Best CFD Trading Platform South Africa 2021

Pepperstone Has The Best MetaTrader CFD Trading Platforms

South African traders can start CFD trading with MetaTrader 4 (MT4) or MetaTrader 5 (MT5) trading platforms by opting for a live trading account with Pepperstone.

Pepperstone is a regulated CFD and financial services provider with a decade of trading history. The Pepperstone Group Limited complies with regulatory standards imposed by some of the world’s most powerful financial agencies, including:

• Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in Australia
• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom
• Pepperstone is also regulated in Dubai (DFSA), Europe (CySEC), Germany (BaFin), the Bahamas (SCB) and Kenya (CMA).

The brokerage offers no dealing desk execution on two main account types:

• Razor Account – With this account, traders are charged $7.53 USD round-turn if using MT4 and $7.00 if using MT5. This converts to around 143 and 133 Zar, respectively.
• Standard Account – no commission spreads.

Pepperstone & MetaTrader 4

Launched for the first time in 2005, the MetaTrader 4 software has gradually become a standard for Forex trading. What Pepperstone offers its clients is a user-friendly, versatile trading platform, which allows them to use real-time charts, in-depth news and analytics, live quotes as well as an array of technical indicators and tools for managing orders.

More precisely, the functionalities and key features of Pepperstone’s MetaTrader 4 platform include:

• Expert Advisor (EA) compatible with automated trading strategies
• Over 150 financial instruments structured in several asset classes
• 85 pre-installed indicators for greater insight into trends
• Flexible order types
• Multiple chart setups
• Advanced tools for technical analysis for better-informed decisions
• Advanced demo account that comes with virtual $50,000
• Award-winning customer support service
• Access to 28 additional Smart Trader tools (13 Expert Advisors and 15 indicators) for enhanced trade execution and risk management

The platform also includes the Autochartist tool, a scanner which removes market noise and highlights the currency pairs, data intervals, and technical indicators that reflect major market events. Built directly into Pepperstone’s MetaTrader 4 software, the Autochartist tool makes it possible for traders to monitor and analyse alerts in further detail and in combination with other indicators the platform offers.

Forex Spreads

Another advantage of Pepperstone’s MetaTrader 4 platform includes a combination of low trading costs and lightning-fast order execution speeds.

South Africa-based retail customers are able to trade major Forex pairs such as EUR/USD, GBP/USD and USD/JPY with ultra-low spreads that start from 0.0 pips on the broker’s Razor trading account. In addition, some exotic currency pairs such as EUR/ZAR can be traded with a minimum spread of 2.0 pips, while USD/ZAR – with a spread of as low as 10.0 pips on Pepperstone’s Razor Account.

Below you have a full spread comparison among top forex brokers and CFD brokers in South Africa.

Pepperstone Commission Spread Comparison	AUD/USDEUR/JPYUSD/JPYUSD/CADEUR/USD	AUD/USDEUR/JPYUSD/JPYUSD/CADEUR/USD	AUD/USDEUR/JPYUSD/JPYUSD/CADEUR/USD	AUD/USDEUR/JPYUSD/JPYUSD/CADEUR/USD	AUD/USDEUR/JPYUSD/JPYUSD/CADEUR/USD
	0.27	0.34	0.16	0.28	0.16
	0.20	0.30	0.20	0.50	0.10
	0.20	0.30	0.10	0.30	0.10
	0.20	n/a	0.20	0.30	0.20
	0.42	0.30	0.20	0.83	0.44
	0.30	0.68	0.24	N/A	0.17
	0.40	0.70	0.30	0.70	0.20
	0.50	0.80	0.30	1.10	0.10
	0.50	0.50	0.30	0.60	0.30
	1.03	0.75	0.32	1.16	0.40

Data taken from broker website. Accurate as at 05/01/2021

Compare All Spreads >>

Still, since Pepperstone’s Razor Account allows for ECN-style trading, retail clients will be charged a commission. For the broker’s MT4 platform and depending on what trading account currency is used and what trade volume is achieved, the commission will be as follows:

Pepperstone & MetaTrader 5

Based on the MQL5 programming language, the MT5 trading platform offers advanced functionality and enhanced tools for market analysis. It is an appropriate choice for professional traders who intend to conduct extensive back-testing.

More precisely, the key features of Pepperstone’s MetaTrader 5 platform include:

• • Advanced pending orders

• Maximum of 500 total orders
• 38 built-in indicators
• Position hedging
• 21-time frames
• Optimised processing speeds
• Access to Smart Trader tools
• Access to Shares CFDs – over 60 high-quality US Stocks traded with a maximum leverage of 1:5
• Built-in economic calendar

Just like the case with MetaTrader 4, South Africa-based clients will have to pay a commission when trading on Pepperstone’s MT5 via a Razor Account.

No fees on Deposits and Withdrawals

Clients in most countries are able to fund their trading accounts and to withdraw funds without being charged any fees by Pepperstone. With this broker, South Africa-based retail customers have a choice of several funding methods:

• Debit or Credit Cards by Visa or Mastercard
• PayPal
• POLi
• BPay
• Skrill
• Neteller
• Union Pay
• Bank wire transfer

Final Words – MetaTrader Trading Platforms

The MetaTrader trading platforms are regarded as the gateway to trading CFDs. With a minimum deposit of AUD$200 or equivalent in Rand, SA traders can gain access to the popular CFD platforms.

View Pepperstone Review >>Visit Pepperstone >>

FxPro – Use cTrader And Trade CFD Across A Range Of Market

CFD traders from South Africa can opt to trade via FxPro if they want to gain access to the best CFD and forex broker that offers the cTrader trading platform. FxPro is a reputable multi-regulated CFD and Forex broker, which has received over 70 global awards.

Established in 2006 and headquartered in the UK, the company offers CFDs on a wide range of markets on prominent trading platforms such as MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and cTrader.

FxPro is an authorised online broker to conduct CFD trading business in several jurisdictions:

• FxPro Financial Services Limited is also licensed and regulated by South Africa’s FSCA, formerly known as the FSB
• FxPro UK Limited is regulated by the UK’s FCA
• FxPro Financial Services Limited operates in the EU and is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).
• FxPro Global Markets Limited is licensed by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB)

Our team of experts at Compare Forex Brokers recommend FxPro to South Africa-based retail clients for its cTrader platform, one of the more popular mainstream platforms on the market.

FxPro’s cTrader Key Features

First of all, FxPro’s cTrader software solution provides access to full market depth. Depth of market means best available bid and ask quotes are transparent, which ensure you can get the best available prices. The platform presents market data in three convenient ways:

• Standard Depth of Market
• Price Depth of Market
• Volume-Weighted Average Price (VWAP) Depth of Market

We should note that the platform automatically aggregates all available liquidity at the best possible prices and executes trade orders at VWAP.

Other advantages of FxPro’s cTrader include:

• Tight spreads, starting from 0.0 pips
• Exceptional order execution speed (discussed below)
• Guaranteed order execution with no requotes
• No restrictions on limit orders – Stop Loss and Take Profit orders can be set at the closest pip distance possible from the current market price. As a result, clients can implement their trading strategies with greater precision
• No upper limit on the size of orders
• Smart Order Routing – clients will receive the best available price in 100% of the cases, while their orders will be executed automatically in 99.9% of the cases

FxPro’s cTrader fills client orders in 37 milliseconds on average

While FxPro may not be a true ECN broker, it does offer No Dealing Desk execution for South African client. In other words, traders’ orders are filled with no human intervention, while they are granted direct market access (DMA) and are able to take advantage of full market transparency.

Our review of FxPro’s trading platforms has concluded that:

• The majority of client orders placed through its cTrader software are filled in less than 11.06 ms
• on average, the platform ensures order execution in 37 ms
• 9% of client orders received positive slippage
• 99.32% of client orders received no requotes

Clients’ trade orders are executed at FxPro’s Equinix Data centres – LD5 in London and AM4 in Amsterdam. These trading servers are co-located and cross fibre connected with top-tier banks, providing liquidity through FxPro’s proprietary aggregator Quotix.

FxPro Range of Markets

FxPro offers CFDs on several underlying assets:

• Foreign Exchange – more than 70 currency pairs with a maximum leverage of 1:500 and variable spreads of as low as 1.4 pips on EUR/USD on MetaTrader 5. The maximum leverage for USD/ZAR and EUR/ZAR is 1:100, while the minimum spreads are 61 pips and 57 pips respectively (also on MT5)
• Futures on Soft Commodities, Energies and Indices – a total of 20 Futures CFD contracts with variable spreads of as low as 2.2 points on US Crude Oil and 1.0 point on FTSE 100 Index. The maximum leverage on Futures is 1:50, while margin requirements range between 2% and 20% depending on how many open trading lots in a particular instrument clients have.
• Stock Indices – 22 major and minor Spot Indices with a maximum leverage of 1:20 (major) and 1:10 (minor). The margin requirements for Spot Indices range between 0.20% and 20%, depending on the number of Indices traded.
• Equities – over 150 high-quality Stocks traded on the US, the UK, the French and the German stock exchange. The maximum leverage is 1:5, while the margin requirements range between 4% and 60%, depending on clients’ exposure.
• Spot Metals – 7 contracts with a maximum leverage of 1:200 and margin requirements ranging between 0.5% and 4%, depending on open lots.
• Spot Energies – 3 contracts with a maximum leverage of 1:50 and margin requirements ranging between 1% and 5%, depending on open lots.

Final Words – CFD Trading with FxPro’s cTrader Platform

We believe FxPro is among the best CFD brokers in South Africa offering the cTrader trading platform. South African traders can open a live trading account with FxPro with a minimum deposit of 7,000 ZAR. Click the button below if you want to trade CFDs with a globally regulated broker, fast order execution speed, and access 6 different asset classes.

View FxPro Review >>Visit FxPro >>

eToro – Trade CFDs With The Best Social Trading Platform

South African traders looking for the best CFD social trading platforms for forex copy trading or mirror trading and CFD copy trading may wish to consider a trading account with eToro. Recognised across the globe for its social trading platform, eToro is a legit and reputable CFD and Forex broker authorised to conduct financial services business in the following jurisdictions:

• The United Kingdom, where it complies with strict regulatory standards of the FCA
• Europe, where it falls under the regulation of the CySEC
• Australia, where it complies with the regulatory framework of the ASIC

eToro’s CopyTrader provides earning opportunity for beginners

Our team of experts recommend eToro’s CopyTrader feature to novice traders who may not be able to earn consistent profits in the Forex market, as well as to those who do not have the time to closely monitor market movement. The platform allows beginners to earn a passive income by simply copying the trading activity of experienced traders.

eToro’s social trading platform enables South African clients to filter through a set of parameters such as return, risk score, number of copiers or preferred markets to trade, in order to find an experienced trader whom to copy. Currently, the broker has over  3,000,000 active traders. As soon as a leading trader is located, beginners are able to connect with him/her to discuss trading indicators, signals, or strategies as well as to copy his/her trading portfolio performance.

Replicating a top trader’s activity is not associated with any management fees or other hidden costs for copiers. What they need to do is simply allocate a portion of their available trading account balance to that trader to copy his/her portfolio.

To access the broker’s CopyTrader, South African clients will have to put down a minimum deposit of $200. We should note that eToro’s all trading accounts support USD only and deposits made in a different currency will have to be converted at the current market rate. Currency conversion will incur a certain fee.

eToro allows South African traders to automatically copy trade in a diverse range of financial markets, including:

• 47 Forex currency pairs
• 13 Commodity CFDs
• 13 Stock indices CFDs
• +1000 CFD stocks
• 98 crypto pairs CFDs
• 147 ETFs

Additionally, eToro’s Popular Investor Program provides an opportunity for traders who get copied to earn extra income on a monthly basis.

eToro Funding Methods

eToro offers the following account funding options for South African clients:

• Debit or Credit Card by Visa or MasterCard – processing is instant, while the maximum deposit amount is $40,000
• Paypal – processing is instant, while the maximum deposit amount is $10,000
• Skrill – processing is instant, while the upper limit on deposits is $10,000
• Neteller – processing is instant, while the maximum deposit amount is $10,000
• Bank wire transfer – processing time is between 4 and 7 business days, while there is no upper limit on deposits

Final Words – Best Forex Brokers for Social Trading  Platforms

Overall, eToro is the most profitable social trading platforms, allowing South African-based clients to copy top-performing traders. eToro’s copy-trading platform is a multi-assets platform allowing copy trading CFDs and copies forex trading. Grab your free demo account by clicking the button below.

ThinkMarkets – Award-Winning Mobile CFD Trading Platform

The best CFD trading Apps for South African traders is offered by ThinkMarkets. Additionally, we also recommend ThinkMarkets for its Islamic forex trading account tailored for Muslim traders. In our proprietary star scoring system, mobile trading App ThinkTrader scored the highest points due to its:

• Download the trading App from Google Play and Apple App store
• User-friendly interface
• Powerful mobile trading app
• The ability to login with a fingerprint
• A full suite of technical analysis tools
• Real-time price quotes across 8 different CFD markets

Note * Mobile CFD trading platform ThinkTrader is available on iOS and Android applications. You can download ThinkTrader directly on your mobile phone and start trading in a few minutes.

In addition to ThinkTrader, ThinkMarkets also offers South African residents two additional mobile CFD trading platforms powered by MT4 mobile app and MT5 mobile App.

ThinkTrader Mobile Trading Charts

The mobile trading charts powered by ThinkMarkets’ price engine will keep you on top of the market trends. SA traders can also monitor their CFD trades at a glance, along with the ability to open and close new positions directly from the charts.

The cutting edge mobile technology offered by ThinkMarkets has global recognition with five-star reviews from +15,000 CFD and foreign exchange traders.

Note* South African traders with little trading experience can open a demo account directly from the mobile App.

Islamic Forex Trading Account

ThinkMarkets Islamic account is the perfect fit for South African residents of the Muslim faith. Among the South African forex brokers we reviewed, ThinkMarkets offer the best Sharia-compliant accounts for several reasons, including:

• Swap-free option
• No rollover charges for overnight trades
• Trading forex with tight spreads as low as 0.1 pips
• No hidden trading fees
• Robust CFD trading platforms across all devices (PC, Mac, mobile, tablet and web trader)

Note* According to the Sharia law, South African Muslim traders are not allowed to be charged or pay an interest rate. The interest-free Islamic trading accounts were created to allow Muslim traders to trade on the forex market.

On the downside, the Swap-free accounts offered by ThinkMarkets come with two disadvantages:

• Certain exotic currencies (CNH, HKD, HUF, MXN, PLN, TRY, ZAR) are not available for trading on the Islamic trading accounts
• ThinkMarkets charge a “ weekly administrative fee” for trades that are held for more than 7 days. The table below highlights the trading fees per one standard lot that are charged on the 7^th day.

Final Words – Best Mobile CFD Trading Platform in South Africa

ThinkMarkets is a regulated broker by the FSCA that offers a high-quality trading platform for iPhone and Android devices. Part of being a successful trader is the ability to monitor the market at any time, so you can spot new trading opportunities. If you want to stay connected on the go and enjoy the same trading tools and features that come with a desktop trading platform, you need to explore ThinkTrader App. Claim your free demo account by clicking the button below.

View ThinkMarkets Review >>Visit ThinkMarkets >>

Plus500 – CFD Trading Platform With Risk Management Tools

CFD provider Plus500 offers the best software solution for trading risk management. The risk management tools offered by Plus500 are designed to help South African traders with little trading experience. CFD traders need to have access to risk management platforms in order to make better trading decisions.

Plus500 Ltd is a leading multi-regulated CFD and Forex provider headquartered in London and has a local office in Johannesburg, South Africa. As a global online provider offering over 2,000 financial instruments on a range of platforms, Plus500 is authorised to provide financial services in a number of jurisdictions:

• South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA)
• In the United Kingdom complies with regulatory standards of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• In Australia is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
• New Zealand’s Financial Markets Authority (FMA)
• In Europe, it is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)
• In Singapore, it is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore
• Plus500SEY Ltd is regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA)

Leverage in CFD trading is connected with a high risk of losing your trading capital. Retail CFD investors need appropriate tools to minimize the side effect from high leverage ratios. Plus500 offers maximum leverage to South African retail traders of:

• 1:500 for trading forex
• 1:300 for shares CFDs
• 1:30 for cryptocurrency CFDs
• 1:100 for indices CFDs
• 1:150 for commodities CFDs
• 1:10 for options CFDs
• 1:100 for ETF CFDs

The importance of negative balance protection in CFD trading

High market volatility coupled with high leverage ratios may provide good opportunities for customers with vast trading experience. However, if not handled properly, such a combination may lead to considerable losses for inexperienced traders, sometimes even greater than the amount they initially deposited into their trading account. This is known as a negative balance.

Plus500 is one of the few brokers that offer negative balance protection as an inclusive risk management feature for their product. Under the broker’s guaranteed negative balance protection policy, retail investor accounts cannot lose greater amounts than the initial deposit. This feature is of great benefit when other features (stop-outs, margin calls) can not always protect you in a highly volatile market environment.

South African clients can trade CFDs with a set of risk management tools

Plus500 allows South Africa-based retail clients to protect their active positions by using three essential tools:

• Stop Limit or Stop Loss
• Guaranteed Stop
• Trailing Stop

Risk Management Tool: Close at Profit, Close at Loss

As a tool to manage high leverage, Plus500’s “Close at Profit, Close at Loss” trading feature is available for clients with no fees:

• By placing a Stop Limit (Close at Profit) order, CFD traders have specified a price level, which if reached, will close their active position and allow them to lock in gains
• By placing a Stop Loss (Close at Loss) order, CFD traders have specified a price level, which if reached, will close their active position and allow them to limit losses

Risk Management Tool: Guaranteed Stop

As a risk management tool, “Guaranteed Stop” sets an absolute limit on potential losses and also minimises the risk of slippage. In case a trader has made an incorrect prediction of market movement, his/her active position will be automatically closed by the trading software at the specified price level.

Plus500’s Guaranteed Stop is only allowed on selected trading instruments, and an extra pip/s will be applied to the spread as your cost.

Risk Management Tool: Trailing Stop

As a risk management feature, Plus500’s “Trailing Stop” can be used with no additional fees.

Once enabled, the feature will preserve the gains achieved when the market moves in the anticipated direction, while the Stop Loss order placed will be updated automatically.

In case the market changes direction and starts moving against the trader’s position, it will eventually trigger his/her Stop Loss order. Trailing stop can still result in slippage, so there is a chance that the position may not close at the “Close at Loss” level the trader has specified.

Final Words – Our Best CFD Trading Brokers for Risk Management

Overall, our team of experts believes that CFD provider Plus500 offers one of the best CFD platforms for risk management tools. Claim your trading account with a minimum deposit of Rand 1,500 by clicking the button below.

View Plus500 Review >>Visit Plus500 >>

*Your capital is at risk ‘76.4% of retail CFD accounts lose money’

XTB – Broker With Great ETFs and Equities CFDs

XTB xStation 5 was hand-picked by our team of experts as the best CFD trading platform for shares trading. CFD provider and Forex broker XTB is recommended for CFD and ETFs trading based on five factors:

• Attractive CFD leverage of up to 10:1 (both stocks and ETFs)
• +1,500 CFD stocks
• +60 CFD ETFs
• Commission from 0.08% per lot (stock CFDs and ETF CFDs)
• Award-winning CFD platform and service

Having over 15 years of business history, XTB one of the best stock brokers, award-winning CFD and Forex broker providing services to clients in more than 13 countries across Europe. XTB Ltd, based in London, is authorised and regulated by the reputable FCA.

The broker’s CFD product offering includes more than 1,500 trading instruments in six asset classes. Our team of experts recommends XTB to South African retail investors interested in trading CFDs on Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and Shares.

ETF CFDs

XTB offers CFDs on as many as 110 US and European ETFs traded with a maximum leverage of 1:5 and with no requotes. The broker will charge a commission of 0.08%, but there is a minimum commission amount – EUR 8 or $8. ETFs such as SDPR S&P 500 Trust and PowerShares QQQ Trust Series 1 can be traded with a minimum spread of 0.02 points.

CFDs on Equities

XTB offers CFDs on more than 1,743 high-quality US and European Shares. The maximum leverage offered is 1:5, while the commission charged is 0.08% (minimum EUR 8 or $8) on the broker’s MetaTrader 4 and xStation 5 platforms. The table below highlights some of the top stocks that you can trade through XTB.

The xStation 5 Trading Platform

xStation 5 is XTB’s proprietary platform, which offers a user-friendly interface, superior order execution speeds as well as more advanced tools for sophisticated traders.

It is available as a:

• Desktop version for PCs operating on Windows and OS X
• Web Trader version compatible with browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Opera
• App for mobile trading on iOS and Android-based devices

Key features include:

• Comprehensive Charts
• Access to Trading Calculator – clients can calculate trading costs, earnings or losses prior to opening a position
• Convenient Order Management – clients can modify their Stop Loss and Take Profit levels on the chart, or close all their active positions with a single button
• Access to breaking news and detailed Economic Calendar
• Access to market sentiments – traders can follow how other XTB client’s position themselves on a particular market,
• 24/7 Customer Support

XTB Review >>Visit XTB >>

AvaTrade – Best For Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency CFD Trading

The best cryptocurrency platform for CFD trading is offered by AvaTrade. South African residents can take advantage of Bitcoin CFD trading without the new to store your coins in a digital wallet. Additionally, cryptocurrency traders from South Africa can benefit from the best spreads in the market, a good selection of crypto pairs and trading through cutting-edge CFD platforms.

AvaTrade is a well-recognised CFD and Forex broker, regulated by 8 authorities on 5 continents, including in Australia by the ASIC and in South Africa by the FSCA.

AvaTrade offers CFDs on 11 Cryptocurrencies with fixed spreads

While many brokerages usually include only the most popular and most actively traded digital coins in their CFD product lists, AvaTrade offers a wider range of Cryptocurrencies.

A total of 11 digital currencies are available to trade with no commissions and no bank fees on transactions on a range of intuitive trading platforms, including:

• AvaTrade’s MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 software
• AvaTradeGO mobile app
• AvaOptions – the broker’s exclusive app for trading Vanilla Options.

Non-EU retail traders can take advantage of a leverage up to 1:2, while the maximum leverage for professional traders is 1:25 on the following Cryptocurrencies:

• Bitcoin – spread is 0.35% Over-market
• EOS – spread is 1.5% Over-market
• Ethereum – spread is 0.6% Over-market
• MIOTA – spread is 2% Over-market
• Dash – spread is 2% Over-market
• Litecoin – spread is 0.6% Over-market
• Ripple – spread is 0.95% Over-market
• NEO – spread is 2% Over-market
• Stellar – spread is 2% Over-market
• Bitcoin Gold – spread is 2% Over-market
• Bitcoin Cash – spread is 0.8% Over-market

Note* We should note that cryptocurrency trading is 24/7 through the broker’s MetaTrader accounts.

Crypto 10 Index

AvaTrade also offers CFDs on the Crypto10 Index, which reflects the performance of the 10 digital coins with the largest market cap. The cryptocurrency index is provided by the firm BITA and includes the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies.

South African retail traders are allowed to trade the Index with a maximum leverage of 1:2, while the leverage for professionals is 1:10. The typical spread on the broker’s MT4 and MT5 platforms is 1% Over-market, while trading is 24/7.

Visit AvaTrade >>