High Leverage Forex Brokers in South Africa

Brokers we recommend

4.8 / 5

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Trade over 1,000 instruments on flexible leverage up to 1:500 on the MT4/5 and cTrader platforms. FPMarkets.com is a true ECN broker and accepts all trading styles without restrictions.

4.0 / 5

Official website ▷

FXCC.com is a regulated offshore broker with low spreads and high leverage, up to 1:500. It supports all trading styles on the MetaTrader 4 platform.

4.1 / 5

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Trading Forex/CFDs on margin carries a high level of risk.

4xc.com is an offshore broker founded in 2018 by traders. Trade Forex, metals, oil and stocks with leverage up to 1:500. It accepts all trading styles and Expert Advisors on MT4/5.

More 1:500 leverage brokers:

• HYCM Best Forex Broker (Middle East)
• RoboForex Best Offshore Broker

High leverage brokers compared

We rate brokers across 5 categories and 18 criteria, following a standardised methodology. Here are our overall and category-specific ratings:

• Score / 5
• Markets
• Platforms
• Funding
• Regulators

4.8 / 5

Official website ▷

Trade over 1,000 instruments on flexible leverage up to 1:500 on the MT4/5 and cTrader platforms. FPMarkets.com is a true ECN broker and accepts all trading styles without restrictions.

• Likes
• Flexible leverage up to 1:500.
• Trade over 1,000 financial instruments.
• Trade on MT4/5, cTrader or TradingView without restrictions.
• Copy trading service is available.
• Customer support is available 24/7.

• Dislikes
• No investor compensation fund in the event of bankruptcy.

Our take on FP Markets

Trade Forex, gold, silver and commodities on 1:500 leverage, oil and indices on 1:100 leverage, Bitcoin on 1:50 leverage, other cryptocurrencies and individual stocks on 1:20 leverage.

We particularly like that FPMarkets.com doesn't lower the maximum leverage during news releases, rollovers or on weekends. This will appeal to you if you enjoy news trading, or simply prefer to keep your positions open over days or weeks.

FPMarkets.com stands out in other ways. It accepts all trading styles and Expert Advisors on the MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms. We've also found its customer support team excellent, often going above and beyond what you'd expect from a broker.

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4.0 / 5

Official website ▷

FXCC.com is a regulated offshore broker with low spreads and high leverage, up to 1:500. It supports all trading styles on the MetaTrader 4 platform.

• Likes
• Low spreads from 0 pips.
• Flexible leverage up to 1:500.
• All trading styles are allowed.
• No minimum deposit.

• Dislikes
• 3个月无交易将收取闲置账户费用。
• MT4 is the only trading platform.
• Withdrawal fees apply across some, but not all, funding methods.

Our take on FXCC

Trade Forex, precious metals, indices and oil on 1:500 leverage. You may also trade Bitcoin on 1:20 leverage, and other tokens on 1:10. Note that you cannot trade CFDs on individual stocks.

As was the case with FPMarkets.com, we like that the maximum leverage available to you is constant at all times. This makes this platform well suited to news traders, swing traders and position traders.

We also like that FXCC.com accepts all trading styles and Expert Advisors on MetaTrader 4. And we look forward to the day when FXCC will support MetaTrader 5.

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4.1 / 5

Official website ▷

Trading Forex/CFDs on margin carries a high level of risk.

4xc.com is an offshore broker founded in 2018 by traders. Trade Forex, metals, oil and stocks with leverage up to 1:500. It accepts all trading styles and Expert Advisors on MT4/5.

• Likes
• Enjoy flexible leverage up to 1:500.
• Choose between MetaTrader 4 and 5, or copy trading.
• All trading styles and Expert Advisors are allowed.
• Fast execution speeds from its London data-centre.

• Dislikes
• Fewer CFDs than other brokers.
• Negative balance protection is only available across Forex and precious metals.
• This broker is regulated in the Cook Islands, a country without an investor compensation fund.

Our take on 4XC

Trade Forex, gold and silver on 1:500 leverage, indices and oil on 1:200 leverage, as well as cryptocurrencies on 1:20 leverage.

Unlike some brokers who'll increase margin requirements on weekends, public holidays or around news events, 4xc.com keeps its maximum leverage unchanged. We feel that this provides a more predictable trading environment, especially for beginners.

We also like that 4xc.com accepts all trading styles on MetaTrader 4 and 5. Its trading conditions are competitive, particularly on its Pro and VIP accounts designed for high-net-worth individuals.

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4.2 / 5

Official website ▷

85% of retail CFD accounts lose money

HYCM.com is an award-winning regulated online broker suitable for day traders as well as long-term investors. It's also an established broker, in business since 1999.

• Likes
• Trade CFDs or invest in over 1,000 "real" stocks.
• Trade on MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5.
• Get free signals from Trading Central.
• Open a trading account in USD, EUR, GBP, CAD and AED.

• Dislikes
• Trading fees on its Fixed and Classic accounts are a little high.
• Monthly inactivity fees apply after 90 days.
• Copy trading isn't possible.

Our take on HYCM

Trade Forex on 1:500 leverage, indices on 1:200 leverage, precious metals and commodities on 1:133 leverage, as well as crypto and individual stocks on 1:20 leverage.

HYCM.com's appeal lies partly in its brand name. The company was founded in the 70s and was one of the first to launch a Forex trading platform as early as 1999. In other words, HYCM.com is a broker you can trust.

In our experience, HYCM.com's fees are a little higher than the competition, unless you open a Raw account. However, we do appreciate the ability to open an account in USD, EUR, GBP, CAD or AED, which may help you avoid unnecessary currency conversion fees.

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4.1 / 5

Official website ▷

58.42% of retail CFD accounts lose money

RoboForex.com is an offshore broker based in and regulated in Belize. Access over 12,000 instruments, including real equities and CFDs on Forex, crypto and oil, from a single platform. We were able to start trading in minutes, without ID verification.

• Likes
• Access 12,000 instruments, including real stocks.
• Start trading in minutes without ID verification.
• Enjoy negative balance protection.

• Dislikes
• RoboForex is only regulated in Belize.
• Withdrawal fees across most funding methods.

Our take on RoboForex

RoboForex.com is one of the best high leverage Forex brokers. Trade Forex on 1:2000 leverage, gold on 1:2000 leverage, silver on 1:1000 leverage, in addition to CFDs on crypto, energy products and more through its Pro account. Its low stop out level (40%) is also a plus.

Our preference goes to its ECN account, which allows you to trade with 1:500 maximum leverage and low spreads plus a $2 commission per lot. Average spreads are 0.1 pips for the EUR/USD currency pair, 3.31 pips for Gold and 0.17 pips for Silver.

We also like RoboForex.com for other reasons, namely its lightning-fast account opening process and the speed with which its customer service agents answer questions on WhatsApp.

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What's the best broker for you?

The best broker for you will depend on your experience, and trading preferences. Here are our top picks for beginners, experienced traders and professional traders.

High leverage brokers for beginners

With a strong focus on customer education and support, FPMarkets.com is an excellent choice for newcomers. It offers a variety of educational resources, including beginner and advanced courses, webinars and ebooks that make it easier for beginners to get started. However, if you are completely new to trading, you may find FXCC.com's MetaTrader 4 platform even easier to use, as its interface is less cluttered.

High leverage brokers for advanced traders

FPMarkets.com supports MetaTrader 5, cTrader and TradingView, trading platforms ideally suited for advanced technical analysis and algorithmic trading. FPMarkets.com places no restrictions at all on your use of trading robots. Design your own trading robots or copy other traders' signals through each of these platforms. Run your trading scripts from your laptop, or host them on a virtual private server - the choice is yours.

High leverage brokers for professional traders

Swing and day traders will love FPMarkets.com's competitive spreads and low trading fees. ECN pricing on its Raw account guarantees razor-thin spreads, crucial for frequent trading. Day traders can also benefit from the depth of market display and technical indicators available on platforms like MetaTrader 5. FPMarkets.com is the only broker in our panel to provide depth of market information.

Leveraged trading example

There's more to trading on leverage than picking an asset and hitting the "Buy" button. Let us talk you through a trade we placed through a high leverage broker, step by step. We'll touch on position sizing, leverage, and key concepts every trader should know.

Step 1: Initiate your trade

Start by determining the size of the order you wish to place. Familiarise yourself with your broker's standard contract for the instrument in question, commonly known as 1 lot. For currency pairs, 1 lot typically represents 100,000 units of the base currency, like 100,000 euros for the EUR/USD pair. For gold, 1 lot is often equivalent to 100 troy ounces (3.11 kilograms), valued around $191,500 when gold trades at $1,915 an ounce.

As our trading account has a balance of only $51.61, we explored the smallest possible position size. A micro lot, or 0.01 lot (one-hundredth of a standard contract), is the minimum our broker permits. At the time of writing, one micro lot of gold required a $1,915 commitment.

With our account balance insufficient to cover this, we leveraged our position. Thanks to our broker's 1:200 leverage, we secured $1,915 worth of gold with a mere $9.57 deposit, as illustrated in our account's screenshot. This amount, known as the 'required margin', is 200 times less than the actual position size.

Most brokers provide fixed, not flexible, leverage. Fixed leverage is determined at the account level, and cannot be adjusted for each trade.

Step 2: Keep tabs on your trade

Let's clarify 4 crucial trading concepts:

• Balance: your total funds, excluding any unrealized gains or losses.
• Equity: your balance, including unrealized gains or losses. Any broker bonuses will appear here.
• Margin (or Required Margin): the funds you've allocated to your positions, representing your personal stake.
• Free Margin: your equity minus the required margin, indicating available funds for withdrawals or new positions.

Prior to opening our position, our account's balance, equity, and free margin were all equal to $51.61, while the required margin was zero. Once our order was executed, the required margin rose to $9.57, causing an equivalent fall in free margin. A subsequent $4.04 drop in the price of gold resulted in an unrealised loss, reducing both our equity and free margin, as is apparent in our account's screenshot.

Understanding margin calls and stop-outs:

A margin call occurs when the amount of your equity falls below your margin. Most brokers trigger this call as soon as your equity crosses this threshold, but some allow a lower threshold. When a margin call occurs, you will be asked to invest more money and will no longer be able to open new trades. In our example, the price of gold would need to drop by $42.04 compared to our purchase price to reach this threshold. This amounts to a 2.2% drop in the gold price, which could occur over several days, rather than one.

If the amount of our equity were to fall further, below 50% of the required margin, your broker will start to automatically close your positions. This is called a stop-out. This process will continue until the amount of your equity exceeds 50% of your required margin. In our example, the price of gold would only need to drop an additional $4.79 from the margin call threshold to trigger this process. This underscores the importance of having funds at hand to avoid being stopped out and realising your losses.

Step 3: Risk management is key

George Soros often likes to point out that: "It's not whether you're right or wrong that's important, but how much money you make when you're right and how much you lose when you're wrong." This is also why many traders set stop-loss and take-profit levels when opening a trade.

Stop-loss and take-profit orders are essential risk management tools. Both types of orders can take emotion out of trading by automatically closing your position once predetermined price points are reached. A stop-loss order will cap your losses when the market moves against you. Conversely, a take-profit order will exit your trade and lock-in your profits.

Step 4: Closing your trade

In this example, we decided to close our position once gold reached $1,919.20, as our goal was to take advantage of a quick pullback to a support price. This trade earned us a profit of $4.20 before taxes, a 44% return on our required margin. Since we closed this position intraday, we did not incur any swap fees, which only apply to positions held overnight.

Conclusion

In conclusion, leverage is a double-edged sword that can significantly increase your profits and losses. This explains why regulators in the European Union⁽¹⁾, the UK⁽²⁾ and beyond have sought to cap leverage available to retail traders.

Remember to set stop-loss and take-profit levels when you initiate a trade, in order to cap your losses and avoid being overrun by emotions. And if you are new to trading, why not start with lower leverage and smaller position sizes. As Warren Buffet once said, "Rule No.1: Never lose money. Rule No.2: Never forget rule No.1."

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About the author

I'm Stefan, a trader and an entrepreneur. My mission with TrustedBrokers is to help you find the right broker for you, whether you're a beginner or a pro. I've personally used and tested the brokers on our service, opening and funding real-money accounts, contacting customer service and placing trades. I started my career in investment banking in London.