CFD Trading in New Zealand: What Each Licensed Broker's Disclosure Statement Says

The 6 contract-for-difference attributes each of the 10 New Zealand licensed issuers states in its Product Disclosure Statement, with the page each statement appears on.

Attribute	ACE Markets	Axi	BlackBull Markets	CMC Markets	EC Markets	IG Group	Pacific Financial Derivatives	Plus500	ThinkMarkets	Zero Markets
CFD product classes	CFDs on certain currencies and on the commodities gold and silver, and nothing else Product Disclosure Statement dated 22 April 2026, page 5	CFDs over exchange rates on a currency pair, and over precious metals, other commodities, indices, futures contracts, shares and cryptocurrencies Product Disclosure Statement dated 9 December 2024, page 6	CFDs on currency (FX), energy and commodity prices, precious metals, indices, shares, futures, exchange traded funds and cryptoassets Product Disclosure Statement dated 10 September 2025, page 7	shares, indices, currencies, commodities, treasuries and cryptocurrencies Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 5	CFDs on shares and exchange traded funds, on foreign exchange, on commodities and on indices Product Disclosure Statement dated 16 May 2025, page 7	individual shares, indices, options, currencies and futures contracts Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 2	margin foreign exchange and contracts for difference, as the statement defines them Product Disclosure Statement dated 11/06/2024, page 5	the underlying reference instrument may be a commodity, currency, share, index, cryptocurrency or other financial instrument listed on the platform Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 3	CFDs on individual shares, indices, currencies, commodities and futures contracts Product Disclosure Statement dated 11 April 2023, page 12	CFDs on bullion, commodities (including futures-based commodity CFDs), equities, indices, cryptocurrencies and currencies, and the list may change Product Disclosure Statement dated 13 January 2025, page 5
Share CFD commission	No statement found	two account types: a Standard Account charged through spreads and commission free, and a Pro Account charged through commissions with low or zero spreads Product Disclosure Statement dated 9 December 2024, page 14	Standard pays spread and holding costs with no commission; Prime adds commission at USD 6.00 per lot on some CFDs Product Disclosure Statement dated 10 September 2025, page 21	commission is charged on entering a trade in certain products, with a possible minimum Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 17	commission is earned from hedging counterparties on hedged volume and is built into the price the client sees rather than charged separately Product Disclosure Statement dated 16 May 2025, page 15	commission on individual share CFDs is charged as a percentage of notional value or in cents per share, subject to a minimum charge Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 10	no fee or commission is charged to enter a contract, and revenue comes from the spread instead Product Disclosure Statement dated 11/06/2024, page 14	no dealing commission Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 27	between 0 and 5 per cent of the opening and closing transaction value, depending on platform and account type Product Disclosure Statement dated 11 April 2023, page 21	the fees a client may pay are the spread, commissions, swap charges and benefits, conversion fees and administration charges, and they may change Product Disclosure Statement dated 13 January 2025, page 20
Holding cost	a position held overnight rolls to the next trading day and pays a swap charge or receives a swap benefit Product Disclosure Statement dated 22 April 2026, page 9	a daily financing fee accrues on positions open at market close, 5pm New York time, Monday to Friday Product Disclosure Statement dated 9 December 2024, page 18	swap rates triple at the end of Wednesday's trading day, whether or not the position is held over the weekend Product Disclosure Statement dated 10 September 2025, page 20	New Zealand Exchange shares are the exception: holding cost is based on positions held at 9am NZST Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 17	an overnight financing fee, also called a swap fee, is charged as interest for holding a position open each night Product Disclosure Statement dated 16 May 2025, page 16	interest adjustments use a 360-day divisor for Australian, US and European shares and indices and 365 for UK, Singapore and South African Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 11	a position held open overnight pays or receives rollover interest, depending on the pair Product Disclosure Statement dated 11/06/2024, page 10	overnight funding is calculated at the end of each trading day and can be positive or negative Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 27	the swap rate is tripled on Wednesday to cover the Friday to Monday value period Product Disclosure Statement dated 11 April 2023, page 22	a position held open accrues a swap charge or a swap benefit as part of what the CFD costs Product Disclosure Statement dated 13 January 2025, page 5
Guaranteed stop	No statement found1	No statement found2	No statement found3	premium rate shown on the platform multiplied by the number of units, debited immediately Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 17	No statement found4	a Limited Risk premium is charged, payable when the Stop Order is triggered Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 10	No statement found5	the guaranteed stop percentage multiplied by the spread, rounded up to two decimal places Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 29	No statement found6	stop loss orders and limit orders are not guaranteed Product Disclosure Statement dated 13 January 2025, page 8
Negative balance protection	a client can lose more than they deposit, and the statement makes no negative balance commitment Product Disclosure Statement dated 22 April 2026, page 14	a retail client is given negative balance protection, so losses are limited to the money in the account Product Disclosure Statement dated 9 December 2024, page 6	a client may lose more than the amounts deposited, and the statement makes no negative balance commitment Product Disclosure Statement dated 10 September 2025, page 15	a client can lose more than their initial payment on a leveraged trade Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 14	a client may lose more than the funds deposited, and the statement offers risk controls rather than a negative balance commitment Product Disclosure Statement dated 16 May 2025, page 23	negative balance protection applies to a retail client, and a debit balance is adjusted back to zero at no cost Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 13	a client stays liable for any shortfall after the issuer closes their open contracts Product Disclosure Statement dated 11/06/2024, page 12	negative balance protection: recourse is limited to money in the trading account and a sub-zero balance is restored to zero Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 9	no negative balance protection: the client stays liable for a negative balance that closing out cannot cover Product Disclosure Statement dated 11 April 2023, page 14	No statement found7
Close-out level	the issuer may close a client’s position when the account cannot meet the margin, which it calls a stop out Product Disclosure Statement dated 22 April 2026, page 12	an account balance falling below the minimum margin requirement is a default event that lets Axi close positions Product Disclosure Statement dated 9 December 2024, page 15	a stop out closes positions automatically once the margin level drops below 50 per cent Product Disclosure Statement dated 10 September 2025, page 11	the platform closes positions automatically once account value reaches or falls below the close-out level Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026, page 11	on a margin close-out event the issuer closes the least profitable positions automatically at the market rate until the account can support its margin Product Disclosure Statement dated 16 May 2025, page 6	an automated close-out process monitors accounts entering a margin call, and it does not guarantee to prevent negative equity Product Disclosure Statement dated 3 February 2025, page 3	a margin shortfall is met by depositing more or closing positions, and the issuer may close open contracts without further notice Product Disclosure Statement dated 11/06/2024, page 7	forced liquidation begins without notice once account equity falls below the margin close-out amount Product Disclosure Statement dated 17 September 2026, page 7	a stop out at a level the firm sets, given as 50 per cent of initial margin or 0.5 per cent of the notional contract amount Product Disclosure Statement dated 11 April 2023, page 14	positions close at a stop out level, and the margin percentage, the margin call level and the stop out level may all be varied at the issuer’s discretion Product Disclosure Statement dated 13 January 2025, page 12

Every figure in this table is read from the issuer's own New Zealand Product Disclosure Statement, which is the document the Financial Markets Authority requires it to give a client before they trade. Where a statement says nothing about an attribute the cell says so: share cfd commission is unstated by 1 of 10, guaranteed stop is unstated by 6 of 10, negative balance protection is unstated by 1 of 10.

1. ACE Markets, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 26-page statement dated 22 April 2026 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
2. Axi, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 29-page statement dated 9 December 2024 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
3. BlackBull Markets, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 29-page statement dated 10 September 2025 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
4. EC Markets, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 26-page statement dated 16 May 2025 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
5. Pacific Financial Derivatives, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 18-page statement dated 11/06/2024 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
6. ThinkMarkets, guaranteed stop: the full text of the 28-page statement dated 11 April 2023 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "guaranteed stop", "guaranteed stop-loss", "guaranteed stop loss", "GSLO", "guaranteed order", "stop loss guarantee", with no hit.
7. Zero Markets, negative balance protection: the full text of the 29-page statement dated 13 January 2025 was searched on 2026-09-20 for "negative balance", "lose more than", "more than your deposit", "more than the amount", "owe us", "liable for any shortfall", "debit balance", with no hit.

What a contract for difference is in New Zealand law

Forex trading through contracts linked to an exchange rate is trading a derivative, and anyone offering those contracts in New Zealand must hold a derivatives issuer licence from the FMA. The FMA’s own opening line on the subject is that forex trading for profit is very risky, and that it regularly receives complaints from consumers who have lost money. The FMA also names insolvency of the provider as a risk to read the Product Disclosure Statement for, and says a client may be an unsecured creditor.

What each issuer’s disclosure statement states

Each issuer’s statement sets out the products it offers. The CMC Markets NZ Limited Product Disclosure Statement dated 7 May 2026 states on page 5 that its CFDs cover shares, indices, currencies, commodities, treasuries and cryptocurrencies. The IG Australia Pty Ltd statement dated 3 February 2025 states on page 2 that its CFDs cover individual shares, indices, options, currencies and futures contracts. The statements of Black Bull Group Limited, Plus500AU Pty Ltd and TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd do not state their product classes.

On commissions, the Black Bull Group Limited statement dated 10 September 2025 states on page 21 that the Standard account pays spread and holding costs with no commission, while the Prime account adds commission at USD 6.00 per lot on some CFDs. The CMC Markets NZ Limited statement states on page 17 that commission is charged on entering a trade in certain products, with a possible minimum. The Plus500AU Pty Ltd statement dated 17 September 2026 states on page 27 that there is no dealing commission. The TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd statement dated 11 April 2023 states on page 21 that commission runs between 0 and 5 per cent of the opening and closing transaction value, depending on platform and account type.

CFD trading hours follow the underlying markets, so the times you can trade each product in New Zealand time are set out on our market hours page.

What a position costs to hold overnight

Every issuer applies a holding charge to positions kept open overnight, and each states the rule it uses. The Black Bull Group Limited statement states on page 20 that swap rates triple at the end of Wednesday’s trading day, whether or not the position is held over the weekend. The TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd statement states on page 22 that the swap rate is tripled on Wednesday to cover the Friday to Monday value period. The CMC Markets NZ Limited statement states on page 17 that New Zealand Exchange shares are the exception: holding cost is based on positions held at 9am NZST. The IG Australia Pty Ltd statement states on page 11 that interest adjustments use a 360-day divisor for Australian, US and European shares and indices, and 365 for UK, Singapore and South African ones. The Plus500AU Pty Ltd statement states on page 27 that overnight funding is calculated at the end of each trading day and can be positive or negative.

When an issuer closes your position for you

The Black Bull Group Limited statement states on page 11 that a stop out closes positions automatically once the margin level drops below 50 per cent. The TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd statement states on page 14 that a stop out occurs at a level the firm sets, given as half of initial margin or 0.5 per cent of the notional contract amount. The CMC Markets NZ Limited statement states on page 11 that the platform closes positions automatically once account value reaches or falls below the close-out level. The Plus500AU Pty Ltd statement states on page 7 that forced liquidation begins without notice once account equity falls below the margin close-out amount. The IG Australia Pty Ltd statement does not state a close-out level.

The risk the issuers themselves rank first

Two issuers address what happens when losses exceed the money in the account, and they take opposite positions. The Plus500AU Pty Ltd statement states on page 9 that recourse is limited to money in the trading account, and that a sub-zero balance is restored to zero. The TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd statement states on page 14 that the client stays liable for a negative balance that closing out cannot cover. On guaranteed stops, the CMC Markets NZ Limited statement states on page 17 that the premium is the rate shown on the platform multiplied by the number of units, debited immediately. The Plus500AU Pty Ltd statement states on page 29 that the guaranteed stop percentage is multiplied by the spread, rounded up to two decimal places.

Which licensed issuers offer CFDs to New Zealand clients

Six licensed issuers offer CFDs to New Zealand clients, ordered below by our global published score, highest first. There is no New Zealand score, because there is no New Zealand test.

• BlackBull Markets (Black Bull Group Limited, FSP403326). The Financial Markets Authority’s register of licensed providers lists its derivatives issuer licence status as active. The FSP number is a registration on the Financial Service Providers Register, which identifies the company; it is not itself a licence.

• CMC Markets (CMC Markets NZ Limited, FSP41187), active on the FMA register of licensed providers.

• IG (IG Australia Pty Ltd, FSP684191), active on the FMA register of licensed providers.

• Plus500 (Plus500AU Pty Ltd, FSP486026), active on the FMA register of licensed providers.

• Axi (AxiCorp Financial Services Pty Ltd, FSP518226), active on the FMA register of licensed providers.

• ThinkMarkets (TF Global Markets (Aust) Ltd, FSP623289), active on the FMA register of licensed providers.

Each entity holds a derivatives issuer licence, and its status can be checked on the Financial Markets Authority’s register of licensed providers. Of the 16 licensed derivatives issuers, ten will let a New Zealand retail client open a forex or CFD account, and the table below covers all ten. Four of them, Zero Markets (NZ) Limited, ACE Markets Limited, EC Markets Financial Limited and Pacific Financial Derivatives Limited, carry no score and appear in the table and in no ranked list, because a score is a judgement that has not been made about them, though their product disclosure statements are still worth reading. For brokers regulated by the FMA more broadly, see our page on FMA regulated brokers, and for the wider New Zealand broker market see our New Zealand brokers page.