Forex and CFD (Contracts for Difference) trading in Italy is becoming increasingly popular. Trading in the country is well regulated by the Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa (CONSOB), which is the Italian Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition to local regulators, brokers that operate in the country follow the rules and guidelines set by the EU regulators as Italy is a member state of the European Union.
Forex trading is strictly regulated in Europe to make sure the market participants are protected. The primary objectives of regulators are to establish a fair, transparent, and efficient trading environment for all parties. The main EU Forex regulators include: ESMA (European Securities and Markets Authority), and MiFID II (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II).
In Europe, including Italy, leverage is strictly limited due to its risky nature. High leverage helps increase potential returns, however, it can just as easily enlarge losses. In order to protect traders, leverage is capped based on asset class.
For retail traders, maximum available leverage when trading CFDs are:
- 30:1 - for trading major currency pairs such as EUR/USD, GBP/USD, etc.
- 20:1 - for minor FX pairs, gold CFDs, and major share indices
- 10:1 - for most commodities as CFDs (except for gold CFD)
- 2:1 - for crypto derivatives and crypto CFDs
For professional traders, leverage limit is higher, as seasoned traders generally understand the dangers of high leverage much better than novice traders.
- 500:1 - for trading major currency pairs, non-major pairs, some of the most liquid indices, and commodities
- 100:1 - for the rest of indices and bonds
- 25:1 - for exotic currency pairs
- 20:1 - crypto CFDs
A quick comparison of the best Forex brokers in Italy
Selecting the right broker that best suits your trading style and approach is a time and energy consuming thing. Traders need to compare regulations and trading conditions of different brokers with one another to find the most optimal company. Before you start the process, it’s best to make a list of your preferences and include important aspects such as trading assets, trading style, platforms, and customer service. In addition, low fees and safety are also super important.
Active traders typically prefer brokers with the smallest spreads, while less active traders, such as swing traders, prefer brokers with the smallest commissions. It’s worth mentioning that many brokers often have various account types to attract all types of traders. In this guide, we’ve picked industry leader Forex and multi-asset brokers. We’ll cover important aspects such as regulations, account types, fees, and overall trading conditions to make the selection process easier for you.
Saxo Bank
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Visit broker 8.32 6.85 CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs, FX or any of our other products work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Losses can exceed deposits on some products.
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FP Markets
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Visit broker 6.88 4.98 Trade Responsibly: Derivative products are highly leveraged, carry a high level of risk and are not suitable for all investors. Features of our products including fees and charges are outlined in the relevant legal documents available on our website. The legal documents should be considered before entering into transactions with us.
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XM
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Visit broker 8.4 8.34 CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 73.03% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
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AvaTrade
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Visit broker 8.8 7.63 CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
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Pepperstone
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Visit broker 8.2 7.75 Spread bets and CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74.7% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading spread bets and CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how spread bets and CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
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| Risk Notice | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs, FX or any of our other products work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Losses can exceed deposits on some products. | Trade Responsibly: Derivative products are highly leveraged, carry a high level of risk, and are not suitable for all investors. Features of our products including fees and charges are outlined in the relevant legal documents available on our website. The legal documents should be considered before entering into transactions with us. | Risk Warning: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 72.89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. | CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 85.12% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. |
| Operates in Italy under | Italian Market Authority – Consob with registration number 296 as BG SAXO Società di Intermediazione Mobiliare S.p.A. | The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) License (number 371/18). And European branch is operated by First Prudential Markets Ltd | The Financial Services Commission (FSC) (license number 000261/397); Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) (license number 120/10) | DT Direct Investment Hub Ltd. is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (No. 347/17). | Pepperstone EU Limited registered in Cyprus under Company Number ΗΕ 398429 and is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (License Number 388/20). |
| Standard account spreads on EUR/USD pair start from | From 0.6 pips | From 1 pips | From 1 pips | From 0.9 pips | From 1 pips |
| Minimum initial deposit | 0 USD | 50 account base currency (USD, GBP, or EUR) | 5 USD | 100 USD | 0 USD |
| Desktop trading platforms | SaxoTraderGo, SaxoTraderPro | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, DupliTrade, ZuluTrade | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, TradingView |
| Offered asset classes | Forex, CFDs on shares, indices, commodities, ETFs, Futures, Forex and listed options, Bonds, Mutual funds, Cryptos | Forex, Commodities, Shares, Metals, Cryptocurrencies, Indices, Bonds | Forex, Cryptocurrencies, Stock CFDs, Commodities, Equity Indices, Metals, Energies, Shares | Forex, Stock CFDs, ETFs, Commodities, Indices, Cryptocurrencies | Forex, Cryptocurrencies, shares, ETFs, Indices, Commodities, Currency Indices |
Saxo Bank
Saxo bank has a long history and is highly experienced in serving clients. The broker was initially founded as a bank in 1992 and later added opening trading services to its portfolio. Today, Saxo bank provides financial services to more than 850,000 active traders worldwide, including in Italy. The broker provides access to over 60,000 tradable instruments, including Forex, CFDs on shares, indices, commodities, ETFs, Futures, Forex and listed options, Bonds, Mutual funds, and Cryptos. Offering platforms are SaxoTraderGo, and SaxoTraderPro. Maximum available leverage is 50:1. Keep in mind that there’s a high inactivity fee with this broker and to avoid it, simply withdraw your funds if you decide to stop trading. There’s a 100 USD monthly fee after 180 days of inactivity.
Saxo Bank offers 3 account types to Italian retail traders. Each account type has initial deposit requirements. Furthermore, instead of deposits, traders can use points to upgrade their trading accounts. Points are given to loyal traders for placing orders in the markets. Let’s take a closer look at the account comparison table.
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8.32
6.85
| Classic | Platinum | VIP | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deposit/points required to open a live account | No minimum initial funding | 120 000 points or minimum initial funding: USD 200,000 | 500 000 points or minimum initial funding: USD 1,000,000 |
| Features | Industry-leading entry prices and best-in-class digital service and support. | Receive up to 30% lower prices, priority support and much more. | Get the VIP treatment with our best prices, priority service and direct SaxoStrat access. |
| Spreads | Tight entry prices | Up to 30% lower prices | Very best prices |
| Local-language personal relationship manager | No | No | Yes |
| 1:1 SaxoStrats access | No | No | Yes |
| Exclusive event invitations | No | No | Yes |
FP Markets
FP Markets was founded in 2005. The broker provides a personal account manager to its clients. Customer support agents are available 24/7 via live chat, email, or over the phone. The customer support is multilingual. The broker is highly reputable and well respected in the industry. The company has received over 40 industry awards and this number keeps increasing every year.
FP Markets is regulated in multiple countries. Italian residents that register with the broker are accepted by the European branch of the company managed by the First Prudential Markets Ltd, which is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC License number 371/18).
For trading currency pairs, FP Markets offers Standard and Raw trading accounts. Standard account is for beginners, position traders, and swing traders. The Raw account is better suited to more active traders, such as scalpers, news traders, day traders, high frequency traders, and algorithmic traders.
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6.88
4.98
| Standard | Raw | |
|---|---|---|
| Spreads | From 1.0 pips | From 0 pips |
| Commissions on Forex pairs | Zero | 3 USD per traded lot per side |
| Minimum initial deposit required to open an account | 50 USD / EUR / GBP | 50 USD / EUR / GBP |
| Maximum leverage | 30:1 | 30:1 |
| Available trading platforms | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 | MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 |
XM
Established in 2009, XM quickly became the favorite broker to many traders globally. The broker has a huge pool of loyal customer base consisting of over 5 million traders from 190 countries. XM offers multiple asset classes for trading, including Forex, Cryptocurrencies, Stock CFDs, Commodities, Equity Indices, Metals, Energies, and real Shares. Available trading platforms are MetaTrader 4, and MetaTrader 5.
XM is licensed and regulated globally. The European branch of the broker that accepts traders from the continent, including Italian traders, is managed by Trading Point of Financial Instruments Limited, which is licensed by CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission) with the license number 120/10.
There are 3 account types for retail Forex and CFD traders to choose from. Each account type offers unique features and benefits.
- XM Ultra Low Micro Account is created for beginners and strategy testers. Often, professional traders test their strategies in a live market environment and micro accounts are ideal for this purpose.
- XM Ultra Low Standard Account is best for beginners, swing traders and position traders. Trading fees are included in spreads on this account.
- XM Zero Account has zero spread markups, instead, traders are charged with commissions. Which makes the Zero accounts ideal for active traders that place multiple trades within a day, such as scalpers, algorithmic traders, high frequency traders, and day traders.
We can see more details in this comparison table.
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8.4
8.34
| XM Ultra Low Micro Account | XM Ultra Low Standard Account | XM Zero Account | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base Currency Options | EUR, USD, GBP | EUR, USD, GBP | USD, EUR, JPY |
| Contract Size | 1 Lot = 1,000 | 1 Lot = 100,000 | 1 Lot = 100,000 |
| Spread on all majors | As Low as 0.6 Pips | As Low as 0.6 Pips | As Low as 0 Pips |
| Commission | No | No | Yes |
| Maximum open/pending orders per client | 300 Positions | 300 Positions | 200 Positions |
| Minimum trade volume | 0.1 Lots | 0.01 Lots | 0.01 Lots |
| Lot restriction per ticket | 100 Lots | 50 Lots | 50 Lots |
| Islamic Account | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Minimum Deposit | 5 USD | 5 USD | 5 USD |
AvaTrade
Avatrade is a highly reputable broker with over 11 years of experience. The broker offers access to more than 1250 tradable instruments. The broker currently serves more than 400,000 traders worldwide, including in Italy.
AvaTrade is well-regulated globally, however, in Europe, the broker is regulated in Cyprus. Italian traders are registering with the European branch of the broker managed by DT Direct Investment Hub Ltd. which is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (No. 347/17).
AvaTrade offers only one, standard account type. Account base currencies are Euro, US Dollar, and British Pound Sterling. Minimum initial deposit required to open an account is 100 USD. Traders can access a wide range of trading platforms including MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, AvaTraderGo, Dupli Trade, and ZuluTrade.
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8.8
7.63
Pepperstone
Founded in 2010, Pepperstone quickly gained popularity among Forex traders and today, the broker provides financial services to more than 300,000 active traders worldwide, including in Italy. The broker offers a diverse range of asset classes, including currency pairs, Cryptocurrencies, shares, ETFs, Indices, Commodities, and Currency Indices.
The broker offers numerous super popular trading platforms such as MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, and TradingView. Pepperstone is well regulated in multiple jurisdictions. In Europe, including in Italy, the broker is managed by Pepperstone EU Limited, which is registered in Cyprus. In Italy, Pepperstone is authorized and regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (License Number 388/20).
To meet the needs of different traders, the broker offers Razor and Standard account types. The Razor account is best suited for active traders that require market spreads, and the Standard account is created for less active traders, such as swing traders, beginners, and position traders. Let’s check the account comparison table below to learn more details.
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8.2
7.75
| Razor | Standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Day trading, news trading, scalping, high frequency trading, algorithmic trading, arbitrage trading | Starters, swing traders, position traders |
| Trading platform | cTrader, TradingView/MetaTrader 4&5 | cTrader/MetaTrader 4&5 |
| Commission (FX only) | 2.60 EUR (per lot, per side) | No commission |
| Spreads | Raw | Variable (in general, spreads on EUR/USD is 1 pip) |
| Max leverage for retail customers | 30:1 | 30:1 |
| Max leverage for professional traders | 500:1 | 500:1 |
| Account currency | EUR, USD | EUR, USD |
| Number of available products | Over 1200 | Over 1200 |
| Stop Out Level (Retail) | 50% | 50% |
| Stop Out Level (Professional) | 20% | 20% |
Best choice of the broker in Italy per category
Every broker is different and has different offerings. To find the best broker, it’s important to know what you are looking for. Under this section, we break down each broker by asset classes and trading fees.
Best Broker in Italy for Forex Trading
In order to make the Forex trading conditions comparison fair, we selected Standard accounts of each broker. Typically, standard accounts do not charge traders with commissions and Forex trading fees are integrated in spreads.
| Saxo Bank | FP Markets | XM | AvaTrade | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Forex pairs | 190 | 63 | 57 | 64 | 62 |
| Standard account trading fees of EUR/USD | From 0.6 pips | From 1 pips | From 1 pips | From 0.9 pips | From 1 pips |
Saxo Bank has the largest selection of currency pairs and low trading fees. However, while opening a Classic account is easy, opening a Platinum account requires 200,000 USD initial deposit, and VIP requires 1 million USD or higher.
Best Broker in Italy for Share CFD Trading
When trading company stocks as CFDs, traders are able to use leverage, enjoy increased liquidity and tight spreads, and have the ability to go short. These benefits are not available when investing in real, physical shares. Share CFDs are utilized by market speculators and short and medium traders. And real stock investing is used by long term investors. We are comparing Shares as CFDs trading conditions in this section.
| Saxo Bank | FP Markets | XM | AvaTrade | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Stock CFDs | 22000 | 10,000+ | 1261 | 629 | 1000+ |
| Commissions | From 1 USD | From 0.08% | No commissions | From 0.13% | From 0.7% |
Saxo Markets provides traders with access to the largest pool of CFDs. However, if you find it difficult to open an account with the broker due to high initial deposit requirements, FP Markets, XM, and Pepperstone are great alternatives.
Best Broker in Italy for Crypto CFD (Contracts for Difference) Trading
When trading cryptocurrencies as CFDs, traders can enjoy many benefits that investing in real crypto coins simply don’t have. The main difference between real coins and CFDs is that CFDs are perfect for market speculations, while real coins are best for investing long term. Crypto CFD traders do not need to worry about crypto wallets, and cash-outs. Profits generated from trading are automatically added to the trading balance.
| Saxo Bank | FP Markets | XM | AvaTrade | Pepperstone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Crypto CFDs | 9 | 11 | 31 | 19 | 23 |
| Commissions | From 2.4 EUR | From 0.002 | No commissions | From 0.20% | From 0 spreads |
When it comes to trading cryptos as CFDs, XM has the best offerings.
