Forex Brokers, Forex Bonus

Best Forex Brokers in South Africa 2024

Looking for the right Forex brokers in South Africa can be a daunting task. Almost every broker claims to be the best, but some of them are not. So we decided to break it down for you.

Forex trading in South Africa is getting extremely popular nowadays especially following the COVID-19 spread in the country. Due to the pandemic, South Africans witnessed millions of job cuts in the country during 2020-21.

So, a large portion of the country’s population was required to look for an alternative money source. As a part of such sentiment, people are considering forex trading as a possible source of income.

At present, we’re observing a gradual increase of active traders in South Africa as like other parts of the world. Also, this country is now recognized as the leading forex trading nation in the Africa region.

As a part of such progress, many leading forex brokers are now offering online trading services to the residents of the country.

In this guide, we’ve listed the top forex brokers in South Africa who are authorized by FSCA, FCA, and CySEC. Besides, we’ve discussed the unique features of the brokers and explained how to choose the best one that perfectly meets your trading requirements.

Best Forex Brokers in South Africa

List of Best Forex Brokers in South Africa

Here we are going to list the best forex brokers for South African and the list is not the top 10 or top 20 rather we are randomly preparing it.

We’ve researched over 30 brokers who are offering online trading services in the country. Based on our research we’ve listed the top 7 forex brokers in South Africa based on their regulations, costs, limits, and useful features that enhance the trading experience.

Here is our comprehensive review of the best forex brokers in South Africa:

AvaTrade

AvaTrade

Min Deposit

$100

Regulation

ASIC & FSCA

Leverage

1:400

Platform
MT4, MT5, Web Terminal

Bonus

$200*

Founded

2006

Read Review

AvaTrade is one of the most experienced online brokers working in South Africa. The exchange was founded in 2006 in Dublin, Ireland. During the journey of 15 years, AvaTrade has established its satellite offices in Australia and the British Virgin Islands with sales offices in Milan, Paris, Madrid, Mongolia. Santiago, Beijing, Nigeria, and South Africa.

In terms of regulation, AvaTrade is authorized by FSCA (South Africa), FRSA (UAE), FSA (Japan), and ASIC (Australia). The firm is also regulated by the central bank of Ireland (recognized by the EU), the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, and the British Virgin Islands Financial Service Commission.

The broker is well known for offering a huge number of tradable assets which includes more than 60 forex currency pairs, stocks, indices, commodities, bonds, ETFs, and especially Cryptocurrencies.

At present, the broker lists more than 250 financial instruments for its 200,000 active traders around the globe. Also, it operates more than 2 million traders per month.

Furthermore, AvaTrade is well-known for offering a large number of trading platforms for its clients. It includes Web Trading, AvaTradeGo, MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5), AvaOptions, Automated Trading, Mobile Trading, and Mac Trading platforms.

Also, AvaTrade clients enjoy access to the MQL5 signal service and can subscribe to thousands of prominent signal providers through MT5 platforms.

The spreads and fees in AvaTrade are extremely low. First of all, the broker doesn’t apply any trading commission. The trading costs are compensated through the bid-ask spreads.

For example, if the spread is 3 pips on 1,000 units of an instrument then the compensation amount for the brokerage will be $0.30. The broker applies a fixed spread on currency pairs. For EURUSD, the minimum spread is fixed to 0.9.

Besides, AvaTrade charges an inactivity fee of $50 when a trader remains inactive for 3 consecutive months. The inactivity charge rises to $100 in case of a non-use of the trading accounts for 12 consecutive months.

The minimum deposit for an AvaTrade trading account is only $100. The broker also offers a 20% welcome bonus on minimum initial deposits of $1000. For example, you’ll receive a $200 welcome bonus for a $1000 initial deposit. If you deposit $2000 then the bonus amount will be $400.

AvaTrade accepts various payment methods for deposits and withdrawals which include, credit cards (Visa & Mastercard), Paypal, and other e-payment methods like Neteller, Skrill, Webmoney, etc. Also, each withdrawal request is processed within 24-48 hours during the business days.

Furthermore, The firm ensures the highest security of client’s funds and personal data through 256-bit SSL encryption on its website. Its official site is also embedded with True-Site and McAfee Secure features for preventing frauds/thefts during credit card transactions.

Based on our research, we’ve found the AvaTrade customer support highly effective and friendly to customer queries. You can reach its customer service through phone support, online form, and live chat options.

The customer care agents of Avatrade are available 24 hours a day and 5 days a week (from Monday to Friday) and provide service in 14 different languages.

AvaTrade Pros

  • Authorized by top regulatory bodies in multiple countries.
  • 20% welcome bonus.
  • Wide range of tradable assets.
  • Large choice of trading platforms.
  • No commission.
  • Minimal fixed spreads.
  • Allows demo trading.
  • Highly secured.
  • Swap-free Islamic accounts for Muslims.
  • Convenient process for deposit and withdrawal requests.
  • Research and education support for beginners.
  • 24/5 customer support in 14 languages.

AvaTrade Cons

  • Doesn’t support US clients
  • Inactivity fees

Exness

Exness Logo

Min Deposit

$1

Regulation

CySEC, FSCA, FCA

Leverage

1:Unlimited

Platform
MT4, MT5, Web Terminal

Bonus

N/A

Founded

2008

Founded in 2008, Exness is one of the most experienced international forex brokers in South Africa. In November 2020, the broker reported its daily trading volume had reached over $600 billion.

The firm has launched a Standard Bonus Program that allows traders to receive a 10% bonus on their net deposits. Clients must activate the bonus program for receiving the deposit bonus.

Exness is authorized by FSCA in South Africa. Besides, as a global broker, the firm is also regulated by international bodies like FCA, CySEC, and FSA.

The brokerage offers ultra-low spreads on forex, metals, stocks, and other popular trading assets. The spread limits are set depending on the account type you choose while registering with the broker.

For example, its Zero Account enables traders to enjoy 0 spreads on 30 top forex currency pairs. The spread for Raw Accounts also starts from 0 pips. Basic trading accounts like Standard and Standard Cent account’s spread begins from 0.1 to 0.3 pips.

Exness provides zero commission trading opportunities for its basic account users. However, the firm applies trading commissions for its advanced account users that range from $3.5 -$7 per lot traded.

The leverage in Exness is quite extraordinary compared to other brokers at the same standard level. They offer up to 1:2000 leverage for Raw, Zero, and Pro account users. Moreover, its Cent account users with less than $1,000 investment are allowed to enjoy unlimited leverage.

The deposit and withdrawal methods of Exness are very flexible in South Africa. The country’s residents are allowed to use the local bank transfer options. This means South Africans can use their local currency “ZAR” for both funding and withdrawal purposes.

As an online broker, Exness is always one step ahead in providing an ideal trading atmosphere through its most advanced trading platforms. The broker uses MT4, MT5, and WebTrader platforms.

Exness clients can access the market from personal computers, tablets, and mobile devices. Additionally, its platforms are compatible with Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS.

The firm has access to a wide range of tradable assets which includes 107 forex currency pairs, 81 stocks, top 10 global indices, metals, energy, and Cryptocurrencies.

Exness serves customer support 24/7 in English and 24/5 in 15 other languages (from Monday to Friday). You can easily reach its customer service agents via live chat, email, and direct phone calls.

Exness Pros

  • Authorized by top financial regulators – FCA, CySEC, FSA, and FSCA
  • 10% bonus on deposits
  • Operating over 12 years as an online broker
  • Has access to a large number of tradable assets including Forex, Metals, Energy, Stocks, Cryptocurrencies, and more
  • Uses MetaTrader 4(MT4), Metatrader 5 (MT5), and WebTerminal trading platforms
  • Ultra-low commission
  • Minimal spreads (from 0.0 pips)
  • Minimum deposit from $1
  • Unlimited leverage
  • Instant Withdrawal
  • Accepts Cryptocurrencies as deposits
  • Education and research supports
  • Multilingual customer support
  • Swap-free Islamic account

Exness Cons

  • Doesn’t offer any welcome bonus
  • Doesn’t serve US clients

RoboForex

RoboForex Logo

Min Deposit

$10

Regulation

FSC

Leverage

1:2000

Platform
MT4, MT5, cTrader, RTrader, Web Terminal

Bonus

$30

Founded

2009

RoboForex is one of the most experienced ECN brokers established in Belize, in 2009. The broker is authorized by the Financial Services Commission (FSC) with license no. 000138/107. They offer a $30 welcome bonus for the new clients including South African residents. At present, RoboForex is considered one of the few popular online brokers in South Africa.

The broker offers zero spreads for its ECN account clients. Spreads for other account types start from as low as 1.0 pips. However, it applies a bit higher spreads on major FX pairs for its basic account holders. Both EURUSD and GBPUSD are offered within a floating spread of 1.3 pips.

The commissions and other fees of the broker are extremely low; for instance, it doesn’t charge any fee for deposits. For withdrawals, the broker charges a 1.5% fee on bank transfer, a 4% fee for local bank transfer, and around 1.9% fee on electronic payment systems.

The trading commission for ECN accounts is $20 per $1,000,000 trading volume. Besides, its RTrader account holders are charged $1.5 per trade.

RoboForex is quite flexible in offering leverages; for instance, clients are allowed to choose leverage options from 1:300 to 1:2000 based on their account types.

The brokerage uses multiple advanced trading platforms such as MT4, MT5, cTrader, R Trader, and RoboForex Terminals. RoboForex trading platforms are famous for their key features like multi-chart terminal, STP execution, level II pricing, free analytics, and effective trading indicators.

Furthermore, RoboForex clients enjoy a large choice of tradable instruments. Its asset list includes 40+ forex pairs, 12,000+ stocks, 1,000+ ETFs, 26+ Cryptocurrencies, indices, metal, energy, and popular commodities.

Customer support is a very important department for any broker. Because, it creates a bridge between the broker and the trader, and RoboForex is not an exception.

The broker serves its clients 24/7 customer service in 11 different languages. You can always reach them through email and phone for any queries regarding the broker.

RoboForex Pros

  • A massive choice of tradable assets
  • $30 welcome bonus
  • Numerous options of payment methods for deposit and withdrawals
  • MT4, MT5, CTrader, R Trader, and RoboForex trading terminals
  • Multiple trading accounts including ECN and STP features
  • Low spreads and competitive fees
  • Low minimum deposit
  • 24/7 multilingual customer support in 11 languages
  • Automated trading and robot builder
  • Welcome bonus and loyalty bonus
  • Special events like trading contests
  • Education support

RoboForex Cons

  • Authorized by a single regulatory body in Belize
  • Doesn’t accept the US clients

XM

XM Broker

Min Deposit

$5

Regulation

IFSC, CySec, ASIC

Leverage

888:1

Platform
MT4, MT5

Bonus

$30

Founded

2009

XM Group (XM) is yet another experienced global broker in South Africa. The broker was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus. They are authorized by international regulators like CySEC, IFSC, and ASIC.

The minimum spread for all XM accounts begins from 0.1 pips. The spread plan of the brokerage varies depending on the account types. For instance, the average EURUSD spread for micro accounts is 1.6 pips and for XM zero accounts the spread drops down to 0.1 pips.

XM also charges a trading commission for zero account users which is $3.5 per lot per trade. Interestingly, the firm doesn’t apply any commission on deposits and withdrawals. Also, they offer free VPS (Virtual Private Server) services.

XM offers a $30 no deposit bonus for their new clients. Besides, it only requires $5 as an initial deposit for opening an account in XM. Moreover, they offer flexible leverages ranging from  1:1 to 1:888. Traders are always allowed to adjust the leverage ratio according to their needs.

The brokerage relies on the critically acclaimed MetaTrader 4 (MT4) as their main trading platform. MT4 is known as the fastest and the most convenient trading platform for forex retailers.

Besides, they also offer the MT5 platform – recognized as the most advanced trading platform for modern traders. Both MT4 and MT5 give you instant access to 1,000+ financial instruments offered by the broker. XM assets include forex currencies, stocks, CFDs, commodities, precious metals, energies, and equity indices.

Furthermore, the broker prides itself on the excellent customer service it serves for both existing clients and interested individuals. You can reach them 24/7 via phone support, live chat, and email. All the queries are typically answered within 24 hours.

XM Pros

  • 1,000+ financial instruments
  • $30 no deposit bonus
  • Regulated by ASIC, CySEC, and IFSC
  • MT4 and MT5 platforms
  • The minimum deposit is $5 only
  • No fees on deposit and withdrawals
  • Low spreads
  • Demo account
  • Educational videos

XM Cons

  • Doesn’t serve residents from the US, Canada, and Israel
  • Charges inactivity fees

FXTM

FXTM

Min Deposit

$10

Regulation

FSCA, FCA & CySEC

Leverage

1000:1

Platform
MT4, MT5

Bonus

N/A

Founded

2011

Read Review

FXTM is known as a global trading home, serving more than 10 years as a forex and CFD broker across 180 countries. This Cyprus-based firm was founded in 2011 and accepts clients from South Africa.

The brokerage is authorized by the South African regulatory body the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). Besides, they are regulated by FCA (UK) and CySEC (Cyprus).

FXTM offers more than 57 forex currency pairs including major, minor, and exotic currencies. Precious metals like gold and silver are also available for trading.

Besides, they include 11 major equity indices, top trading commodities, US shares as CFDs, and Cryptocurrencies. Moreover, the broker uses MT4 and MT5 as their trading platforms ensuring a safe and fast trading experience for the clients.

Spreads and commissions are designed quite flexibly so that traders can comfortably adjust themselves to the trading costs of the broker. FXTM serves floating spreads starting from 1.3 pips for its Cent Account users.

Besides, FXTM Shares Account offers 0.1 pips spreads over 120 US Stocks. Moreover, FXTM ECN and Pro Account holders enjoy the tightest possible spreads beginning from 0.0 – 0.1 pips but include a minimum commission of $2 for each lot traded.

The minimum deposit limit in FXTM is $10 only and the leverage ranges from 1:5 to 1:2000 depending on trading instruments, account types, and account balance. Additionally, the broker offers up to a $5 bonus for each trade as a part of its loyalty program.

Furthermore, FXTM maintains an excellent customer support team. Its customer service department is active 24/5 and provides support in more than 16 different languages through phone, live chat, and email.

FXTM Pros

  • Regulated by FSCA, FCA, and CySEC
  • Flexible leverage
  • 10+ years of experience
  • Serving over 180 countries including South Africa
  • ECN account
  • MT4 and MT5 platforms
  • Multilingual customer support

FXTM Cons

  • Cent/Standard Account spreads are a bit higher for the beginners
  • Doesn’t serve clients from the US, Canada, Japan, Korea, and Mauritius

JustForex

JustForex Logo

Min Deposit

$1

Regulation

FCA, ASIC

Leverage

1:3000

Platform
MT4, MT5

Bonus

$20

Founded

2012

Read Review

Headquartered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, JustForex has been in the retail forex trading business since 2012. The broker is regulated by the Financial Service Authority (FSA), under the license number 23993. At present, the broker offers trading opportunities for South African residents.

JustForex has access to 170+ tradable assets which include 65 FX pairs, 7 Cryptocurrencies, 25 Futures, 11 Indices, 2 Energies, 65 Stocks, and 8 Metals.

Moreover, the broker obtains a license from MetaQuotes for providing the MT4, MT5, WebTrader, and mobile trading platforms for their clients. With the cutting-edge technology of MetaTrader, JustForex ensures clients are getting real-time access to their desired trading instruments.

Spreads on JustForex are comparatively lower than its other competitors at the same level. Major currency pairs like EURUSD and USDJPY spread start from 0.1 pips. Besides, the average spread of GBPUSD floats around 0.4 pips.

Also, the broker offers commission-free trading accounts and doesn’t include any extra charges on regular trading activities. 

The minimum deposit limit in JustForex is as low as $1. However, you’re required to make at least a $100 initial deposit for opening JF Pro and Raw Spread accounts. Moreover, there is no fee on deposits and withdrawals in JustForex.

The broker also maintains a standard leverage ratio for empowering the trading credibilities of their clients. The leverage usually ranges from 1:50 to 1:500.

JustForex offers 24/7 customer support via chat and messenger apps like Skype, WhatsApp, and Telegram. Besides, you can also reach them through company email and phone. Apart from English, they also support Indonesian, Malaysian, and Chinese languages.

JustForex Pros

  • FSA regulated
  • 170+ financial instruments
  • $1 minimum deposit
  • ECN trading
  • Commission-free trading
  • Negative balance protection
  • 24/7 multilingual customer support
  • Standard leverage

JustForex Cons

  • Traders from the US, Japan, and the UK are not accepted
  • Not regulated by international bodies

Hot Forex

HotForex logo

Min Deposit

$5

Regulation

CySEC, FCA, DFSA, FSCA

Leverage

1:1000

Platform
MT4, MT5

Bonus

N/A

Founded

2010

Read Review

HotForex was founded in 2010 in Cyprus. The broker is authorized by several renowned regulatory bodies including FSCA (South Africa), FCA (UK), and CySEC (Cyprus). We’ve listed HotForex among the best brokers in South Africa based on its regulation, spreads, and years of experience in online trading.

The broker offers a large choice of financial instruments including forex, metals, energies, stocks, commodities, Cryptocurrencies, and more. Also, they offer low spreads on most of the major trading instruments.

For instance, spreads for EURUSD begin from 0.1 pips. Such a wide range of trading assets with tight spreads makes this broker an affable companion for both beginners and advanced traders.

Besides, the broker uses different versions of MT4 and MT5 trading platforms, for instance, MetaTrader desktop, WebTrader, and Mobile trading for both Android and iOS devices. The minimum deposit limit in HotForex differs between $50 to $600 depending on the account type you choose. 

Furthermore, HotForex offers various types of trading accounts such as Micro, Premium, HFcopy, Zero Spread, PAMM, and Islamic accounts. Moreover, they offer ZAR accounts for South African residents. Also, the broker has a flexible leverage plan up to 1:1000.

HotForex multilingual customer support is available 24/5 (from Monday to Friday). You can contact them through its on-page contact form for live chats. Alternatively, you may send them emails and make direct phone calls. Queries in text formats are usually replied to within a business day.

HotForex Pros

  • FSCA, FCA, and CySEC regulated
  • Tight spread
  • Leverage up to 1:1000
  • Winner of 45+ Industry Awards
  • Demo trading
  • Free VPS hosting
  • Fundamental and technical analysis

HotForex Cons

  • No local bank transfer except wire transfer
  • No local contacts for South African clients

Forex Brokers Regulation in South Africa

Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) - Forex Brokers in South Africa

Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) is the local regulatory body of South Africa. This organization is responsible for authorizing the brokers who are providing trading services to the country’s citizens. FSCA is a successor of the former South African regulatory body “Financial Services Board (FSB)”.

FSB used to regulate non-banking financial service providers since 1990. However, in 2018, the country dissolved FSB and established FSCA as the new regulatory body of the country.

The brokers who are authorized by FSCA comply with the financial laws and regulations of South Africa. As a result, the FSCA regulated brokers get a better preference from South African locals while choosing the best online trading brokers.

There is another regulatory body in South Africa which is called the “Prudential Authority” or PA. They monitor the financial-related entities of non-banking organizations and focus on developing market infrastructure, cooperative financial institutes, and online financial exchanges.

Besides, South Africa welcomes other brokers who are regulated by international regulatory bodies like Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).

Currently, several international brokers are expanding their online trading service in South Africa. This leads the country’s residents to a great opportunity in picking the top globally recognized brokers and testing their trading services.

Best Forex Brokers for Beginners in South Africa

Online brokers often offer a welcome bonus to attract their potential clients. The question is why do traders get attracted by such offers? Well, there are some significant reasons behind the fascination with bonus funds, especially for beginners.

Generally, the brokers offer two types of welcome bonuses:

  1. Deposit Bonus: A fixed percentage of bonus applies to the amount deposited by the client. For example, a broker offers a 10% welcome bonus on deposits. It means if you deposit $1000 to the account you’ll get an extra $100 bonus in your account. So, your account balance will be $1100.
  2. No Deposit Bonus: The most attractive bonus program for newbie traders to profit without investment. The no-deposit bonuses are offered in a specific figure and involve terms and conditions from the bonus provider. The usual requirement for getting a no-deposit bonus is to open a real verified account with the broker. Also, you may be required to complete significant trading volume before withdrawing the profits.

Nowadays, thousands of new traders are enrolling for a new trading account each day in South Africa. As a beginner, most of them are focused on a safe and flexible start of their trading career.

So, a welcome bonus plays a key role in motivating novice traders. This is one of the big reasons behind the huge popularity of the welcome bonus program in South Africa.

1. AvaTrade – 20% Welcome Bonus

The minimum deposit requirement for this bonus program is $1000. You’ll get a 20% bonus for each $1000+ deposit. For example, if you deposit $1500, you’ll get a $300 bonus. For a $2000 deposit, the bonus amount will be $400. This 20% welcome bonus is available for USD, EUR, AUD, and GBP base currency accounts.

2. RoboForex – $30 No Deposit Bonus

RoboForex offers a $30 no-deposit welcome bonus for their new clients. All you need to do is, open a live trading account, get verified, and request for the bonus. The bonus amount can be used for trading purposes without any restrictions. Besides, there is no limitation on withdrawing profits made by using the bonus amount.

3. XM – $30 No Deposit Bonus

XM’s $30 no-deposit bonus is a popular feature of the broker. It takes only 24 hours to process the bonus after you verify your new XM trading account. Please note that you need to perform an SMS verification from the XM member’s area to be eligible for the bonus.

This bonus program is available for new XM clients only. They allow traders to withdraw the profits except for the bonus amounts.

At the End

The popularity of online trading is gradually increasing in South Africa. However, it is always challenging for newbie traders to find a legitimate broker that they can trust.

Besides, scams and fake brokers are always there to take advantage of inexperienced traders.

So, we thought this was the right time to create a comprehensive guideline for the newbie traders who are searching for their ideal trading home in South Africa.

In this Best Forex Brokers in South Africa review, we have focused on some key factors like regulation, spreads, commissions/fees, tradable assets, trading platforms, customer support, and years of experience in providing online trading services for ranking the best forex brokers in South Africa.

We’ve also researched and listed the welcome bonus programs offered by the top online trading brokers in South Africa. We hope this guide will help to find the right broker for South African citizens.

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I have been actively trading the financial markets since April 2012. Besides trading with my personal money I am a technical analyst in a mutual fund that has Rs. 1 billion in assets under management. At my leisure, I love attending live music, traveling, and partying with friends.

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Trend Following System's goal is to share as many Forex trading systems, strategies as possible to the retail traders so that you can make real money.

Risk Warning: Trading in the forex market is very risky. Thus, it is may not be for everyone. A highly leveraged position can work against the trader when the trade does not work as expected. Trading in the forex market can cause to lose a significant portion of the capital or all of the capital. It is crucial to learn about the trading and gain enough experience in the demo account before trading with real money. The trading strategies published on this website do not guarantee profit as the market is dynamic and unpredictable. The past performance of a strategy is not the indicative of future performance. Trend Following System will not accept any kind of liability or damage caused by trading the strategies published on this website.
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