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Rakuten Securities Forex and CFD broker review - A broker with tight spreads and no trading commissions

rakutentrade.my
nika
Written by:
Nika
Av
konstantinrabin
Edited by:
Konstantin Rabin
Calendar
Written on:
18 April 2023
Date
Last edit:
4 March 2024
Our rating:
7.02

7.02

Summary
Safety & Security of Rakuten Securities
4.7
4.7
Account types available for traders on Rakuten Securities
10
10.0
Fees & commissions review of Rakuten Securities
10
10.0
Trading platforms and mobile trading reviewed at Rakuten Securities
10
10.0
Education and research tools offered by Rakuten Securities
6
6.0
Conclusion

Rakuten Securities Forex and CFD broker review - A broker with tight spreads and no trading commissions

rakutentrade.my
nika
Written by:
Nika
konstantinrabin
Edited by:
Konstantin Rabin
Calendar
Written on:
18 April 2023
Date
Last edit:
4 March 2024
Our rating
7.02

7.02

Visit broker
Investing in over-the-counter derivatives carries significant risks and is not suitable for all investors. When acquiring our derivative products, you have no entitlement, right or obligation to the underlying financial asset. Rakuten Securities Australia is authorised to provide general advice only. Information provided is of a general nature only and does not consider your objectives, personal circumstances or needs.
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Main summary

Rakuten Securities is a regulated Forex and CFD broker offering services to Japanese and Australian clients. The broker started its existence back in 1999 and has more than 2 million clients worldwide. Rakuten Securities' head office is located in Japan and the broker is the 4th largest broker in the world. As of 2018, Rakuten has a market cap of 15 billion which is not a small number for a Forex broker. The company has websites for these jurisdictions and offers very competitive spreads from 0.5 pips on major pairs. The broker is very competitive and offers excellent educational materials to let beginners study all critical aspects of trading with easy-to-find information. 

Pros & cons of Rakuten Securities broker

  • Tight fixed spreads, no commissions!
  • Ability to withdraw with $0 fees
  • Offers access to MetaTrader 4 for all systems and devices
  • Fast and digital account opening/verification
  • Offers access to 40+ Forex pairs
  • Low initial deposit requirements of 50 USD and a low minimum lot size of 0.01 lots
  • Only 2 cryptos are available
  • High spreads on cryptos
  • No stock CFDs or shares are offered at this point
  • Very low leverage of 1:30 for retail clients
  • No negative balance protection for professional clients
  • There are no accounts without spread markups

Rakuten Fact sheet

Main features
Regulations Australia, Hong Kong SAR, Malaysia
Fees on deposits 0 USD
Fees on withdrawal 0 USD
Inactivity fees 0 USD
Minimum deposit 50 USD
Minimum account activation 50 USD
Number of available assets 68
Leverage up to 1:30. up to 400:1 for professional traders
Available trading markets CFDs, CFDs on Stocks, Commodities, Cryptocurrencies, Energies, Forex, Indices, Metals
Account currencies -
Demo account Yes
Live account types Retail, Pro 1, Pro 2, Pro VIP
Islamic account Yes
Security
Negative balance protection Yes
Part of compensation fund Yes
Keeps funds on segregated bank account Yes
Assets
Forex 40
Shares 0
Cryptocurrencies 2
Indices 11
Commodities 15
Total 68
Fees & spread
Forex From 0.5 pips
Shares N/A
Cryptocurrencies From 100 pips
Indices From 0.5
Commodities From 1.8 pips
Software
Platforms MetaTrader 4
Mobile trading support Yes
Mac device support Yes
Commodities Yes
Payment systems
Payment methods Bank Transfer, Credit/Debit Card, Neteller, POLi, Skrill, UnionPay
Minimum deposit Bank Transfer, Credit/Debit Card, Neteller, POLi, Skrill, UnionPay
Minimum withdrawal Bank Transfer, Credit/Debit Card, Neteller, POLi, Skrill, UnionPay
Withdrawal processing time Instant
Time to open an account -
Show all

Safety & Security of Rakuten Securities

Rakuten Securities is regulated by multiple highly reputable authorities that oversee its activities. These regulators are as follows:

  • Australian Securities and Investments Commission
  • Securities Futures Commission of Hong Kong
  • Securities Commission of Malaysia (SC)

As we can see Rakuten is very well-regulated and is a legit broker. Furthermore, the broker has several security measures in place to assist its retail traders. Negative balance protection prevents traders from going into a negative balance when trading with leverage, but this feature is only available for retail clients and not for professional accounts. All client funds are kept in segregated bank accounts for both retail and pro traders, preventing Rakuten Securities from touching the client's money for company use. Being part of a compensation fund ensures the broker can pay back its investors in case of insolvency. 

rakuten.png

Account types available for traders on Rakuten Securities

There are several account types provided by Rakuten Securities but only one is for retail clients and is simply called the “retail” account. This account offers very low spreads from 0.5 pips on major pairs and there are no commissions required for trading the markets. This makes it possible to employ scalping strategies and the minimum deposit of 50 USD and leverage of 1:30 will be enough to trade on the budget. These terms are very competitive when compared to other popular brokers and since Rakuten Securities allows hedging and automated trading robots, each trader will find something attractive with this broker. The other three accounts called pro1, pro2, and pro-VIP will provide flexibility to professional traders with a minimum capital of 50 USD and leverage of up to 1:400 making it possible to command significant buying power with a low account balance. Only pro-VIP accounts require a minimum of 1,000 USD and can be activated via email request. The minimum lot size is set to 0.01 lots offering a micro account-like environment for trading on a budget. With this low minimum lot size, beginners can start with a low budget and slowly increase their trading volume. 

Pros & cons of Rakuten Securities account types

ProsCons
There is a low minimum deposit of 50 USD Only one account type for retail clients
Enables traders to use demo and Islamic account types1:30 low leverage for retail clients
There is an account without spread markup 
Tight spreads and no commissions 
1:400 leverage for professional traders 

Fees & commissions review of Rakuten Securities

Comparing Rakuten Securities fees with other brokers

Rakuten Securities fees compared to Interactive Brokers fees

Type of FeeRakuten SecuritiesInteractive Brokers
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.6 pips
Fees on Deposits0 USD1%
Inactivity fee0 USDNo*

*Inactivity fee was eliminated by IB in 2021, it used to be $20/m

Rakuten Securities fees compared to CM Trading fees

Type of FeeRakuten SecuritiesCM Trading
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.9 pips
Fees on Deposits0 USDNo
Inactivity fee0 USDYes, 15 EUR/USD per month after 60 days of inactivity

Rakuten Securities fees compared to plus500 fees

Type of FeeRakuten Securitiesplus500
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.8 pips
Fees on Deposits0 USDNo
Inactivity fee0 USDYes, 10 USD per month after 3 months of inactivity

Rakuten Securities fees compared to XM fees

Type of FeeRakuten SecuritiesXM
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.6 pips 
Fees on Deposits0 USDNo
Inactivity fee0 USDYes, 15 USD after 12 months, +5 USD/m

Rakuten Securities fees compared to AvaTrade fees

Type of FeeRakuten SecuritiesAvaTrade
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.9 pips
Fees on Deposits0 USDNo
Inactivity fee0 USDYes, 50 USD after 3 months, 100 USD administration fee after a year

Rakuten Securities fees compared to Capital.com fees

Type of FeeRakuten SecuritiesCapital.com
EUR/USD SpreadFrom 0.5 pipsFrom 0.9 pips
Fees on Deposits0 USDNo
Inactivity fee0 USDYes, 50 USD after 3 months, 100 USD administration fee after a year

Trading platforms and mobile trading reviewed at Rakuten Securities

The main trading platform of Rakuten Securities is the ever popular MetaTrader 4, an advanced trading and charting platform with features to open, analyze, and monitor trading processes. The broker provides plenty of guides about MetaTrader 4 (MT4) from how to install it on any device and operating system, to how indicators can be applied to charts. Rakuten Securities not only offers advanced guides and tutorials about MT4 but also provides a step-by-step guide on setting up a VPS or virtual private server which will help experienced traders set up an automatic trading environment and run the algorithms 24/5. MT4 supports Expert Advisors (EAs) which can automate the trading process and since the broker offers this guide it is much simpler for traders to use the VPS feature.

Education and research tools offered by Rakuten Securities

The broker can be found on popular social media sites like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn and offers Telegram, WhatsApp, and Messenger as support channels for live chat. It is also possible to use live chat as a guest and contact the broker quickly and comfortably. Additionally, the website is multilingual and offers support via email and phone calls. The customer support team of Rakuten Securities is excellent and offers flexible choices to connect with the broker conveniently. Fundamental analysis, technical analysis, trading psychology, Forex basics, and advanced trading are among the educational topics provided by Rakuten Securities. As for trading tools, there is an economic calendar and news, but the broker allows and offers copy trading features to let traders copy successful traders' positions in real time. 

Conclusion

Rakuten Securities is a regulated and well-established Forex and CFD broker that provides its services to Japanese and Australian clients. The broker offers very competitive spreads, fast account opening, and excellent educational materials for beginners. Rakuten Securities provides negative balance protection and keeps client funds in segregated bank accounts. The broker provides only one account type for retail clients, with a low minimum deposit requirement and low leverage of 1:30. Professional clients can choose between three account types with leverage of up to 1:400. Rakuten Securities has a limited range of tradable assets, and it does not offer stock CFDs or shares at the moment. The broker's fees are low and competitive when compared to other popular brokers. Overall, Rakuten Securities is a good option for traders looking for a reliable broker with low fees and competitive spreads.

Ready to open an account with Rakuten? Click the button below to get started.
Investing in over-the-counter derivatives carries significant risks and is not suitable for all investors. When acquiring our derivative products, you have no entitlement, right or obligation to the underlying financial asset. Rakuten Securities Australia is authorised to provide general advice only. Information provided is of a general nature only and does not consider your objectives, personal circumstances or needs.
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FAQs about Rakuten Securities

Is Rakuten Securities a trustworthy broker?

Rakuten Securities is regulated by three different regulatory bodies and has advanced security measures in place to protect client funds, and they offer low spreads without trading commissions. With all that said, Rakuten Securities is a legit and reliable broker offering excellent services to both retail and professional traders. Negative balance protection is only available for retail clients and pros should be cautious when trading with the broker’s offered 1:400 leverage. 

Which is the best account for professional traders?

There are three account types for professional traders at Rakuten Securities and each of them have tight spreads and no or low commissions. For pros with more than 1,000 USD at their disposal, the VIP option is a go. For other pros, the pro1 account has lower spreads than pro2. 

Is it possible to withdraw money within a day free of charge?

It is possible to withdraw money within 24 hours of requesting. But, to make it charge-free, the UnionPay option is the best. It offers withdrawals for zero commissions and definitely should be used. Other online payments and wire transfers have a 2% withdrawal fee.