Cyprus is one of the most popular regulatory jurisdictions for Forex & CFD brokers. A combination is offered here of the protection of EU law with a relatively light regulatory touch. We have painstakingly reviewed every Cyprus-regulated Forex broker of consequence, and we present the details of the best on offer.
- FP Markets, ECN trading with leverage up to 1:500.
- AvaTrade, Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreads.
- ACY Securities, Swap-free trading with the MT5 trading platform.
- Pepperstone, Great ECN execution on MT4 platform.
- BlackBull Markets, Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedging.
Best Cyprus Brokers Comparison
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Regulators | ASIC, CySEC, FSCA | ASIC, BVI, Central Bank of Ireland, FFAJ, FSCA, KNF, MiFID | ASIC | ASIC, BaFin, CMA, CySEC, DFSA, FCA, SCB | FMA, FSA |
Year Established | 2005 | 2006 | 2011 | 2010 | 2014 |
Execution Type(s) | ECN/STP | Market Maker | ECN/STP, Market Maker | No Dealing Desk, NDD | ECN/STP, No Dealing Desk |
Minimum Deposit | |||||
Average Trading Cost EUR/USD | 1.1 pips | 0.9 pips | 1.1 pips ($11.00) | 1.1 pips | 1.3 pips |
Average Trading Cost GBP/USD | 1.4 pips | 1.5 pips | 1.1 pips ($11.00) | 1.6 pips | 2.0 pips |
Average Trading Cost Gold | $0.21 | $0.29 | $0.15 | $0.20 | $0.90 |
Trading Platform(s) | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Proprietary platform, Web-based | Other, MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Web-based+ | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, Trading View | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Trading View |
Islamic Account | |||||
Negative Balance Protection | N/A | ||||
| Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website | Visit Website |
FP Markets
In Summary ECN trading with leverage up to 1:500FP Markets has been in the financial services and forex brokering market for 16 years, during which time they have amassed a significant list of accolades, regulatory certificates, and, of course, a large asset selection. Whether you're a novice trader or a seasoned pro, FP Traders will provide you with the features and alternatives you've been looking for. This trustworthy forex broker is authorized by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission in Australia and the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission in Cyprus, providing you peace of mind that they are supervised by a respected regulator.
Pros & Cons
- Choice of trading platforms and auxiliary trading tools
- Very competitive cost structure and excellent asset selection
- Low minimum deposit requirement and leverage of up to 1:500
- Well-regulated and trustworthy
- Availability of Iress geographically restricted
AvaTrade
In Summary Highly regulated, choice of fixed or floating spreadsAvaTrade could be the answer if you're new to trading and seeking for a forex trading app to help you out. This well-known broker goes above and beyond to help inexperienced traders succeed on their trading adventure. AvaTrade offers a wealth of training resources to its users. The trading training tools include over 200 educational videos and 40 different courses that are available to all members. These classes contain vital information that will assist beginning traders in making the best judgments possible. Traders from South Africa and the British Virgin Islands should use AvaTrade. This is especially true for traders from various parts of the world that require larger maximum leverage. With over 50 currency pairings, almost 30 commodities, many cryptocurrencies, CDFs, assets, certain bonds, metals, and much more, you will have a wide range of trading possibilities.
Pros & Cons
- High-quality educational offering via SharpTrader
- Excellent choice of trading platforms catering to various trading needs
- Broad asset selection and cross-asset diversification opportunities
- Well-regulated and trusted broker with oversight from a central bank
- Trading costs competitive but nothing special
ACY Securities
In Summary Swap-free trading with the MT5 trading platformTraders at ACY Securities benefit from Capitalise AI, which enables algorithmic trading in a code-free environment, making ACY Securities one of the best Forex brokers in Cyprus. It also offers 15 MT4/MT5 plugins, works with 46 liquidity providers, and maintains an excellent trading infrastructure with order execution in under 30ms. ACY Securities also allows three free monthly withdrawals.
Beginner traders get high-quality research and education, while copy traders can diversify via MT4/MT5 copy trading services, Signal Start, and SoFinX. The Pro Zero and Bespoke accounts feature raw spreads from 0.0 pips for a $6.00 and $5.00 commission, respectively.
Pros & Cons
- Large repository of daily analysis and educational content
- Low spreads starting at 0 pips in the Spread Zero account
- 16 payment processors, including cryptocurrencies
- Competitive trading fees in its commission-based accounts
- Only 1 regulator
Pepperstone
In Summary Great ECN execution on MT4 platformPepperstone, founded in 2010 and headquartered and regulated in Australia, the U.K., and Dubai, is probably the most well-known ECN Forex broker in the world. As an ECN broker, Pepperstone offer raw spreads and low commissions. Taken together, Pepperstone’s “Razor” account offers one of the most competitive costs of trading in Forex that you will find anywhere. In addition to their global headquarters in Australia, Pepperstone also have presences in London, England, where they enjoy full regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and in Dubai, where they are regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).
Pros & Cons
- Excellent choice of trading platforms consisting of MT4/MT5, and cTrader
- Market-leading MT4/MT5 upgrade package, Autochartist, and API trading
- Social trading support via Myfxbook, MetaTrader Signals, and DupliTrade
- Leverage of up to 1:30 and superb trade execution
- Demo accounts have 30-day time limits
BlackBull Markets
In Summary Best ECN trading environment, with scalping and hedgingFounded in New Zealand, BlackBull Markets has been on the forex trading scene since their launch in 2014. The main focus of this forex broker is on the Electronic Communication Network. The company is regulated by two governing bodies namely the FSA (Seychelles Financial Services Authority) and the FMA (New Zealand Financial Markets Authority). Their main regulator is of course the FMA, and their main base of operation is located in New Zealand. BlackBull Markets offers a good variety of trading assets that traders can choose from including a large index of currency pairs, commodities, and more. It is however worth noting that they do not offer crypto and equity trading.
Pros & Cons
- ECN/NDD execution model with deep liquidity
- Institution-grade pricing for retail traders via proprietary price aggregation
- ZuluTrade and Myfxbook for social trading
- Leverage of up to 1:500
- Limited deposit options
Once you have decided that a Cyprus-based and -regulated Forex broker suits your regulatory and geographic needs, you will have plenty of choices – it is still an extremely popular location for brokers. The most important considerations you should have in making your choice are the broker’s reputation, fees, and range of assets offered. The best approach is to make a shortlist from range of assets and reputation, then compare our assessments of the complete fee structures to see what will give you the best deal for your trading style.
Cyprus Forex Regulations
The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), the financial regulator of Cyprus, originally created a great balance between a business-friendly regulatory and tax environment. It combined this with ensuring good protection for traders, resulting in an inflow of Forex brokers setting up in this attractive environment. While it was not perfect, CySEC established itself as the primary regulator for international Forex brokers. Cyprus must comply with the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), being a European Union member country, despite regulating its financial system capably.
Residents of the E.U. have a good reason to seek a broker regulated within an E.U. member state such as Cyprus, in that if a problem arises with the broker, it is relatively easy for them to act and get redress for any wrongdoing on the part of the broker, compared to Forex brokers lying far offshore.
The ESMA regulates the EU single market and supersedes national regulators such as CySEC. Following the 2008 global financial crisis, followed by the now-defunct binary options industry and the surging popularity of cryptocurrencies, the ESMA imposed some major regulatory changes on all EU-based financial firms and traders. They consisted of banning bonuses and limiting leverage available to retail traders to 1:30.
The motive behind the ESMA regulatory changes, protested by many brokers who predicted an exodus of business to friendly jurisdictions, was the protection of traders. The ESMA acted under the beliefs that leverage increases risk, and bonuses reward aggressive marketing campaigns with more substantial deposits. The first part is arguably incorrect, as many analysts see an absence of risk management as the primary cause of excessive losses, not overleveraged trading accounts. There is also a distinct difference between advertised maximum leverage and the applied one.
Following the ESMA regulatory changes, many Cyprus Forex brokers established regulated subsidiaries in other jurisdictions. Today, Cyprus tends to cater almost exclusively to EEA resident traders. There are no restrictions on traders from the EEA opening accounts with international brokers regulated outside the EU. While some traders will find the trading environment at Cyprus Forex brokers uncompetitive and counter-productive, with equal or better investor protection arguably existing elsewhere, traders resident inside the EU looking for a Forex broker should seriously consider opening an account under Cyprus regulation for peace of mind, while carefully viewing the terms offered and balancing the risk of opening accounts under weaker external regulation against the more flexible trading conditions which are likely to be offered there.
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