Fidelity Review

Overall, Fidelity can be summarised as a reliable and loyal financial institution and is considered low-risk and fully regulated. Fidelity has an overall trust score of 50 out of 99. Fidelity offers Fractional shares, Mutual funds, Index funds, Fidelity Go

Fidelity At a Glance

Overall Rating

• 2.4/5

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OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 1

Regulators

SEC, FINRA

Trading Platform

Active Trader Pro

Crypto

No

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

No

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

Choose your quick section of our Fidelity below.

Fidelity review – 19 key point quick overview:

1. Fidelity At a Glance
2. Fidelity Overview
3. Fidelity Safety and Security
4. Fidelity Sign-Up Bonus
5. Fidelity Minimum Deposit
6. Fidelity Demo Account
7. Fidelity Accounts
8. Fidelity Market instruments
9. Fidelity Fees, Spreads & Commissions
10. Fidelity Deposit and withdrawal
11. Fidelity Trading platforms
12. Fidelity Best Countries by Traders
13. Fidelity Current Popularity Trend
14. Fidelity vs Exness vs XM – a Comparison
15. Fidelity Customer Reviews
16. Fidelity Pros and cons
17. Fidelity Conclusion
18. Fidelity Disclaimer
19. Frequently Asked Questions

Fidelity Overview

According to research in South Africa Fidelity is a US stockbroker that was founded in 1946. It is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Information about the company is quite limited on their website, as is the amount of financial information. The company seems to be owned by a parent company called FMR LLC.

Fidelity offers good quality research and a lot of tools, including trading ideas, detailed fundamental data, and a good charting. Its web trading platform is easy-to-use with advanced order types.

Customers can trade with US and international stocks. Account opening is not fully digital and the fees for some mutual funds and financing rates are high.

Fidelity Safety and Security

One of the best benchmarks to measure the safety of a broker like Fidelity is to establish which regulating authorities are watchdogs over its actions.

Fidelity is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

In the US, customers are served by Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC which belongs to the US investor protection scheme SIPC. The SIPC scheme protects customers against the loss of cash and securities if a broker goes bust. The SIPC protection is limited to $500 000, which includes a $250 000 limit for cash.

SIPC covers notes, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and investment company shares, and registered securities. It does not cover instruments such as unregistered investment contracts, unregistered limited partnerships, fixed annuity contracts, currency, and interests in gold, silver, or other commodity futures contracts or commodity options.

Fidelity itself provides an additional total of $1 billion coverage with no limit on securities coverage, but a $1.9 million limit on cash per account.

Fidelity does however not provide negative balance protection.

Fidelity Sign-Up Bonus

Fidelity does not offer new traders a sign-up bonus or also known as a welcome bonus when signing up.

Fidelity Minimum Deposit

The minimum deposit amount required to register a Fidelity trading account is $1. This minimum deposit is equivalent to R16 ZAR at the current exchange rate between the  South African Rand & United States Dollar.

Fidelity Demo Account

Fidelity does not offer the option of a  free demo trading account for beginners to practice forex trading in a 100% risk-free environment.

Overall Rating

• 2.4/5

Read Review

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 1

Regulators

SEC, FINRA

Trading Platform

Active Trader Pro

Crypto

No

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

No

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

Fidelity Accounts

Fidelity accounts are mainly focused on long-term investment opportunities. With a wide range of portfolio accounts that traders can set up to spread their investment such as:

• Investing and trading
• Saving for retirement
• Managed accounts
• Saving & investing for a child
• Saving for medical expenses
• Charitable giving
• Estate planning and trusts
• Annuities
• Life insurance

A forex account at Fidelity is a trading account that you will hold and that will work similarly to your bank account, but with the difference that it is primarily issued with the purpose of trading on currencies.

Often, the number and type of accounts that a trader can open with a broker company differs depending on the country in which it operates and the regulation authorities under whose jurisdiction it falls.

Fidelity is a US stockbroker that targets US clients and offers Individual and Joint Accounts, as well as Managed Accounts.

Fidelity accounts are also available in some other countries through the Fidelity group’s other subsidiaries. Fidelity Investments Canada serves only Canadian customers, while Fidelity International has a strong presence in Western and South-East Asia. The available product range and services differ from country to country.

How to open a Fidelity account

1.  Step 1 – Register an account

Navigate to the website page and select the options “Open an account” or “Get Started”

2.  Step 2 – Select an account option

Make a selection of which accounts you would like to open and fund

3.  Step 3 – Open the account

Select from the options provided and click next, follow the prompts.

4.  Step 4 – Open the account

Account verification will be done via the trader’s email account that is listed in the personal information.

Similarly to a bank, to register a forex trading account with Fidelity for the first time, you will be required to go through a basic “know your customer” process, which will allow Fidelilty to ascertain that your submitted details and ensure the safety of your funds and account details.

Fidelity Market instruments

The most popular market instruments available from most brokers for trading include:

Forex

Forex trading describes the currency exchange market which refers to the global, decentralized marketplace where individuals, companies, and financial institutions exchange currencies for one another at floating rates.

Commodities

Commodity markets offer many investment opportunities for traders. Soft commodities have been traded for centuries and play a major role in portfolio diversification and risk management. Investing in contract-based tradable goods is a reliable way to mitigate risk during times of economic uncertainty.

Indices

Equity, or stock indices, are actual stock market indexes that measure the value of a specific section of a stock market. They can represent a specific stock market or a specific set of the largest companies of a nation.

Precious metals

The trading of gold and other precious metals, along with crude oil, copper or petroleum, are hard commodities that play a major role in the commodities market and are contract-based tradable goods.

Energy

The typical feature of energy prices is high volatility due to the influence of political and environmental factors, supply and demand, extreme weather conditions and global economic growth.

Fidelity offers a lot of asset classes, from stocks to options but no Forex and futures. Stocks at the NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX, OTC exchanges can be traded.

Fideltiy has good mutual fund coverage and a wide bond offer. The following options exchanges are available: CBOE, AMEX, PHLX, ISE, ISE Gemini, BOX, NASDAQ, NASDAQ OMX BX, NYSE BATS, NYSE ARCA, MIAX, and C2.

Fidelity Fees, Spreads & Commissions

Cost depends on different factors, like spread and margins, and Fidelity clients may also experience different fee structures according to their country or place of residence.

The spread of a currency pair is the difference between the bid and the asking rate. A pip represents the smallest increment that an exchange rate can move.

Margin is the amount of money required in your account in order to open a position. Margin is calculated based on the current price of the base currency against USD, the size (volume) of the position and the leverage applied to your trading account.

Fidelity charges low trading fees and non-trading fees. There are no commissions for stock trading but fees for some mutual funds and financing rates can be high.

Fidelity charges no stock and ETF commissions for American clients.

Fidelity has generally low bond fees and no commission for Treasury bonds. For other bonds, like corporate bonds, the commission is $1 per bond and there is a maximum of $250. It charges no inactivity and account fees, or a withdrawal fee if you use an ACH transfer. Withdrawals to other banks using wire transfers cost $10.

10 Best Forex Brokers in South Africa for 2025

Rank

Broker

Review

Regulators

Min Deposit

Official Site

#1

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ASIC, FSA, CBI, BVI, FSCA, FRSA, CySEC, ISA, JFSA

$100

Visit Broker

#2

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FSCA, CySEC, FCA, DFSA, FSA, CMA

$0

Visit Broker

#3

Read Review

CySEC, MWALI, FSCA

$25

Visit Broker

#4

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CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSCA

$100

Visit Broker

#5

Read Review

CBCS, CySEC, FCA, FSA, FSC, FSCA, CMA

$10

Visit Broker

#6

Read Review

CySEC, ASIC, FSA, BVI, FSCA

$25

Visit Broker

#7

Read Review

ASIC, CySEC, FSA, SCB

$200

Visit Broker

#8

Read Review

ASIC, CySEC, FSCA, FSA, FSC, CMA

$100

Visit Broker

#9

Read Review

FCA, CySEC, FSCA, SCB

$100

Visit Broker

#10

Read Review

FSCA, FSC, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA

$5

Visit Broker

#1

4.8/5

User Score

Sign Up

#2

4.7/5

User Score

Sign Up

#3

4.7/5

User Score

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#4

4.4/5

User Score

Sign Up

#5

4.7/5

User Score

Sign Up

#6

4.0/5

User Score

Sign Up

#7

4.7/5

User Score

Sign Up

#8

4.8/5

User Score

Sign Up

#9

4.5/5

User Score

Sign Up

#10

4.9/5

User Score

Sign Up

Fidelity Deposit and withdrawal

Accounts usually require a certain minimum initial deposit, which can be paid in several ways. Withdrawals can usually be done with the same ways, but sometimes differ.

In the case of Fidelity, you can choose from 16 base currencies: USD, AUD, MXN, ZAR, EUR, DEN, NZD, SGD, GBP, HKD, NOK, SEK, CAD, JPY, PLN, and CHF.

Fidelity charges no deposit fees and customers can use checks, ACH, wire transfers, and PayPal for deposits. Credit/debit card services are not provided. Fidelity offers the BillPay feature as an additional service.

You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name.

Fidelity charges no withdrawal fees when using ACH withdrawal, but domestic and international wire transfers cost $10. An ACH bank transfer withdrawal can be completed within 2 business days.

Fidelity Trading platforms

The forex trading platform provided by Fidelity to its clients is in essence the software to carry out their trades. Some brokers provide only one, others quite a few platforms.

A multi-asset trading platform is one that allows clients to trade forex as well as other asset classes. The decision about which platform to choose will usually depend on what a clientt would like to trade.

Fidelity provides an in-house developed web trading platform called Active Trader Pro. The desktop version of the trading platform is mainly suitable for active and advanced investors and a mobile version is also available. All are available only in English.

Fidelity Best Countries by Traders

Fidelity Current Popularity Trend

According to Google Trends, here is an overview of how frequently the search term – “Fidelity” is entered into Google’s search engine over a given period of time.

Fidelity vs Exness vs XM – a Comparison

Fidelity Customer Reviews

Excellent Broker

An excellent broker. Top-notch customer service. Staff is always willing to go the extra mile. Solid investment products.

Does Fidelity care about its customers?

I have found it very difficult to deal with Fidelity Investments. Getting help, even getting through to someone, is very hard. This is not new, ie due to the pandemic. When dealing with the death of my spouse and trying to transfer her IRA 7 years ago, I would get a message when I called Fidelity that it would be up to five days before receiving a callback. And it was. And then they didn’t process the paperwork I sent.

Do not use Fidelity

Do not use Fidelity. It is very difficult to reach them or get an appointment. Once you have an appointment they don’t honor it. It is impossible to change the Power of Attorney even when you have all the correct legal documentation. They have frozen my mom’s accounts without probable cause, so I am unable to pay for her care.

Fidelity Pros and cons

Fidelity Conclusion

Fidelity has a long track record as a broker and has successfully survived previous financial crises. It is regulated by top-tier regulators and is regarded as one of the biggest US stockbrokers.

Fidelity’s research is outstanding and covers many tools, the web trading platform is easy to use and offers advanced order types. Its products include the US market as well as international stock exchanges.

Some drawbacks of Fidelity are the not fully digital process of account opening, high fees for mutual funds and a high financing rate.

Overall Rating

• 2.4/5

Read Review

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 1

Regulators

SEC, FINRA

Trading Platform

Active Trader Pro

Crypto

No

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

No

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

Fidelity Disclaimer

Fidelity warns potential customers that Forex and CFDs trading always carries a high risk and may not be suitable for all investors.

Before deciding to trade with Fidelity, potential traders are advised to carefully consider their investment objectives, financial situation, needs and level of experience before investing money they cannot afford to lose.

Fidelity warns that margin trading involves the potential for profit as well as the risk of loss and that movements in the price of foreign exchange and commodities are very unpredictable, hence Fidelity cannot guarantee a maximum loss that a trader may suffer, according to research in South Africa.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Fidelity a fake or scam broker?

Fidelity is not a scam broker as it is regulated by SEC and FINRA and supervised and check for conduct by these regulatory authorities.

What is the overall rating for Fidelity?

The overall rating for Fidelity is 5/10

How many instruments can I trade with Fidelity?

You can trade several different instruments with Fidelity, which include the following:

• Stocks,
• Options
• Mutual funds
• Bonds

Which platforms are supported by Fidelity?

Fidelity supports the Active Trader Pro platforms

Does Fidelity offer an Islamic account?

No, Fidelity does not offer the option of a swap-free Islamic account.