. Forex Time (FXTM) is a MetaTrader broker which offers forex and CFD traders multiple account options for both MT4 and MT5 platforms.
FXTM offers traders the opportunity to trade in the following markets
- Forex
- Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin etc) Please take Note: FXTM offers crypto trading via Exinity Limited and Instruments on offer are based on a traders country of residence.
- CFDs for Indices and Commodities (FTSE, DAX, Nasdaq etc)
- Spot metals (Gold, Silver)
- Shares CFDs (Apple, BP, Google etc)
FXTM provides research in the form of daily technical and fundamental news analysis provided by an in-house team of analysts.
Customer Service is available phone, email, online chat options – WhatsApp, live chat, Viber, Telegram or Messenger.
FP Markets
FP Markets is a global, online broker regulated by the Australian ASIC and the Cypriot CySEC which was founded in 2005 and offer Forex trading and has a head office situated in Australia. When starting off with FP Markets traders will need to make a minimum deposit of $100 and a demo account is on offer with a wide variety of instruments and currency pairs on offer.
Over 100 instruments and over 60 currency pairs in total is on offer, on the popular MT4 forex trading platform. FP Markets also offers traders mobile apps for Android and iOS.
FP Markets Trading benefits include
- Allows scalping
- Allows hedging
- Offers STP
- Low min deposit
- Offers Negative Balance Protection
FP Markets Trading Accounts Offered include: Demo, Mini, Standard, ECN, STP, Managed and Islamic and all accounts support a wide range of languages including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Bulgarian, Arabic, Russian, French, Italian, Greek, Philippines, Latvian, Polish, Indonesian, Thai, Malay, German, Vietnamese. FP Markets does offer traders Islamic accounts but Swap-free Islamic accounts are available on request and only after setting up one of the regular MT4 or MT5 Forex accounts. Once the request is approved, they will convert a traders regular account to an Islamic account.
Customer Service is available via email, phone and live chat.
AvaTrade
Min Deposit: $100
AvaTrade is an online broker founded in 2006 offering Forex trading, CFDs trading, Spread Betting trading, and Social Trading.
- Regulated by: Central Bank of Ireland, Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), Financial Services Authority (FSA), Financial Stability Board (FSB), British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission (BVI)
- Headquarters:The British Virgin Islands
- Foundation year:2006
- Used: by over 200,000 traders
- Islamic Accounts: Based on Sharia Law
Across all markets, MetaTrader 4 gives traders access to over 250 assets, 30 advanced charting tools, trading history, and other useful information. Customer support is available by email, phone, or live chat.
HotForex
HotForex was established in 2007 is well regulated by FCA, CySEC, DFSA, FSCA and SFSA.
The HotForex MT5 terminal offers 21 different timeframes, superior analysis tools, trading across HotForex asset classes, close to 100 simultaneous charts, hedging and one-click trading and 80+ technical indicators plus an in-built economic calendar. With HotForex, there is no “Islamic Account Type” available to choose from, but traders can have an Islamic swap free condition with either Micro, Premium, Currenex, VIP or Fix account.
The account can be accessed from anywhere using an iPhone, interactive charts for 9 timeframes, advanced trading functions, one-click trading, 24 analytical objects, and 30 technical indicators.
Hotforex’s Metatrader offers a fast order execution, news feed, multiple order types, support for EAs.
Key features include
- Supports: MT4, MT5 for desktop, web & mobile
- Minimum deposit: $5
- Leverage: 1:1000
- Trading Instruments: Forex, Cryptocurrencies, CFDs on Stock Indices, Commodities,metals
Customer support is available via phone and email.
HYCM
Min Deposit: $100
HYCM is an online broker which was founded in 1977 and offers Forex and CFDs trading on the popular MT4 forex trading platform plus mobile apps for Android and iOS. HYCM Ltd is regulated under CIMA, reference number 1442313. The company’s European operations, HYCM (Europe) is regulated by the CySEC (licence number 259/14) and is authorised to operate as a Cypriot Investment Firm (CIF) to provide investment services.
Traders starting off with HYCM will need to make a minimum deposit of at least $100 and have the choice to sign up for a demo account perfect for various levels of traders, experienced or novice.
A wide variety of instruments and currency pairs are available for trade
- Over 100 instruments
- Over 40 currency pairs
HYCM Trading benefits
- Allows scalping
- Allows hedging
- Low min deposit
HYCM Trading Accounts on offer include Demo, Micro, Mini, Standard and Islamic and the minimum and maximum trade requirements will vary depending on the trader and the instrument. HYCM customer service is available through WhatsApp, Skype, Viber, Telegram Instant messaging services, Facebook Chat and Phone – 24/5.
eToro
Min Deposit: $200
eToro is a leading social trading platform for trading major financial markets including stocks, forex and cryptocurrencies. eToro is regulated by FCA, CySEC and ASIC.
eToro only offers one account type with over 1,083 different instruments to trade, including over 47 currency pairs. Islamic accounts in accordance with Sharia law is also made available. The minimum deposit for said account differs by country. eToro offers traders a proprietary trading platform which allows both individual and social trading.
eToro supports a wide range of languages including English, German, Spanish, French, and Italian via phone and support ticket.
OctaFX
Min Deposit: $5
OctaFX is an online broker which was founded in 2011, offering Forex trading. As OctaFX is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), each new client must pass a few basic compliance checks when signing up for an account.
OctaFX has won numerous industry awards over the course of 9 years and is one of the few brokers that offer both of the MetaTrader platforms; MT4 and MT5.
OctaFX Trading benefits
- Allows scalping
- Allows hedging
- Offers STP
- Low min deposit
- Guaranteed stop loss
- Offers Negative Balance Protection
OctaFX Trading Accounts Offered
- Demo account
- Micro account
- Mini account
- Standard account
- Zero spread account
- STP account
- Islamic account
OctaFX provides an array of educational tools to assist beginner traders to become more experienced and even professionals in trading. Customer Support is available 24/5 via Live Chat, Email, Phone, WhatsApp and an Enquiry Form across multiple languages including English, Indonesian, Hindi, Chinese and more.
Pepperstone
Minimum Deposit: $200
Pepperstone was founded in 2010 and is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), as well as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
Pepperstone offers traders a variety of trading accounts to choose from including Razor, Standard and Swap-Free, and Boasts three top forex trading platforms
- MetaTrader 4: Most Popular for Forex Trading
- MetaTrader 5: Most Popular CFDs Trading Platform
- cTrader: Best Automated Trading Platform
All three FX trading platforms come with a free demo account which will allow Nigerian traders to test out the forex broker and platform for 30 days.
Platform enhancements available for Pepperstone include
- MetaTrader 4 smart trader tools
- cTrader Automate
- Autochartist and
- API trading
A range of options for depositing funds are available, including: Bank wire transfer, MasterCard, Visa credit card, PayPal, Neteller, Skrill and QIWI.
Pepperstone offers 24/5 multiple language support via email, phone and live chat.
EasyMarkets
Min Deposit: USD 5
EasyMarkets is one of the most popular choices for Beginners and is regulated by CSEC (Cyprus) and ASIC (Australia) and offers beginner forex traders
- Enhanced risk management tools as standard
- Fixed spreads on all forex pairings
- An easy to use forex trading platform
EasyMarkets offers traders three key risk management tools which are ideal to those new to currency trading
- Deal Cancellation
- Guaranteed Stop Loss Orders
- Negative Balance Protection
Standard, Premium, VIP and SuperVIP accounts are available, their minimum opening deposits are $100, $1 000, $2 500, $50 000 respectively. Demo and Islamic accounts are also on offer. The available trading platforms offered are MT4 and the EasyMarkets web platform.
Customer Support is available 24/5 via various chat channels, email, phone and web forms.
FXPro
Min Deposit: $100
FXPro is an online broker which was founded in 2006 and offers Forex, Share Dealing, Spot Indices, Futures, Spot Metals and Spot Energies trading. FXPro is a global broker with a head office located in the UK. FxPro is regulated by CySEC and operates under the CIF license number 078/07. As a CySEC regulated broker, FxPro is also a member of the Investor Compensation Fund scheme.
FXPro provide traders with access to top-tier liquidity and advanced trade execution with no dealing desk intervention and a starting account will need a minimum deposit of $100.
What can be traded with FXPro?
- Over 250 instruments
- Over 70 currency pairs
FXPro is one of the few brokers in the market who offers both of the MetaTrader platforms; MT4 and MT5 plus the cTrader platform and mobile apps for Android and iOS.
FXPro Trading benefits include
- Allows scalping
- Allows hedging
- Low min deposit
- Offers Negative Balance Protection
With FXPro, the minimum and maximum trade requirements vary depending on the trader and the instrument chosen. In observance of the Shariah Law, FxPro offers swap-free accounts to clients of the Muslim faith.
FxPro offers customer support 24 hours a day, 5 days a week via Live Chat, Telephone and Email in a variety of different languages including English, Spanish, French, Polish, Malay, Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian and others.
Tickmill
Min Deposit: $100
Tickmill is a Forex and CFD broker with licences from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA). Tickmill offers trading on 80+ markets covering Forex, Indices, Commodities and Bonds on the MetaTrader 4 trading platform for Windows, Mac, Web, Android and iOS.
Three main trading accounts called the Pro Account, Classic Account and VIP Account is on offer, each which offers different minimum balances, maximum leverage, spreads and commissions respectively. Demo trading and Islamic swap-free accounts are also made available.
Multilingual client service is available via Telephone, Email, Online Contact Form and Live Chat.
Other Mention Worthy, Affordable Forex brokers include
IC Markets
$200 Min Deposit
GO Markets
$200 Min Deposit
CM Trading
$250 Min Deposit
JustForex
$1 Min Deposit
com
$100 Min Deposit
City Index
$50 Min Deposit
BlackBull Markets
$200 Min Deposit
In Conclusion
“Nothing comes as an accomplishment instantly. Success does not come overnight. Patience is the key! – Israelmore Ayivor”
Choosing a Forex Broker is no different. Even though the brokers mentioned in this list is considered as affordable, traders should not be swayed. Due diligence should be done in regards to trading platforms, ease of use, assets available for trade, and much more.
Top 4 Brokers
