Pepperstone UK Review

Pepperstone Trading Platforms

The two most popular forex trading platforms globally are offered by Pepperstone:

1) MetaTrader Platforms

• The world’s most popular platform, MetaTrader4
• A more powerful and precise version, MetaTrader5
• MetaTrader prides itself on being easy to use
• Keeps traders ahead of the market with up to date quotes and news

2) cTrader

• A platform made for traders by traders designed to replicate an institutional trading environment
• Personalized for each trader through pre-set & detachable charts
• Enables traders to code their own strategies in C# (seen in our cTrader review)

Generally, it’s difficult to separate the two offered forex trading platforms in Pepperstone reviews. The resources provided, formation of an online community and accessibility of the platform coupled with the desire to use forex automation (EAs) point towards the use of MetaTrader 4. However, MetaTrader 5 (MT5) provides automation in different code. View our MT4 vs MT5 guide to determine which MetaTrader Forex platform would best suit your trading habits.

cTrader, on the other hand, provides advanced platform customization with cTrader Automate (formerly cAlgo) combined with advanced risk management and order functionality. There is also webtrader which doesn’t need to be downloaded. Webtrader is normally used as a back-up to the above Forex trading platforms primarily for those who are accessing Pepperstone from a computer that isn’t their own.

Pepperstone Review Of Trading Platforms

Pepperstone Execution Speeds

The Pepperstone Razor account, better suited for scalpers and algorithmic traders avoids Forex Trading dealer intervention. The main difference between the Razor account and Standard account is the raw spreads and commissions made from the Razor account, allowing for it to be a lower cost setup. As a true ecn broker, Pepperstone combines fast global trading servers with the leading optic fibre network latency can be low as 0.05 of a second (50ms). Pepperstone trading platform speed is the fastest in reviews.

1) Fast Global Trading Servers

The Equinix servers, who are one of NASDAQ’s leading firms, recently partnered with Pepperstone. Equinix has servers set up at two strategic locations in terms of liquidity pools with Wall Street and London accessible to 60+ Exchanges, 400+ buy/sell firms and over 150 Financial Service Providers.

2) Optical Fibre From Australia To Wall Street

The utilization of an optical fibre network from the Pepperstone head office in Sydney to the equinox server in New York ensures that global traders don’t need to be wary of their location and potential remoteness issues that may arise. The optic fibre connection reduced the latency by up to 10x!

3) Smart Trader Tools (MetaTrader Only)

A package of 16 trading tools and 15 custom indicators are on offer to traders that choose MT4 or MT5 trading platform. Some of the more popular features include:

1. Correlation Matrix, showing relationships between instruments
2. Autochartist highlighting the statistically significant movements in the market
3. Alarm Manager alerts trading of key price changes and market events
4. Sentiment Trader showing the sentiment of past and live trading data
5. Connect Feature delivering news, analysis as well as an economic calendar
6. Excel RTD merging real time data with excel
7. Trade Simulator allows for the testing of strategies (only for MT4)
8. Stealth Orders keep pending orders hidden from the market
9. Session Map highlighting which currency markets are live and operational
10. Mini Terminal still see markets whilst hiding MetaTrader

Pepperstone Trading Platform Conclusion

Fast execution speeds, and enhanced, top of the range features ensures that Pepperstone offers the two most popular Forex platforms.  Offering the fastest trading environment of the Forex brokers combined with the leading platforms, Pepperstone can only be awarded with the maximum amount of points in this particular category, ticking every box when it comes to trading platforms.

Pepperstone Has Market Leading Spreads And Fees

Pepperstone offers two account types :

1. Standard account – raw spread + 1 pip increase (e.g. 0 pip spread plus 1 pip = 1 pip)
2. Razor account – raw spreads and commissions (e.g. 0 pip spread plus GBP£7 commission = total cost GBP£7)

Razor Pepperstone spreads to varying ECN trading account types can be reviewed below. These spreads were taken from individual spread reports. The EUR USD spread is considered the benchmark with EUR/USD spreads starting from 0 pips and the average spread stated as 0.16* on the 19th of March 2019. The AUD/USD also has spreads starting from 0 pips and the average spreads at 0.27.

In 2019 a relaunched active trader program was launched to reward traders who frequently make trades. The program allows for members to benefit from receiving a portion of the commission from their FX trades back into their trading account as rebates. Traders will earn GBP£1 rebate per FX lot traded up to 500 lots. That’s a typical rebate of between GBP£200 – 500 per month, paid into your account daily.

Pepperstone are highly recommended for high volume traders as they offer the lowest commission of any retail foreign exchange broker on a global scale. The maximum level will mean that a commission rate is up to 43% on a regular trading commission.

Spreads Are Even Lower Due To Price Improvement Technology

Price Improvement Technology (PIT), in another method in which Pepperstone is able to created a reduction in brokerage fees. When a volatile markets exists, PIT works in three major steps to enhance the benefit of large price movements.

1. A trader makes a Forex or CFD Trade through one of the designated platforms; MT4 or cTrader.
2. Trade is then executed, whilst a more favorable price movement is detected.
3. PIT aims to fill the price at a level of greater benefit to the trader.

No Fees On Deposits And Withdraws

Often, international institutions charge their own fees, which need to be subsequently paid by a client. Pepperstone prides itself on the notion that it doesn’t charge fees for deposits. Payments must be made by first-party bank accounts. However if bank accounts and names don’t match – payments will not be accepted.

1. Visa – Instant funding through Verified By Visa is available with no fees.
2. MasterCard – MasterCard SecureCode allows a deposit of fast funds which similar to Visa fees are not included.
3. PayPal – Funding an account with PayPal means zero fees
4. POLi & BPay – Traders who have eligible bank accounts are able to make transfers at any time
5. China Union Pay – Offering funding at any time, plus no fees or charges
6. Wire Transfer (Domestic & International) – These are available, however can take time and fees are charged
7. Skrill (Moneybookers), Qiwi & Neteller – Instant deposit method, available 24/7 with no additional charge
8. Fastapay – Deposit money instantly, with no fees

A withdrawal received prior to 7:00 am AEST is processed the same day. After this time the deposit will be processed the next day. The bank account linked to the Pepperstone account will receive the funds (this can’t be a third-party as is the case for deposits). If a credit card was used to fund an account it can also be used for withdrawals if the amount matches or is less then the deposited amount. Otherwise, an alternative withdrawal method is needed for the account.

Bank wire transfers take between three to five working days while International Telegraphic Transfers have a fee of approximately $20 Australian dollars.

The Pepperstone Razor account has the lowest trading costs with no dealing desk, institutional market leading spreads, price improvement technology and a low commission.

With commissions been even lower for high volume trader and no fees on both deposits and withdrawals they won this category in our 2019 Pepperstone review.  To learn more about Peppersone spreads and fees view the full fee article.

Pepperstone Has Award-Winning Customer Service

Pepperstone has gained a 3% increase in market share within the retail forex trading market. This has been in-part credited to their customer support. In fact, Pepperstone support levels were so high they won the Investment Trends overall client satisfaction award.

Key elements that have led to Pepperstone’s customer support winning these awards include there:

1) Personalised Customer Service

Pepperstone offers a customer service team that hold years of experience within the forex trading sector. As real traders, they can help educate and answer any forex trading enquiries beginner, intermediate or expert traders may have. In many cases, a dedicated account manager may also be assigned to a trader to gain a stronger understanding of the trader’s needs.

2) 24-Hour Support

Pepperstone support is always available when the forex markets are open thanks to their five offices which are located in Melbourne, Shanghai, Dallas, Bangkok and London. This also provides local options for those forex traders located outside of Australia.

3) Customer Support Channels

A key strength found in the review of Pepperstone was the ability to use live chat to get high-level support. Live chat is available 24 hours a day as is their phone customer support (with different national numbers for each office location). E-mail support is also available.

Pepperstone Broker Reviews Match Their Awards

Forex brokers review sites generally have provided positive Pepperstone reviews since their launch in 2010. The score was 8.9 from 476 reviews as of August 2019 highlighting the broker offers is strong when it comes to customer satisfaction.

The key forex broker reviews issues raised were in relation to ‘exotic pairings’ (pairing outside of the major currencies). There also were complaints around withdrawing money from accounts. Positive Pepperstone broker reviews related to how fast their VPS is (<5ms), fast deposits, easy to get an account offering a stable platform.

Investment trends which also does an annual survey late each year also found the Australian forex broker was the best across several areas. These include customer service, value for money, platform reliability and execution speeds.

Pepperstone Customer Service Conclusion

Our Pepperstone review found their account service to be exceptional with:

• An award-winning customer service team
• Several channels for support including live chat
• Positive Customer Reviews

Overall, Pepperstone reviews of customer service were positive, only superseded by OANDA who excel in this one area.

Pepperstone Doesn’t Offer Stockbroking Services

The largest retail foreign exchange brokers sell themselves as an ‘all-in-one trading solution’. This includes IG and CMC Markets who offer a range of markets including stockbroking. Pepperstone is only a specialist trading provider offering:

1) FX Trading

There are 59 currency pair available including the most popular currency including the United States Dollar. Other currencies include the Euro, Japanese Yen, Great Britain Pound (GBP) and the Australian Dollar. Over $1.5 trillion a day worldwide* is traded. The leverage on fx trading is 30:1 with low spreads and

2) CFD Trading

CFD trading (Contract for Difference) also known as derivative trading allows traders to speculate on the movements of financial markets. Pepperstone offers several asset classes when CFD trading including 14 indices from the Australian 200 Index, EU Stocks 50 Index and US Tech 100 Index. CFDs are complex instruments recommended for advanced traders.

3) Commodity, Energy & Precious Metal Trading

Pepperstone offer 30:1 leverage on precious metals such as Gold, Silver, Platinum and Palladium. The same leverage levels are offered across both oil and gas markets. Soft commodity markets have a 30:1 leverage and include coffee, sugar, cocoa cotton and even orange juice.

4) Cryptocurrency Trading

There are four cryptocurrency options available for trading with 30:1 leverage through Pepperstone.

Bitcoin + Bitcoin Cash

Pepperstone offers Bitcoin trading which remains the most popular cryptocurrency in 2019. In 2019 over a USD $50 billion market capitalisation exists. It’s no surprise that bitcoin trading remains the preferred option from traders.

Learn more about Bitcoin on this Australia site.

Ethereum

Another popular cryptocurrency option is Ethereum which is considered one of the most exciting bitcoin technologies. Smart contracts allow Ethereum to have multiple applications which allows it to service a plethora of industries.

View the official Ethereum Project site.

Dash

Dash also know as ‘Digital Cash’ focuses on a faster cryptocurrency option allowing for anonymity. Digital cash is used as an efficiency payment system across the globe and has experienced high volatility and liquidity compared to Bitcoin.

Learn more about Digital Cash at the Dash website.

Litecoin

Litecoin is a relatively late arrival and focused on using a simple algorithm to accelerate transaction times. The simpler algorithm since 2011 is what has led to Litecoin’s popularity and make it a real alternative to the mainstream cryptocurrency options.

View more about this on the P2P site.

Pepperstone Has Limited Risk Management Features

There are risks involved when trading CFDs as they are a complex instrument and leverage makes it so there is a high risk of losing money rapidly. Understanding these risks is critical and learning the tools that can help manage these risks. Pepperstone has some such tools but not of them. Below details the CFD risk management features available.

Currency Trading Orders Types

Pepperstone offers three order types of currency trading orders. This includes a limit order and a stop-loss order exits a trader after a price is reached. This can be set by price or the maximum a trader is looking to gain/lose in a trade. The final currency trading order is a trailing stop which moves with the market as the price fluctuates. The trailing stop activates only when a designated level is reached.

Pepperstone doesn’t offer guaranteed stop-loss orders. This is similar are the same as a ‘stop-loss’ order but the maximum loss is guaranteed at the designated level. A stop-loss order, on the other hand, can lead to losses exceeding the designated level is high volatile markets leading to slippage. While guaranteed stop-loss orders have increased fees, they can be an effective risk management tool for those with a low-risk appetite or new to currency trading.

Pepperstone also doesn’t offer negative balance protection. While they have tools that are designed to prevent a negative balance exiting a CFD trader before their losses exceed their deposit, this is not guaranteed. When risk is a concern it may be worth considering a CFD broker offering negative balance protection like EasyMarkets.

Regulation Of Pepperstone

Pepperstone Group Limited is authorised and regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission to trade in Forex and CFDs in Australia. They are also regulated in the UK through the FCA Financial Conduct Authority. Both ASIC and the FCA are two of the most sort after regulators worldwide.

Final Thoughts On Pepperstone

This Pepperstone review recommends their Razor account for:

• • Intermediate traders looking for low fees and spreads, mainstream forex trading platforms (cTrader and MT4) and award-winning customer service.
  • Expert traders looking for advanced forex trading features (including automated trading), fast execution speeds, the higher leverage of 30:1 and advanced support

The combination of fast execution fees, low trading costs and enhanced features which is why Pepperstone is the fastest growing in Australia.