Markets.com Review

Overall, Markets.com is considered low risk and can be considered trustworthy and reliable. Markets.com holds a trust score of  97 out of 99 and is operated by Finalto (South Africa) (Pty) Limited, which is regulated by the FSCA.

Markets.com at a glance

Overall Rating

• 4.5/5

Read Review

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 100

Regulators

CySEC, FSCA, ASIC, FCA, FSC

Trading Platform

MT4, MT5, Proprietary Platform

Crypto

Yes

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

Yes

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

Markets.com – A Quick 18 Key Point Overview

1. ✔️ What is Markets.com?
2. ✔️ Safe or Scam?
3. ✔️ Pros and Cons
4. Leverage
5. Accounts
6. Market Instruments
7. Fees
8. Deposit and Withdrawal
9. Trading Platforms
10. How to Open a Markets.com Account
11. Customer Support
12. Education
13. Research
14. Awards
15. Markets.com at a Glance
16. Conclusion
17. Disclaimer
18. Frequently Asked Questions

What is Market.com? 

👉 According to research in South Africa, Markets.com is a global Forex and CFD broker that became operational in 2008.Markets.com is regulated in 5 jurisdictions and provides 3 different trading platforms from which traders have access to over 2,200 assets. The company first launched as GFC Markets but rebranded as Markets.com in 2010 following the merger between Safecap Investments LTD, the owner of GFC Markets, and TradeFX.

👉 In 2015, the FTSE250 listed gaming software company Playtech PLC, ticker symbol PTEC, acquired TradeFX for £458 million. This made Playtech the owner of Markets.com, which is now rebranding itself as Markets.com. As a result, the company underwent a massive restructuring in 2016, selling its binary options platform TopOption, and reducing its workforce.

👉 Today, Markets.com is regulated across five jurisdictions, offers more than 2,200 assets from three trading platforms, and was a top sponsor of Premier League football team Arsenal FC for five years from 2014 until the deal expired in 2019.  All of these factors indicate an established broker that has long-term sustainability.

Safe or Scam? 

👉 Markets.com is owned by Safecap Investments Limited, a division of Playtech PLC. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the company’s principal regulator, but Markets.com is also regulated across five jurisdictions, with each granting particular benefits and various degrees of trader protection.

👉 The broker offers traders negative balance protection, meaning clients cannot lose more than the amount they deposited. In addition, Markets.com keeps its clients’ funds in segregated bank accounts. Besides its FCA regulation, Markets.com is authorized and regulated in Europe by the CySEC, globally by FSC in the British Virgin Islands, in Australia by ASIC, and in South Africa by the FSCA.

👉 Client funds remain segregated across all five operating subsidiaries, but traders operating under the CySEC regulatory environment are exposed to the Financial Instruments Directive 2014/65/EU or MiFID II and the EU’s 4th Anti-Money Laundering Directive.

👉 The EU Directive 2014/49/EU mandates participation in the Investor Compensation Fund (CIF) with maximum coverage of €20,000, which is equivalent to 360 000 ZAR. UK-based traders are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), up to £85,000, which is equivalent to 1 530 000 ZAR. Negative balance protection applies to all five subsidiaries.

👉 Markets.com also enjoys the financial backing of a powerful corporate owner, listed on the FTSE 250, and its global regulatory status across several jurisdictions makes it a highly secure option.

Markets.com Pros and Cons 

Leverage

👉 Markets.com offers leverage ratios of up to 1:30, which is relatively low compared to many other brokers in the industry. That said, this is region-dependent. The FCA, ASIC, and CySEC regulated subsidiaries allow maximum leverage of 1:30, while the FSC and FSCA cap the maximum leverage at 1:300. This will cause a significant difference in the trading environment, directly influencing profitability.

👉 However, considering the company’s stringent regulatory status, this is most likely due to the fact that many reputable regulatory bodies decided to cap the leverage which brokers could offer within their jurisdictions. This is largely due to the fact that, while leverage is a powerful tool that can maximize a trader’s potential returns, it carries a high-risk factor, particularly for those intending on investing large sums of money.

Accounts

📉 Markets.com provides all traders with the Classic CFD account, while an upgrade to a professional account is also available. The company also provides the option of a free demo account.

Market Instruments 

👉 Markets.com offers its clients one main account type; the Standard account which gives clients access to over 2,200 tradable CFDs and leverage of up to 300:1 depending on the client’s jurisdiction. The broker also offers a demo account that comes with $10,000/ 160 000 ZAR in virtual funds, thus allowing clients to test the platform prior to depositing their own capital.

👉 This gives traders the option to properly diversify their portfolios. Pure Forex traders will enjoy a healthy selection of currency pairs as well as cryptocurrencies. Twenty-eight commodity CFDs offer solid exposure to this sector, but only four bonds are offered. Thirty-nine index CFDs complement the large equity CFDs selection covering twenty countries, while the ETF offering further allows traders to branch out.

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Rank

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Regulators

Min Deposit

Official Site

#1

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

$100

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$100

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FSCA, FSC, ASIC, CySEC, DFSA

$5

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#1

4.8/5

User Score

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#2

4.7/5

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#3

4.7/5

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#4

4.4/5

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#5

4.7/5

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#6

4.0/5

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#7

4.7/5

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4.8/5

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#9

4.5/5

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#10

4.9/5

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👉 cross-asset diversification may easily be accomplished for retail traders and professional ones alike.

Markets.com Fees and Spreads

💸 Markets.com charges relatively low spreads for the EUR/USD and GBP/USD pairs at around 0.7 pips. Markets.com does not charge commissions on CFDs and their trading fees are mostly covered in the spread. In addition, for accounts that have been idle for more than 3 months an inactivity fee of $10/ 60 ZAR per month is charged.

💸 Markets.com generates most of its revenue through spreads on over 2,200 assets. The EUR/USD and GBP/USD are listed with a starting spread of 0.4 pips, which represents a very competitive offer. Swap rates on leveraged overnight positions apply, and traders can retrieve the applicable rates from inside the trading platforms.

💸 Corporate actions, like dividends, stock splits, or takeovers on equity and index CFDs, are passed on to traders. Markets.com doesn’t charge for deposits or withdrawals, but third-party charges may apply.

Markets.com Deposit and Withdrawal 

💳 Markets.com requires a minimum deposit of $0 to open a live account. To make a deposit or a withdrawal, you would need a credit or debit card, through PayPal, bank wire transfer, Skrill, Neteller, and additional ones based on the client’s region. The currencies that can be used are USD, EUR, GBP, PLN, SEK, DKK, NOK, ZAR, CHF, and AUD.

💳 Deposit and withdrawal with options with Markets.com consist of the following popular methods:

👉 The minimum deposit is $100, which is equivalent to 1600 ZAR across all entities. The minimum withdrawal depends on the withdrawal method used and is as follows :

💳 Credit/Debit card : 10 USD/EUR/GBP /R160 ZAR

💳 Wire Transfer : 100 USD/ 20 EUR/GBP/ R1600 ZAR

💳 Skrill : : Minimum 5 USD/EUR/GBP / 80 ZAR

💳Neteller : Minimum 5 USD/EUR/GBP/ 80 ZAR

👉 Local bank transfers, Ideal, and Sofort are listed under deposit methods but not as a withdrawal option.  Not all methods apply to every trader, as they are based on geographic location. Processing times may take up to seven business days for credit card transactions, which is relatively long.As mandated by regulators, deposits and withdrawals can only be processed if the accounts are in the same name.

👉 At Markets.com, you can choose from the following 11 base currencies:

👉 This is important to take note of, as traders who fund their trading account in the same currency as their bank account, or who trade assets in the same currency as their trading account base currency, will not have to pay a conversion fee.

Markets.com Trading Platforms

👉 Markets.com provides a great selection of trading platforms, which consists of the ever-popular MetaTrader4, MetaTrader5 as well as Markets.com’s proprietary platform.

Markets.com proprietary platform

MetaTrader4

👉 Metatrader4 remains one of the most popular and easy-to-use trading platforms. Boasting Expert Advisors, micro-lots, hedging, and one-click trading, the MT4 platform allows for trades to be executed instantly and with low spreads. Further benefits include:

MetaTrader5

👉 Metatrader5 is a powerful upgrade and the most advanced online trading platform from MetaQuotes Software ever.

📊 MetaTrader5 is a multi-asset derivatives platform for trading on forex, futures, stocks, and CFDs. It’s a tuned-up, faster version of MT4 which enables hedging, and delivers more technical indicators as well as more insight into the market depth and a wider number of timeframes.

📊  MetaTrader5 has been designed with every type of asset in mind. With more technical indicators than MT4, it’s the most complete MetaTrader platform to date. Traders can hedge their positions to manage their exposure and take better control of their risk management.

📊 When deciding which platform to use, it’s helpful to consider your level of trading expertise. While MetaTrader5 is more advanced than the older version, MetaTrader4’s simpler format is more suited to first-time traders.

Markets.com Best Countries by Traders

How to Open a Markets.com Account 

👉 The Markets.com review process of opening a new account is fully digital, hassle-free, and fast.

📉 Account opening at Markets.com is seamless, fast, and fully digital. Traders can open their trading accounts within a day. Markets.com accepts customers from almost all countries. There are a few exceptions, such as citizens of the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Israel, Russia, Brazil, Turkey, and Belgium.

The steps of the Markets.com account opening process include:

👉 Step 1: Log into the Markets.com dashboard

Once you have registered by filling in your generic details, Log in and allocate the markets.com dashboard on the left to complete the account registration.

👉 Step 2: Account Registration

Verify your ID and residency. You can upload a national ID, passport, or driver’s license for verifying your ID. Utility bills and bank statements are accepted for residency verification.

👉 Step 3: Once all information is verified, log in with Markets.com credentials to start trading.

Overall Rating

• 4.5/5

Read Review

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 100

Regulators

CySEC, FSCA, ASIC, FCA, FSC

Trading Platform

MT4, MT5, Proprietary Platform

Crypto

Yes

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

Yes

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

Customer Support 

☎ Markets.com provides decent customer support, which is accessible 24/5 in English, French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, German, Bulgarian, Afrikaans, and Greek.

☎ The multiple language offering is a definite bonus, although the company does not provide support 24/7 as many other brokers in the industry do.

☎ The most convenient method to engage with support is through live chat, but traders may also call or fill out the web form.

☎ The response time for queries submitted via a web form is listed as 28 hours. A support section dedicated to the most common questions is available and should take care of basic questions.

⭐Customer Reviews⭐

Education

👉 Markets.com provides education through its Knowledge center, which is a hub of information from which newbie traders can learn about trading and investing in five different ways, namely XRay, news, analysis, Ebook, and FAQs.

Ebook

💡 The Ebook is a trading guide built for beginners. It provides a range of tools, charts as well as key trends.

XRay

💡 With XRay, traders stay up to date with the latest market news, expert views as well as commentary through live streaming that is personalized for each user according to their
interests and objectives.

News

💡 From earnings reports to elections, trade wars to economic updates, the company’s experts discuss how these factors can impact trades.

Analysis

💡 This section provides longer, more in-depth insight into the biggest issues in the market which impact traders’ trades, from the company’s financial experts.

Research 

🔍 The company has a healthy research offering, consisting of an Investment Strategy Builder, Real Execution Stats, and XRay.

Strategy Builder

🔍 With this tool, traders can select their own bespoke strategy based on their risk appetite and investing goals. Choose from some of the best performing sectors, and assets across a range of industries and regions.

🔍 Traders can get a level of diversification they are comfortable with, from asset class to sector, region to industry, and use their own knowledge to build their portfolio based on the company’s strategy tips. Traders are given expert advice for choosing the right strategy from a range of tools, insights, and analyses.

XRay

🔍 With XRay, traders stay up to date with the latest market news, expert views as well as commentary through live streaming that is personalized for each user according to their
interests and objectives.

Comparison Markets.com vs Other brokers

Awards

🥇 Markets.com has won several awards in the past. In particular, in 2025 the broker has won ‘Best Trading Platform’ in the FX Scouts awards. Also, in 2017 the firm won ‘Best Forex Provider’ and ‘Best FX Platform’ in the UK Forex Awards.

Overall Rating

• 4.5/5

Read Review

OPEN AN ACCOUNT

Min Deposit

USD 100

Regulators

CySEC, FSCA, ASIC, FCA, FSC

Trading Platform

MT4, MT5, Proprietary Platform

Crypto

Yes

Total Pairs

0

Islamic Account

Yes

Trading Fees

Low

Account Activation

24 Hours

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Conclusion

👉 Markets.com is a well-regulated brokerage in five jurisdictions and a member of FTSE250-listed gaming software company Playtech PLC. The core services provided by this brokerage are exceptional, and the fifteen trading tools offered to users provide more than enough of a reason to manage a portfolio at this brokerage as part of a well-diversified strategy.

👉 The company’s platform is cleanly designed, easy to use, and includes a respectable offering of features, including integrated research, market analysis, webinars, and educational videos. The company also offers relatively lower comparable spreads and access to a more significant number of tradeable instruments than many of its peers.

👉 Added to this, the company’s high-level regulatory status provides a sound trading environment, with a wealth of tools and methods for traders to enhance their profitability.

Disclaimer

High-Risk Investment Warning: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 79.9% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Please read the full Risk Disclosure Statement which gives you a more detailed explanation of the risks involved. The value of shares as well as other CFD instruments can fall as well as rise, which could mean that you get back less than you originally put in. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved and manage your exposure. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Depending on the country of your citizenship or permanent residence, the company may be required under the applicable local laws, rules, and regulations to offer you certain additional protection mechanisms or impose additional restrictions on your trading.

You must carefully review our Investment Services Agreement for the details of such protections or restrictions that may apply to you. The company does establish accounts for residents of certain jurisdictions including Japan, Canada, Belgium, and the USA. For further details please see the Investment Services Agreement. Safecap Investments Limited is a subsidiary of Playtech PLC, a company traded on the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market and a constituent of the FTSE 250 index, according to research in South Africa.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Markets.com’s Overall Review Rating?

9/10

What is the minimum deposit to start trading on Markets.com?

Most of the minimum deposits are $100

How do I open a Markets.com account?

A step-by-step guide to opening your Markets.com account can be found here.

Does Markets.com offer a demo account?

Yes.

Is Markets.com legitimate?

Yes, it is. Markets.com’s’s legitimacy can be reflected by the multiple financial licenses it holds namely FSCA in South Africa, CySEC in Europe, FCA in the UK, ASIC in Australia & B.V.I. FSC for international clients.