The UK’s FCA ranks first in our list, ahead of Germany’s BaFin, the Central Bank of Ireland, Italy’s CONSOB and Cyprus’s CySEC. The rank measures the protection a licence gives: compensation, client money, retail rules, licensing, enforcement and a public register. It does not say how good any single broker is.
You may have seen regulators sorted into tier 1, tier 2 and offshore. No official tier list exists. The groups on this page are ours, and the method is shown below, so you can check each step.
Regulators ranked
The table lists 28 regulators, best protection first. Select a regulator to jump to its profile.
| Rank | Regulator | Country | Group | Investor compensation | Retail leverage limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FCA | United Kingdom | Strong protection | GBP 85,000 per eligible person | 30:1 to 2:1, by underlying |
| 2 | BaFin | Germany | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 (90% of claim) | 30:1 major FX |
| 3 | CBI | Ireland | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 (90% of net loss) | 30:1 major FX |
| 4 | CONSOB | Italy | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 per investor | 30:1 major FX |
| 5 | CySEC | Cyprus | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 (90% of claim) | 30:1 major FX |
| 6 | MFSA | Malta | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 (90% of claims) | 30:1 major FX |
| 7 | KNF | Poland | Strong protection | About EUR 20,100 | 30:1 major FX; up to 100:1 for experienced clients |
| 8 | ASIC | Australia | Strong protection | – | 30:1 major pairs |
| 9 | CMVM | Portugal | Strong protection | EUR 25,000 per investor | 30:1 major FX (3.33% margin) |
| 10 | EFSA | Estonia | Strong protection | EUR 20,000 per investor | – |
| 11 | HCMC | Greece | Strong protection | EUR 30,000 (TEKE limit) | – |
| 12 | DFSA | UAE (DIFC, Dubai) | Solid supervision | – | 30:1 major pairs (3.3% margin) |
| 13 | MAS | Singapore | Solid supervision | – | 20:1 |
| 14 | FSA Japan | Japan | Solid supervision | Not covered | 25:1 |
| 15 | LFSA | Malaysia (Labuan) | Solid supervision | – | 100:1 |
| 16 | FSCA | South Africa | Solid supervision | – | – |
| 17 | CIMA | Cayman Islands | Solid supervision | – | – |
| 18 | FINMA | Switzerland | Solid supervision | CHF 100,000 (cash deposits only) | – |
| 19 | FSRA | UAE (ADGM, Abu Dhabi) | Solid supervision | – | – |
| 20 | FMA | New Zealand | Solid supervision | – | – |
| 21 | SCB | The Bahamas | Light supervision | – | Up to 200:1 |
| 22 | FSC Belize | Belize | Light supervision | – | – |
| 23 | FSC Mauritius | Mauritius | Light supervision | – | – |
| 24 | FSA Seychelles | Seychelles | Light supervision | – | – |
| 25 | VFSC | Vanuatu | Light supervision | – | – |
| 26 | FSC BVI | British Virgin Islands | Light supervision | – | – |
| 27 | AOFA | Comoros (Anjouan) | Little protection | – | – |
| 28 | MISA | Comoros (Mwali) | Little protection | – | – |
A dash means we found no published rule or figure.
How we rank
Each regulator is scored on six criteria. The weights add up to 100.
| Criterion | Weight | What it looks at |
|---|---|---|
| Investor compensation | 25 | A scheme that pays investors when a firm fails. |
| Client money | 20 | Rules that keep client money apart from the firm’s own money. |
| Retail rules | 20 | Leverage limits, negative balance protection, margin close-out and risk warnings. |
| Licensing | 15 | What a firm must meet to be authorised, such as capital. |
| Enforcement | 15 | Dated, published fines and licence actions. |
| Public register | 5 | A register of authorised firms that anyone can check. |
A criterion with no published rule or figure is left out of the score instead of counting as zero. A regulator with fewer than three scored criteria is not ranked and appears under bodies we do not rank. The exception is a body whose licensing role a central bank publicly disputes: it ranks last.
The score sorts regulators inside four groups:
- Strong protection: binding retail rules or notified national CFD measures, a client money rule, and a compensation scheme or the EU investor compensation floor. ASIC is placed here by exception, explained below.
- Solid supervision: a client money or capital rule, and either a retail limit or dated enforcement with published details, with no scheme that covers forex or CFD positions.
- Light supervision: a licence and usually a register, but not enough of the above for Solid supervision. We found no compensation scheme.
- Little protection: a licensing role that a central bank publicly disputes, with no retail rules, client money rule or compensation that we could find.
In Strong protection the score decides the order. In the other groups, regulators with a binding retail leverage limit come first, then the score. Ties go by number of scored criteria, then by name.
The regulator your broker’s account sits under matters. The entity that holds your account decides which rules and which compensation scheme apply.
Strong protection
These regulators combine binding retail rules or notified national CFD measures, a client money rule and a compensation scheme. ASIC sits here although we found no statutory compensation scheme for CFD clients, because its binding retail order and client money rules close the other gaps.
FCA
Financial Conduct Authority. It combines a compensation scheme, strict retail rules and regularly published fines.
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 April 2013, successor to the FSA |
| Supervises | Authorises and supervises UK CFD, spread-betting and forex firms for conduct and prudential rules. |
| Compensation | FSCS pays up to GBP 85,000 per eligible person per firm for investment claims when an authorised firm fails. The December 2025 rise to GBP 120,000 applies to deposits only. It covers firm failure, not trading losses. |
| Client money | Client money must be kept separate from the firm’s own money under the CASS rules. |
| Retail rules | Leverage is capped between 30:1 and 2:1, depending on the underlying. Positions close out when funds fall to 50% of required margin. Negative balance protection applies. A standard risk warning shows the share of retail accounts that lose money, and inducements are banned. In force for CFDs since 1 August 2019. |
| Licensing | Full authorisation under FSMA. CFD and spread-betting firms face a minimum capital of GBP 750,000 under the investment firm prudential regime, phased in. |
| Enforcement | 27 Jan 2025: a fine of GBP 99,200 for transaction reporting failures. 29 Jul 2025: a fine of GBP 1,087,300 for transaction reporting failures. Final notices are published. |
| Official website | www.fca.org.uk |
| Official register | Open the register |
BaFin
Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (Federal Financial Supervisory Authority). It has binding retail CFD limits, a compensation scheme, and published fines and warnings.
| Country | Germany |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 May 2002 |
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises German banks and securities institutions, including CFD and forex providers established in Germany. It cannot act directly against EU-passported brokers serving German clients and refers them to their home regulator. |
| Compensation | The EdW pays 90% of claims, up to the equivalent of EUR 20,000 per investor. BaFin must determine a compensation case before payout. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. In Germany the annual audit under section 89 WpHG also covers custody business. |
| Retail rules | General ruling of 23 July 2019, in force from 1 August 2019: 30:1 on major FX pairs down to 2:1 on crypto-assets, margin close-out at half the required margin, and a ban on CFDs with an additional payment obligation. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 22 Dec 2025: two fines totalling EUR 560,000 for advertising fee-bearing services as free. BaFin also publishes warnings about unlicensed firms. |
| Official website | www.bafin.de |
| Official register | Open the register |
CBI
Central Bank of Ireland. It offers a compensation scheme and national CFD rules set in 2019.
| Country | Ireland |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 February 1943 |
| Supervises | Authorises and supervises Irish investment firms, banks and funds under MiFID II. |
| Compensation | The Investor Compensation Scheme pays 90% of net loss, up to EUR 20,000 per investor. Professional and institutional clients are excluded. It pays only if the High Court liquidates the firm or the Central Bank determines the firm cannot meet claims. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. Irish Client Asset Requirements also apply. |
| Retail rules | Irish national measures on CFDs for retail clients, set in 2019: 30:1 on major FX pairs (lower limits for other underlyings), margin close-out, negative balance protection per account, an incentive ban and a standard risk warning. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 27 Feb 2025: a fine of EUR 452,790 after a 30% settlement discount, for suspicious-trade reporting. Nov 2025: a settlement of about EUR 21.5 million for anti-money-laundering transaction monitoring. Neither case concerns CFDs. |
| Official website | www.centralbank.ie |
| Official register | Open the register |
CONSOB
Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa. It combines a national guarantee fund, a CFD resolution and a steady programme of website blackouts.
| Country | Italy |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1974 (Law 216 of 7 June 1974) |
| Supervises | Supervises conduct and transparency in Italian securities markets and investment services, and blacks out unauthorised financial websites offering CFDs, forex and crypto to Italians. |
| Compensation | The Fondo Nazionale di Garanzia pays up to EUR 20,000 per investor. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Consob resolution 20976 (2019, permanent under MiFIR Article 42) restricts CFDs for retail clients: 30:1 on major FX pairs, negative balance protection, an incentive ban and a risk warning. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | In 2025 Consob blacked out 307 websites (196 offering investment services and 111 offering crypto). Since July 2019 it has blacked out 2,270 domains, as of 5 Dec 2025. It also publishes sanctions. |
| Official website | www.consob.it |
| Official register | Open the register |
CySEC
Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission. It is the home regulator of many EU-passported CFD brokers and publishes dated fines.
| Country | Cyprus |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises Cyprus Investment Firms, the home regulator of many EU-passported forex and CFD brokers serving clients across Europe. |
| Compensation | The Investor Compensation Fund pays the lower of 90% of the claim or EUR 20,000 per covered client, whatever the number of accounts. Professional clients and investment firms are excluded. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Permanent CFD measures (ESMA opinion of 27 September 2019): 30:1 on major FX pairs, margin close-out, negative balance protection, an incentive ban and a standard risk warning, with some variations from ESMA’s temporary measures. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 17 Mar 2025: a fine of EUR 7,000 under Article 54(1) of Regulation 2019/2033. Jul 2025: fines of EUR 3,650 (anti-money-laundering) and EUR 1,300 (late filing). Dec 2025: a fine of EUR 100,000 for licensing, conduct and marketing breaches. |
| Official website | www.cysec.gov.cy |
| Official register | Open the register |
MFSA
Malta Financial Services Authority. It has a compensation scheme and national CFD measures, though we found few published penalties.
| Country | Malta |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2002 |
| Supervises | Single regulator for Maltese financial services. It licenses investment services firms that offer forex and CFDs, many with EU passports. |
| Compensation | The Investor Compensation Scheme pays the lesser of 90% of claims or EUR 20,000 per investor. It covers customers of member investment firms licensed by the MFSA. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Malta’s permanent CFD restriction for retail clients mirrors ESMA’s 2018 measures: 30:1 on major FX pairs down to 2:1 on crypto-assets, with clients unable to lose more than they put in. |
| Licensing | Investment services firms need MFSA authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II). |
| Enforcement | 10 Jan 2025: an investment firm paid EUR 2,500 for Rulebook breaches. 1 Aug 2025: an investment services firm paid a settlement of EUR 4,127 for late regulatory filings. |
| Official website | www.mfsa.mt |
| Official register | Open the register |
KNF
Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego (Polish Financial Supervision Authority). It has a national compensation system and issued a large dated fine in 2026.
| Country | Poland |
|---|---|
| Founded | 19 September 2006 |
| Supervises | Supervises the Polish financial market, including brokerage houses offering CFDs, and keeps a public warning list of entities reported to prosecutors for suspected crimes. |
| Compensation | The Krajowy System Rekompensat, run by KDPW, pays 100% of the first EUR 3,000 and 90% of the amount up to EUR 22,000. The maximum is about EUR 20,100 per investor, whatever the number of accounts. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | National CFD measures follow ESMA’s (30:1 on major FX pairs, margin close-out, negative balance protection, a risk warning), but an experienced-client category is allowed up to 100:1 leverage. ESMA criticised that category in 2019. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 30 Mar 2026: a fine of PLN 20 million (about USD 5.5 million) for target-group, suitability and risk-disclosure failures. The notice was published on 13 Apr 2026. KNF also keeps a public warning list of unauthorised entities. |
| Official website | www.knf.gov.pl |
ASIC
Australian Securities and Investments Commission. It sets binding retail CFD limits and secured a record court penalty in 2026.
| Country | Australia |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 July 1998, successor to the ASC (1991) |
| Supervises | Licenses AFS licensees that issue CFDs and OTC forex and enforces the CFD product intervention order for retail clients. |
| Compensation | Licensees serving retail clients must hold compensation arrangements, in practice professional indemnity insurance (section 912B Corporations Act, ASIC RG 126). |
| Client money | Corporations Act client money rules apply to AFS licensees dealing in OTC derivatives (ASIC RG 212). |
| Retail rules | The CFD product intervention order has applied since 29 March 2021 and was extended and currently ends on 23 May 2027. In October 2026 ASIC proposed extending it to 2037. Leverage is 30:1 on major currency pairs, 20:1 on minor pairs, gold and major indices, 10:1 on other commodities and minor indices, 5:1 on shares and 2:1 on crypto-assets. Negative balance protection and standard margin close-out apply, and inducements such as trading credits and rebates are banned. ASIC decided not to require issuer-specific risk warnings. |
| Licensing | Providers need an Australian Financial Services Licence, with ongoing obligations. |
| Enforcement | 2026: the Federal Court ordered AUD 300.2 million in penalties against three CFD operators (AUD 156.7 million, AUD 114.1 million and AUD 29.4 million) for conduct in 2018 to 2020. ASIC described it as a record. ASIC also publishes media releases and enforcement outcomes. |
| Official website | asic.gov.au |
CMVM
Comissão do Mercado de Valores Mobiliários (Portuguese Securities Market Commission). It restricts CFD sales to non-professional investors and has a compensation system for investors.
| Country | Portugal |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1991 |
| Supervises | Supervises securities markets and financial intermediaries in Portugal, including CFD and forex intermediaries. |
| Compensation | The Sistema de Indemnização aos Investidores pays up to EUR 25,000 per investor. It is aimed at non-professional investors and does not cover loss in market value. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Regulation 5/2019 restricts the marketing, distribution and sale of CFDs to non-professional investors (in force from 3 July 2019). Minimum initial margins apply, such as 3.33% on major FX pairs. |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 29 Jan 2025 report: four fines of EUR 25,000 each (EUR 50,000 of the total suspended) and one admonition. Decisions are published in anonymised form. |
| Official website | www.cmvm.pt |
EFSA
Finantsinspektsioon (English name: Estonian Financial Supervision and Resolution Authority). It has a guarantee fund for investors, but we found few published actions against investment firms.
| Country | Estonia |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Supervises banks, insurers, investment firms, securities and crypto-asset markets in Estonia. |
| Compensation | The Guarantee Fund (Tagatisfond) protects investors up to EUR 20,000 per investor in any one investment firm, valued at the compensation date. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Estonia notified ESMA of national CFD restrictions (ESMA opinion of 5 June 2019). |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 4 Mar 2024: a credit provider was fined EUR 16,000 for late supervisory reports. |
| Official website | www.fi.ee |
| Official register | Open the register |
HCMC
Hellenic Capital Market Commission. It has a national CFD restriction and published a licence withdrawal in 2024.
| Country | Greece |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1991 |
| Supervises | Supervises the Greek capital market and investment firms, including those offering CFDs and forex. |
| Compensation | The Hellenic Deposit and Investment Guarantee Fund (TEKE) pays up to EUR 30,000 per investor per institution for investment-service claims. |
| Client money | EU rules require client funds to be kept apart from the firm’s own, with an annual report by the external auditor to the regulator. |
| Retail rules | Greece notified ESMA of national CFD measures (ESMA opinion of 24 June 2019). |
| Licensing | Investment firms need authorisation under the EU investment firm regime (MiFID II), which comes with prudential capital rules. |
| Enforcement | 11 Jan 2024: an investment firm’s licence was revoked and the firm placed in special liquidation, with a fine of EUR 270,000 on the firm and EUR 70,000 on its managing director. |
| Official website | www.hcmc.gr |
Solid supervision
These regulators have a client money or capital rule and either a retail limit or dated enforcement with published details. No compensation scheme that covers forex or CFD positions is published for them.
DFSA
Dubai Financial Services Authority. It sets full retail CFD rules and requires an auditor’s report on client money.
| Country | UAE (DIFC, Dubai) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2004, with the DIFC |
| Supervises | Independent regulator of financial services in the Dubai International Financial Centre, authorising CFD and forex firms. |
| Client money | Firms holding client money must keep it separately and have their auditor produce a Client Money Auditor’s Report, which the DFSA reviews each year (GEN rule 8.6.1(d)). |
| Retail rules | Rulebook COB 6.16 sets minimum margin of 3.3% for major currency pairs (about 30:1), 5% for non-major pairs, major equity indices and gold, 10% for other indices and commodities, 20% for other assets and 50% for crypto tokens. Positions close out when net equity falls below 50% of margin, liability is limited to the funds in the trading account, and incentives such as bonuses and volume rebates are prohibited. The risk warning must state the percentage of retail accounts that lost money. |
| Licensing | DFSA authorisation is required to carry on regulated activities in the DIFC. |
| Enforcement | 3 Feb 2026: the Financial Markets Tribunal upheld a DFSA fine of USD 25,000 for failing to report suspicious transactions. The case is not a CFD matter. |
| Official website | www.dfsa.ae |
| Official register | Open the register |
MAS
Monetary Authority of Singapore. It requires customer money to be held on trust and caps retail leverage at 20:1.
| Country | Singapore |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 January 1971 |
| Supervises | Licenses Capital Markets Services holders dealing in leveraged FX and CFDs under the Securities and Futures Act. |
| Client money | Customer money must be held on trust (Securities and Futures (Licensing and Conduct of Business) Regulations, Part III Division 2, regulations 16 and 17), in a trust account with specified financial institutions. |
| Retail rules | Retail leveraged FX and CFD trading requires a 5% minimum margin, a 20:1 cap, in force from October 2019 (down from 50:1 at 2% margin). Accredited investors can still get higher leverage. |
| Licensing | A Capital Markets Services licence is required. |
| Enforcement | 3 Jul 2025: a capital markets licence was revoked. 4 Jul 2025: composition penalties of SGD 27.45 million on nine institutions for anti-money-laundering failures. Neither concerns CFD brokers. |
| Official website | www.mas.gov.sg |
| Official register | Open the register |
FSA Japan
Financial Services Agency (JFSA). It caps retail FX leverage at 25 times and requires customer margin to be held in trust, but its investor protection fund does not cover FX margin trading or CFDs.
| Country | Japan |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1998, as the Financial Supervisory Agency; FSA from 1 July 2000 |
| Supervises | Registers and supervises financial instruments business operators offering retail FX margin trading and CFDs, with Local Finance Bureaus handling some supervision. |
| Compensation | The Japan Investor Protection Fund does not cover over-the-counter derivatives such as FX margin trading and CFDs. |
| Client money | Individual customers’ margin for FX must be held in trust in a separate account (trust preservation), introduced by the 2010 amendment to the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. Operators must also run loss-cut rules. |
| Retail rules | Retail FX leverage has been capped at 25 times (4% margin) since 1 August 2011. It was 50 times from 1 August 2010 to 31 July 2011. Loss-cut must be executed when triggered, not only at the daily margin check. |
| Licensing | Firms must register as financial instruments business operators. |
| Official website | www.fsa.go.jp/en |
| Official register | Open the register |
LFSA
Labuan Financial Services Authority. It sets a leverage cap and a capital minimum for Labuan money brokers and publishes revocations.
| Country | Malaysia (Labuan) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 15 February 1996, as the Labuan Offshore Financial Services Authority; renamed in February 2010 |
| Supervises | Licenses Labuan money brokers under the Guidelines on the Establishment of Money Broking Business in Labuan IBFC (9 September 2024). Money brokers act as intermediaries, not principals. CFDs on assets outside money and FX are not permitted under the guidelines. |
| Retail rules | Maximum leverage for money brokers is 100:1 (1% minimum margin) on FX trades and 1:1 on digital assets under the 2024 guidelines. |
| Licensing | Minimum paid-up capital of RM 1,000,000 for money and FX broking, and RM 1,500,000 where digital assets are included. It must be unimpaired at all times and deposited with a regulated bank in Labuan or Malaysia. |
| Enforcement | The Labuan FSA publishes enforcement actions from July 2018. Money broker licences were revoked on 14 Jul 2022 and 15 Aug 2022 for failing the minimum capital or filing obligations. |
| Official website | www.labuanfsa.gov.my |
FSCA
Financial Sector Conduct Authority. It has a client money rule, a capital rule for firms that take the other side of client trades, and a large published penalty record.
| Country | South Africa |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 April 2018, successor to the FSB |
| Supervises | Licenses financial services providers. |
| Client money | The FAIS General Code of Conduct requires a licensed provider to keep client funds in a separate bank account used only for client money. |
| Licensing | A firm that takes the other side of client CFD trades needs an over-the-counter derivative provider licence under Conduct Standard 1 of 2018, with equity capital in South Africa of at least six months of operating expenses. An ordinary licence only allows marketing and intermediation. |
| Enforcement | 9 Dec 2025: a penalty of about ZAR 2 billion on a firm and its directors over misuse of client funds, with 30-year debarments and a referral to the police. Reported FSCA penalties for the year to 31 March 2026 totalled about ZAR 2.9 billion. |
| Official website | www.fsca.co.za |
| Official register | Open the register |
CIMA
Cayman Islands Monetary Authority. It publishes regular dated fines and requires client money to be held separately.
| Country | Cayman Islands |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 January 1997, under the Monetary Authority Law |
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises securities investment business under the Securities Investment Business Act. Retail clients require a full licence. A tiered administrative fines regime has applied since 2019. |
| Client money | Under Part IV of the Securities Investment Business (Conduct of Business) Regulations, client money must be held separately from the licensee’s own money. |
| Licensing | Securities investment business needs a licence, and retail clients require a full licence. |
| Enforcement | 29 Sep 2025: a fine of CI$230,038.72 for anti-money-laundering and client disclosure breaches. 18 Feb 2022: a fine of CI$261,990.72. 8 Oct 2021: a fine of CI$250,000. Fines are tiered as minor, serious or very serious. |
| Official website | www.cima.ky |
| Official register | Open the register |
FINMA
Eidgenössische Finanzmarktaufsicht (Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority). It sets a clear minimum capital for securities firms. We found no published retail leverage rule.
| Country | Switzerland |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises Swiss banks and securities firms, including FINMA-licensed CFD and forex dealers, and publishes a warning list of unauthorised providers. Switzerland is not in the EU, so ESMA CFD rules do not apply. |
| Compensation | The esisuisse scheme protects deposits up to CHF 100,000 per client and institution. At securities firms it covers cash balances only, and only at firms authorised as account-holding. Securities in custody are not covered but remain the client’s property. |
| Licensing | Securities firms need fully paid-up minimum capital of at least CHF 1.5 million (FinIO Article 69), higher where FINMA sees grounds. |
| Enforcement | 8 Mar 2024: FINMA withdrew the bank and securities-dealer licence of one institution and opened bankruptcy proceedings on 13 Jun 2024. FINMA also publishes a warning list. |
| Official website | www.finma.ch |
| Official register | Open the register |
FSRA
Financial Services Regulatory Authority (Abu Dhabi Global Market). It has client money rules, a capital rule for dealers and a rulebook chapter for OTC leveraged products.
| Country | UAE (ADGM, Abu Dhabi) |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Regulates firms in the Abu Dhabi Global Market, including those offering OTC leveraged products to retail clients under chapter 23 of the Conduct of Business Rulebook, implemented on 30 November 2022. |
| Client money | Firms must hold client money on trust in a distinctly titled client account, must not pay their own money into it, and must have the client money controls independently reviewed each year. |
| Retail rules | Chapter 23 requires a risk disclosure statement and an appropriateness assessment for retail clients. |
| Licensing | A firm needs a Financial Services Permission. Dealing in investments as principal requires base capital of USD 2 million, which also applies to matched principal dealing in OTC leveraged products with retail clients. |
| Enforcement | Apr 2025: a virtual-asset group was fined and its licence cancelled. The case does not concern forex. |
| Official website | www.adgm.com/fsra |
| Official register | Open the register |
FMA
Financial Markets Authority. It licenses derivatives issuers with a net tangible assets requirement, but no leverage limit applied at its 2024 consultation.
| Country | New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 May 2011 |
| Supervises | Licenses derivatives issuers, including foreign CFD and forex firms offering to New Zealand clients, and enforces licence conditions. |
| Retail rules | At the June 2024 consultation, no limit applied to the leverage a licensed derivatives issuer may offer retail investors. The FMA proposed a standard condition capping leverage by initial margin (30:1 on major currency pairs, 20:1 on minor pairs, gold and major indices, 10:1 on commodities and minor indices, 5:1 on equities, 2:1 on crypto) plus margin close-out. It was a proposal only. |
| Licensing | Derivatives issuers need a licence under the Financial Markets Conduct Act. Licensed derivatives issuers must hold net tangible assets of NZD 1 million. |
| Enforcement | 9 Sep 2024: the FMA cancelled a derivatives issuer licence after eight breaches of licence obligations. A High Court appeal was dismissed. |
| Official website | www.fma.govt.nz |
Light supervision
These regulators license firms and, in most cases, publish a register. Each misses at least one test for Solid supervision, and we found no compensation scheme.
SCB
Securities Commission of The Bahamas. It has a written CFD rulebook with negative balance protection and risk warnings.
| Country | The Bahamas |
|---|---|
| Founded | 20 June 1995, as the Securities Board; the Securities Commission since 1999 |
| Supervises | Registers broker-dealers and CFD firms. The Securities Industry (Contracts for Differences) Rules, 2020 (S.I. No. 78 of 2020, gazetted 26 May 2020) apply to CFD firms. The Securities Industry Act 2024 replaced the Securities Industry Act 2011. A consultation from 28 August to 25 September 2026 proposed changes to the CFD rules. |
| Retail rules | The 2020 CFD Rules set a minimum margin of 0.5% of exposure for the listed asset classes, equal to up to 200:1 leverage, and 5% for digital assets. They also set a 50% close-out level, negative balance protection (rule 29), standard risk warnings (rule 20), a restriction on incentives to retail clients without the Commission’s consent (rule 30) and a ban on binary options for retail clients (rule 32). |
| Licensing | Broker-dealers and CFD firms must be registered with the Commission. |
| Enforcement | Enforcement report for 2025: 23 investigations concluded, 5 warning notices, 2 referrals for prosecution and USD 142,650 in civil penalties, all in anti-money-laundering cases. Disciplinary decisions are published, the latest a 2026 prohibition order. |
| Official website | www.scb.gov.bs |
| Official register | Open the register |
FSC Belize
Financial Services Commission of Belize (formerly International Financial Services Commission, IFSC). It publishes non-renewal notices and an online register, with a high stated capital for forex dealers.
| Country | Belize |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1999, as the IFSC |
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises international financial services firms including forex dealers. Renamed from IFSC to FSC with effect from 1 January 2022. The current statute is the Financial Services Commission Act, Act No. 8 of 2023. |
| Licensing | Minimum capital for forex and derivatives trading was raised from USD 100,000 to USD 500,000 in 2016. |
| Enforcement | Publishes non-renewal notices (2019, 2021 and January 2023) naming firms no longer licensed, plus warnings about unlicensed firms and forged licences. No dated fines are listed. |
| Official website | www.belizefsc.org.bz |
| Official register | Open the register |
FSC Mauritius
Financial Services Commission, Mauritius. It publishes licence notices and a statutory register. We found no published retail leverage rule.
| Country | Mauritius |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2001, under the Financial Services Development Act 2001 |
| Supervises | Licenses Investment Dealers (full service excluding underwriting, brokers, discount brokers) under the Securities Act 2005 and the Financial Services Act 2007, and publishes public notices of suspensions, revocations and investor alerts. |
| Licensing | Investment Dealer licences are issued under the Securities Act 2005 and the Financial Services Act 2007. |
| Enforcement | A public notice of 31 Jan 2025 suspended an investment dealer (broker) licence. A revocation notice is dated 25 Apr 2023. A suspension notice dates from 2015. No penalty amounts are listed. |
| Official website | www.fscmauritius.org |
| Official register | Open the register |
FSA Seychelles
Financial Services Authority, Seychelles. It has a statutory client money rule and publishes licence revocations. We found no published leverage limit.
| Country | Seychelles |
|---|---|
| Founded | Established under the Financial Services Authority Act, 2013 |
| Supervises | Licenses and supervises Securities Dealers under the Securities Act 2007, the licence used by retail CFD brokers. It states that it does not supervise the foreign exchange market itself, which falls under the Central Bank of Seychelles. |
| Client money | Under Part 3 of the Securities (Conduct of Business) Regulations 2008, a securities dealer must hold client money in client bank accounts at an approved bank, separate from its own money and on trust for clients. |
| Licensing | The FSA lists minimum issued and paid-up capital of USD 50,000 for a securities dealer. |
| Enforcement | One securities dealer licence was revoked effective 20 Nov 2024 (notice dated 21 Nov 2024) and another effective 7 Nov 2024. No fine amounts are listed. |
| Official website | fsaseychelles.sc |
| Official register | Open the register |
VFSC
Vanuatu Financial Services Commission. It publishes licence revocations. We found no published client money or retail rule.
| Country | Vanuatu |
|---|---|
| Founded | 20 December 1993 (Vanuatu Financial Services Commission Act No. 35 of 1993) |
| Supervises | Licenses financial dealers (forex, securities, derivatives) under the Financial Dealers Licensing Act (CAP 70). Classes A, B and C were introduced in 2019. |
| Licensing | The 2019 framework required a USD 50,000 deposit with the regulator, professional indemnity insurance of about USD 45,000 per claim, a local office and directors with five years of experience. |
| Enforcement | Many financial dealer licence revocations were published in 2025 and 2026. No fines are listed. |
| Official website | www.vfsc.vu |
FSC BVI
Financial Services Commission, British Virgin Islands. Forex became a licensed activity only on 2 January 2025, so its forex record is short.
| Country | British Virgin Islands |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2001 (Financial Services Commission Act, 2001) |
| Supervises | Licenses investment business under the Securities and Investment Business Act 2010 (SIBA). Forex contracts were added to the regulated instruments in Schedule 1 of SIBA with effect from 2 January 2025, so BVI companies dealing in forex now need a SIBA licence unless exempt. |
| Licensing | A SIBA licence is required for investment business, and since 2 January 2025 for forex. |
| Enforcement | 2013: a cease-and-desist order against one forex firm and a penalty of USD 10,000 on another. Dec 2025: a public advisory warning about unauthorised investment business. |
| Official website | www.bvifsc.vg |
| Official register | Open the register |
Little protection
The Central Bank of Comoros disputes the licensing role of these two bodies. We found no retail rules, client money rule or compensation for forex or CFD clients under them.
AOFA
Anjouan Offshore Finance Authority. Its licensing role is disputed by the Central Bank of Comoros.
| Country | Comoros (Anjouan) |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Issues brokerage, crypto, gaming and other licences registered on Anjouan. |
| Licensing | The Central Bank of Comoros, in a communiqué dated June 2022 and republished by the Comorian Ministry of Finance on 10 December 2025, warns against what it calls fictitious structures claiming to issue licences to banks and financial institutions, states that licensing them is its exclusive remit, and lists this authority among the structures concerned. The text concerns banks and financial institutions in general and does not name forex firms. |
MISA
Mwali International Services Authority. Its licensing role is disputed by the Central Bank of Comoros.
| Country | Comoros (Mwali) |
|---|---|
| Supervises | Registers companies and issues brokerage and other licences on Mwali. |
| Licensing | The Central Bank of Comoros, in a communiqué dated June 2022 and republished by the Comorian Ministry of Finance on 10 December 2025, calls this authority a ‘structure fictive’ (fictitious structure) and states that licensing of banks and financial institutions is its exclusive remit. The text concerns banks and financial institutions in general and does not name forex firms. |
| Enforcement | We found no published warnings, penalties or court cases. |
Bodies we do not rank
For CMA we found too few published rules to compare it fairly. The other three do not license retail forex or CFD firms.
CMA (formerly SCA)
Capital Market Authority, formerly the Securities and Commodities Authority. We found too few published rules to compare it fairly.
| Country | UAE (onshore) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2000, as the SCA; reconstituted as the Capital Market Authority on 1 January 2026 |
| Supervises | Onshore UAE capital markets regulator. Federal Decree-Law 32 of 2025 reconstituted the Securities and Commodities Authority as the Capital Market Authority from 1 January 2026, replacing Federal Law 4 of 2000. The CMA is the legal successor. Activity inside the financial free zones (DIFC and ADGM) is outside its scope. |
| Enforcement | July 2025: a licensed company was fined AED 5 million over money-laundering rule breaches, and the case was referred to the public prosecution. |
BACEN
Banco Central do Brasil. Retail CFD and forex offers fall under the CVM, which states that no such offer is authorised in Brazil, so the central bank has no retail forex or CFD licence to rank.
CVM
Comissão de Valores Mobiliários. It states that no CFD or forex offer is authorised in Brazil, so there is no licensed retail regime to rank.
FSA SVG
Financial Services Authority, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It states that it does not issue forex or brokerage licences, so a company registered there for forex must show a licence from the place where it operates (notice of 12 January 2023).
How to check a broker’s licence
- Find the legal name of the company that holds your account. It is in the broker’s terms and conditions, not in its logo.
- Find the regulator named next to that company, and open its official register using the link in its profile above.
- Search the register for the exact company name and check that the licence is active.
- Check that the licence covers forex or CFDs, and that the company is licensed in the country that is named.
- Look for the company on the regulator’s warning list or in its published enforcement notices.
Risk warning. Trading leveraged products such as forex and CFDs involves a high risk of losing money. A regulator’s rank does not remove that risk. Nothing on this page is advice or a recommendation to trade.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an official list of tier 1, tier 2 and offshore regulators?
No. Tier lists come from websites and are not set by any authority. The four groups on this page are our own, and the criteria and weights behind them are shown above.
Which regulator ranks first?
The UK’s FCA. It pays up to GBP 85,000 per eligible person per firm for investment claims when an authorised firm fails, caps retail leverage between 30:1 and 2:1, and publishes dated fines.
Does a compensation scheme cover my trading losses?
No. The schemes on this page pay when a firm fails, not when a trade loses money. Whether a scheme covers CFD and forex clients depends on the scheme, so check it for the entity that holds your account.
What is the EU investor compensation floor?
EU Directive 97/9/EC sets a minimum of EUR 20,000 per investor, and member states may limit the payout to 90% of the claim. National schemes can pay more, such as the EUR 25,000 of Portugal’s system.
Does a high rank mean a broker is safe?
No. The rank describes the protection a licence gives, not how a broker behaves. The company that holds your account decides which regulator and which rules apply.
Why are some bodies not ranked, and what does a dash mean?
Bodies that do not license retail forex or CFD firms, or for which we found too few published rules to compare fairly, are listed apart. One example is Brazil’s CVM, which states that no CFD or forex offer is authorised in Brazil. A dash in a table means we found no published rule or figure.
