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Best Forex Brokers Singapore 2023

BrokerNotes.co

Written by BrokerNotes.co

April 24, 2023

Singapore's financial services sector has its origins from its secession and independence from Britain as of 1965. Strategically located on the southern tip of the Malaysian Peninsula, Singapore is a leading regional economy despite its status as an island city state with a population of only 5.9 million.

The primary stock market in Singapore is the Singapore Exchange (SGX). The exchange holds international offices in Beijing, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, New York, Mumbai, Shanghai, San Francisco and Tokyo.

The SGX was formed in December of 1999 following the merger of Stock Exchange of Singapore (SES) with the Singapore International Monetary Exchange (SIMEX). The SGX exchange lists stocks and warrants, exchange traded funds (ETFs), American Depository Receipts (ADRs), trusts, including Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Business Trusts among its securities products. The exchange also lists fixed income products, derivatives, commodities, currencies and indices.

The primary stock market index for the SGX is the FTSE Straits Times Index (STI) a capitalisation weighted index that acts as the market benchmark. Its value is based on the performance of the 30 top companies listed on the SGX. The various former SGX indices were renamed iEdge indices in 2018, and that change includes the TR/iEdge SFI Index for fixed income products and the iEdge SG ESG Leaders Index.

Singapore’s national currency is the Singapore dollar (SGD), which can then be subdivided further into 100 units called cents. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) ranked the SGD as the 12th most commonly traded currency in 2016, stating that it made up about 1.8% of the overall forex turnover that year. The SGD did not rank separately among the reserve currencies that were popular among central banks, as per the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) acts as the central bank when it comes to overseeing and managing exchange rate movements through market intervention whilst ensuring monetary and financial stability in Singapore. It was formed in 1971 and became effective through the MAS Act of 1970.

The MAS is also the principal financial sector regulator in Singapore that both supervises and provides guidelines for financial institutions and insurance companies throughout Singapore. Moreover, the MAS also acts as the sole regulator overseeing forex brokers based in Singapore. Consequently, forex and CFD brokers need to be authorised by the MAS and commit to complying with the central bank’s strict standards prior to accepting clients.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 65% and 82% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Best Online Brokers for Singapore

  • IG
    - 9.9/10 Overall
  • City Index - 9.2/10 Overall
  • Plus500 - 8.5/10 Overall

Overall Rating

9.9 / 10

Minimum Deposit

£250.00

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
99
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.86
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.5957
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)No
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded1974
Publicly Traded (Listed)Yes
BankYes
Tier-1 Licenses7
Tier-2 Licenses2
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)19537
Forex Pairs (Total)100
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Proprietary PlatformYes
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)33
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

9.2 / 10

Minimum Deposit

£100.00

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
99
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard1.0
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active1.0
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)No
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded1983
Publicly Traded (Listed)Yes
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses3
Tier-2 Licenses2
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)13500
Forex Pairs (Total)84
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Proprietary PlatformYes
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)88
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.5 / 10

Minimum Deposit

€100

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
98
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.8
All-in Cost EUR/USD - ActiveN/A
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)No
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2008
Publicly Traded (Listed)Yes
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses4
Tier-2 Licenses4
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)2800
Forex Pairs (Total)65
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)No
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)No
Proprietary PlatformYes
Social Trading / Copy TradingNo
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)110
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)No
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.6 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$100

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
93
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.92
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.61
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2006
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses4
Tier-2 Licenses4
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)1260
Forex Pairs (Total)55
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformYes
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)80
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.4 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$5

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
90
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard1.6
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.8
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)No
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2009
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses2
Tier-2 Licenses1
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)1429
Forex Pairs (Total)55
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformNo
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)30
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.4 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$200

Trust Score info

Highly Trusted
93
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.77
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.87
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2010
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses2
Tier-2 Licenses2
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)2342
Forex Pairs (Total)62
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformNo
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)15
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.3 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$100

Trust Score info

Trusted
87
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.8
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.7
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2001
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses3
Tier-2 Licenses2
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)6942
Forex Pairs (Total)80
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformYes
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)30
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.2 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$200

Trust Score info

Trusted
86
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.62
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.62
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2007
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses1
Tier-2 Licenses1
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)3583
Forex Pairs (Total)61
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformNo
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)30
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

Overall Rating

8.0 / 10

Minimum Deposit

$100

Trust Score info

Trusted
82
Cost & Funding
Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard0.51
All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active0.31
PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw)Yes
Visa/Mastercard (Credit/Debit)Yes
Regulation
Year Founded2014
Publicly Traded (Listed)No
BankNo
Tier-1 Licenses1
Tier-2 Licenses3
Investment Options
Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs)Yes
Mobile Trading - Forex or CFDsYes
Tradeable Symbols (Total)725
Forex Pairs (Total)63
BitcoinYes
Trading Platforms
Virtual Trading (Demo)Yes
MetaTrader 4 (MT4)Yes
MetaTrader 5 (MT5)Yes
Proprietary PlatformNo
Social Trading / Copy TradingYes
Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total)30
Apps & Tools
Android App
Apple iOS AppYes
Education (Forex or CFDs)Yes
Daily Market CommentaryYes
Forex News (Top-Tier Sources)Yes
Economic CalendarYes

How to Trade in Singapore

Traders from Singapore looking for an online broker to execute forex or derivative trading such as contract for difference trading should be able to find many foreign brokers to cater for their needs, with the prerequisite of the broker being authorised by the MAS.

Brokers having MAS supervision will typically be preferable for traders from Singapore due to their obligation of upholding a good reputation with Singapore’s central bank. Moreover, it should also be possible to litigate locally in Singapore should a dispute arise with the broker.

As a general principal, any foreign broker needs to be well regulated in a strict jurisdiction. This will ensure governance principals such as ensuring clients’ funds are separate from the broker assets. Brokers should also cater for a satisfactory range of services and have earned a good reputation with their clients to be considered as a potential trading partner.

Another factor to consider, is that many online brokers provide virtual money-funded demo accounts that traders can use to practice trading, check out their trading platform and a platform to test strategies. Moreover, brokers also offer funded accounts where traders need to provide a minimum initial deposit to start live trading. Many brokers will also cater to Sharia compliant traders in Singapore by providing Sharia law compliant or Islamic Accounts without swaps on rollovers.

language is an important consideration, be sure to check that the broker’s website and customer support offers services in your preferred language, whether it be English, Mandarin, Malay or Tamil. The vast majority of online brokers will allow you to communicate with them and view their websites in English, although some might provide support for Malay or Tamil. Therefore, an idea may be to inquire ahead of time about any language requirements.

Additionally, regarding stock trading, the SGX aims to provide a fair and transparent market in various asset classes, including Singapore based and foreign stocks. SEX trades are generally executed in SGD, although they can also be executed in U.S. dollars since 2012 under its dual currency trading system. Moreover, as of August of 2004, the Singapore Exchange uses the trading software called SGX QUEST, an abbreviation of the SGX Quotation and Execution System. This system is employed for securities and derivatives trading on the SGX.

Biggest Opportunities of Trading in Singapore

According to export.gov, Singapore presents opportunities in several market sectors, including healthcare and medical technology, energy and environment (oil and gas, water), defence and aviation, and information communication technology (ICT) and digital technologies (smart grids, FinTech, , smart cities, ecommerce).

Singapore also has some major ongoing infrastructure projects with significant government contracts. These include:

  • The construction of Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 5, including a third runway scheduled for completion around 2030.
  • Singapore’s Next Generation Port Vision for Tuas Terminal. This four-phase project has a completion date of 2040.
  • The second phase of the Singapore Deep Tunnel Sewerage System, which is targeted for completion in 2025.
  • ICT tenders of $1.9 billion from the Singapore Government for smart city enhancements and other projects.

With respect to enforcing contracts, Singapore ranked at the top of the list of countries surveyed by the World Bank. For overall ease of doing business, Singapore ranked an impressive second behind New Zealand, while the city state ranked third for starting a business. Other areas where Singapore ranked highly include protecting minority investors, paying taxes and dealing with construction permits, ranking 7th, 8th and 8th respectively.

Biggest Challenges of Trading in Singapore

Asian countries remain some of Singapore's top and closest trading partners, including China, Hong Kong/China, Malaysia, Indonesia and Japan. Consequently, since China is Singapore's main trading partner, the current trade dispute between the United States and China might indirectly affect trade with China.

Singapore is a consistent net exporter with a positive trade balance, so the imposition of trade tariffs, trade wars and the failure of key trade agreements with China could potentially adversely affect the economy of the city state. Moreover, based on data compiled by the World Bank in 2017, Singapore's extremely high trade to GDP ratio of 322.4 could imply an increase in the economy's exposure to trade disruptions. Lastly, the World Bank also ranked Singapore 45th in regards to trading across borders, 32nd in obtaining credit and 27th in resolving insolvencies.

Summary

Overall, traders and businesses looking to operate in Singapore should find the country a fairly secure place to do business, especially regarding the financial services sector due to the strict oversight of the MAS. Moreover, as ranked by the World Bank Singapore also has a top ranking for enforcing contracts and ranked second overall for ease of doing business, offering a relatively competitive and safe place for a business to operate.

Traders seeking an online broker to trade with from Singapore should find one authorised by the MAS and that offers a sufficiently broad range of asset classes and full featured trading platform. Furthermore, a broker should also enjoy a good reputation with clients, be competently regulated in its local jurisdiction and segregate its clients’ money from its own funds.

BrokerNotes.co 2023 Overall Rankings

To recap, here are our top forex brokers for 2023, sorted by Overall ranking.

Company Accepts SG Residents Overall Rating Minimum Deposit Average Spread EUR/USD - Standard Trust Score Tradeable Symbols (Total) Read Review Visit Site
IG logoIG check 9.9 £250.00 0.86 99 19537 IG Review Visit Site
Saxo Bank logoSaxo Bank check 9.7 €2,000 0.9 99 60000 Saxo Bank Review
Interactive Brokers logoInteractive Brokers check 9.7 $0 0.6 99 8500 Interactive Brokers Review
CMC Markets logoCMC Markets check 9.6 $0 0.51 99 12377 CMC Markets Review
TD Ameritrade logoTD Ameritrade check 9.5 $0 1.25 99 0 TD Ameritrade Review
FOREX.com logoFOREX.com check 9.3 $100 1.0 99 5500 FOREX.com Review Visit Site
City Index logoCity Index check 9.2 £100.00 1.0 99 13500 City Index Review
XTB logoXTB check 9 $0 1.07 95 12000 XTB Group Review
eToro logoeToro check 8.8 $10-$10,000 1 93 3458 eToro Review
Swissquote logoSwissquote check 8.7 $1000 N/A 99 466 Swissquote Review
AvaTrade logoAvaTrade check 8.6 $100 0.92 93 1260 AvaTrade Review
FXCM logoFXCM check 8.5 Starts from $50 1.38 96 440 FXCM Review Visit Site
Plus500 logoPlus500 check 8.5 €100 0.8 98 2800 Plus500 Review
Capital.com logoCapital.com check 8.4 $20 0.65 85 3152 Capital.com Review
XM Group logoXM Group check 8.4 $5 1.6 90 1429 XM Group Review
Pepperstone logoPepperstone check 8.4 $200 0.77 93 2342 Pepperstone Review
OANDA logoOANDA check 8.4 $0 1.26 92 124 OANDA Review
Admiral Markets logoAdmiral Markets check 8.3 $100 0.8 88 6942 Admiral Markets Review
FP Markets logoFP Markets check 8.3 $100 AUD 1.2 86 10000 FP Markets Review
IC Markets logoIC Markets check 8.2 $200 0.62 86 3583 IC Markets Review
Markets.com logoMarkets.com check 8.2 $100 1.9 98 2179 Markets.com Review
FxPro logoFxPro check 8.1 $100 1.51 90 2249 FxPro Review
Tickmill logoTickmill check 8.0 $100 0.51 82 725 Tickmill Review
Fineco Bank logoFineco Bank check 8.0 $0 N/A 92 126 Fineco Bank Review
BlackBull Markets logoBlackBull Markets check 7.9 $0 0.827 74 26000 BlackBull Markets Review
DooPrime logoDooPrime check 7.8 $100 N/A 84 10000 DooPrime Review
Vantage logoVantage check 7.8 $50 1.30 89 1000 Vantage Review
BDSwiss logoBDSwiss check 7.8 $100-$5000 1.6 83 1081 BDSwiss Review
TMGM logoTMGM check 7.8 $100 0.96 79 12000 TMGM Review
HFM logoHFM check 7.8 $0 1.2 85 3500 HFM Review
FlowBank logoFlowBank check 7.7 $0.00 N/A 77 408600 FlowBank Review
HYCM (Henyep) logoHYCM (Henyep) check 7.7 $100 0.6 86 362 HYCM Review
Trading 212 logoTrading 212 check 7.6 EUR 10 N/A 77 1785 Trading 212 Review
Eightcap logoEightcap check 7.6 $100 1.0 87 736 Eightcap Review
Trade Nation logoTrade Nation check 7.5 $0 0.6 83 601 Trade Nation Review
Moneta Markets logoMoneta Markets check 7.5 $50 1.27 71 965 Moneta Markets Review
ThinkMarkets logoThinkMarkets check 7.4 $250.00 N/A 86 1674 ThinkMarkets Review
VT Markets logoVT Markets check 7.4 $200 1.2 71 168 VT Markets Review
ACY Securities logoACY Securities check 7.4 $50 1.2 75 1600 ACY Securities Review
easyMarkets logoeasyMarkets check 7.3 $100 0.9 84 199 a href="/reviews/easymarkets">easyMarkets Review
RoboForex (RoboMarkets) logoRoboForex (RoboMarkets) check 7.3 $100 1.4 69 12000 Roboforex (RoboMarkets) Review
IronFX logoIronFX check 7.2 $50 1.2 84 340 IronFX Review
Exness logoExness check 7.2 $1 0.9 74 112 Exness Review
Spreadex logoSpreadex check 7.2 $0 N/A 70 2000 Spreadex Review
Trade360 logoTrade360 check 7.1 $250 N/A 75 1062 Trade360 Review
Axi logoAxi check 7.1 0 N/A 83 175 Axitrader Review
GKFX logoGKFX check 7.1 $0 N/A 66 354 GKFX Review
Vestle logoVestle check 7.1 -1 N/A 79 750 Vestle Review
OctaFX logoOctaFX check 7 $25 0.9 69 229 OctaFX Review
FXOpen logoFXOpen check 7 $100 N/A 80 87 FXOpen Review
TeleTrade logoTeleTrade check 7 $100 N/A 67 500 Teletrade Review
FXPrimus logoFXPrimus check 6.9 $100 N/A 69 140 FXPrimus Review
Forex4you logoForex4you check 6.9 $0 N/A 62 150 Forex4you Review
LegacyFX logoLegacyFX check 6.9 $500 N/A 66 425 LegacyFX Review
GBE brokers logoGBE brokers check 6.8 $500 N/A 69 500 GBE Brokers Review
Alpari logoAlpari check 6.8 $20 N/A 67 105 Alpari Review
TopFX logoTopFX check 6.7 Depends on payment method N/A 67 655 TopFX Review
Libertex (Forex Club) logoLibertex (Forex Club) check 6.7 $10 N/A 72 300 Libertex Review
ATFX logoATFX check 6.6 $500 N/A 70 150 ATFX Review
UFX logoUFX check 6.6 $100 3 67 619 UFX Review
Xtrade logoXtrade check 6.5 $250 N/A 80 142 Xtrade Review
Tradeo logoTradeo check 6.4 $200 N/A 67 256 Tradeo Review

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