ActivTrades Review 2024

Trust

Regulatory requirements are subject to change. I gathered the data listed above in February 2024.

ActivTrades Regulators

Here are the regulatory details of the six entities of ActivTrades:

• ActivTrades Corp is a subsidiary of ActivTrades PLC authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), registration number 434413. We rate FCA as a Tier-1 regulator.
• ActivMarkets is authorized and regulated in Portugal by the Comissão do Mercado de Valores Mobiliários (CMVM) with the number 433. We rate CMVM as a Tier-1 regulator.
• ActivMarkets Empresa de Investimento S.A. registered with Commissione Nazionale per le Societa e la Borsa (CONSOB). We rate CONSOB as a Tier-1 regulator.
• ActivTrades Corretora de Câmbio, Títulos e Valores Mobiliários Ltda. is authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil and regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Brazil (CVM). We rate CVM as a Tier-2 regulator.
• ActivTrades Corp is authorized and regulated by the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB). We rate SCB as a Tier-3 regulator.

Why is It Important to Know Where Your Broker Subsidiary (Entity) is Regulated?

To serve clients worldwide, brokers must have multiple regional entities. The level of client protection guaranteed by regional regulators varies widely. Here are some of the key features to check on at your broker`s regional entity:

• Segregation of client funds. Segregating client funds from the operating capital of a broker prevents misuse, ensuring that traders’ funds can not be used for operational expenses or speculative investments. At ActivTrades, all client funds are held in segregated accounts away from the company’s funds.
• Negative balance protection. This is a guarantee that clients cannot lose more than their account balance, even if the market unexpectedly makes a massive move or gaps. All ActivTrades entities provide negative balance protection.
• Compensation scheme. A compensation scheme protects client funds in the unlikely event that the broker becomes insolvent. EU entities of ActivTrades benefit from compensation funds, but the Bahamas and Brazil entities do not. All clients globally are covered by private insurance from Lloyds of London for up to $1M.
• Maximum leverage. Limiting leverage controls the level of risk traders can take on. The higher the leverage, the higher the potential profits and losses. At the Bahamas entity of ActivTrades, the maximum leverage is 1:200 for an individual account and 1:400 for a professional account.

Stability and Transparency

In our tests for the Trust category, we also cover factors relating to stability and financial strength. Here, we evaluate the broker’s longevity in the industry, the company’s size, and its transparency.

ActivTrades dates back to 2001, marking it as a highly experienced CFD broker with a solid operating history. According to the broker’s LinkedIn page, the company has 51-200 employees, reflecting a mid-size brokerage firm.

In my research, ActivTrades showed high transparency in its regulatory status, listing its regulators in the footer of the website page.

The website breaks down trading costs clearly on the Spreads and Swaps page. To find the nitty gritty details, traders can find the Customer Agreement on the Legal Documents page.

Is ActivTrades Safe to Trade With?

ActivTrades operates four entities licensed by top-tier regulators, offering relatively high account security, in addition to others that are considered second-tier or are regulated offshore. The level of protection varies by entity.

For instance, clients under EU entities enjoy a high level of regulatory scrutiny and are covered by a compensation scheme in the event of broker insolvency. On the other hand, the offshore entity of ActivTrades is subject to less regulatory oversight.

Thanks to the private insurance from Lloyds of London all clients globally can be assured that their accounts are protected for up to $1M. To summarize, I rate ActivTrades as relatively trustworthy and stable due to the following:

• Regulated by multiple top-tier regulators
• 23-year operating history
• All entities segregate funds
• All entities offer negative balance protection
• High level of transparency
• Insurance from Lloyds of London for up to $1M for all clients

Fees

ActivTrades Trading Fees

ActivTrades Spreads

I tested the spreads at ActivTrades across various markets during the London open and after the New York open. At these times, the market is typically highly liquid with the tightest spreads.

My tests showed that spreads are competitive in gold and Dow 30, but watch out for some pricey spreads in instruments like Bitcoin. I recorded the data on 14 February 2024.

Commissions

When trading CFDs on shares and ETFs, ActivTrades charges a commission in addition to the spread, which varies based on the venue.

Due to the spreads plus commissions at ActivTrades, the cost of trading shares and ETFs is relatively high.

Market Data Fees

ActivTrades Swap Fees

In the table below, you can see an example of the swap fees at ActivTrades. Swaps represent the fees charged (or credit earned) for holding a position overnight.

The values listed below are for one full contract (100,000 units) of the base currency.

I recorded the data on 16 February 2024. My live tests showed that swap fees at ActivTrades are average for the industry.

ActivTrades Non-Trading Fees

Inactive accounts with a remaining balance that have been laid dormant for at least one year are charged an administration fee of £9 in the currency of the account. The fee is deducted monthly until activity resumes or the account balance drops to zero. I rate this fee as average for the industry.

Are ActivTrades Fees Competitive?

I rate the fees at ActivTrades as mixed for the following reasons:

• Tight spreads in some instruments, while others are not very competitive
• Commissions applied to CFDs on shares and ETFs
• Average inactivity fee
• Withdrawal fees on bank transfers and deposit fees on credit cards

Platforms and Tools

ActivTrades Platform Walkthrough

ActivTrades Desktop or/and Web Platforms

General Ease of Use

The ActivTrader platform has a clean, uncluttered interface, making it easy for beginners to navigate. Some customization is available, with two layout options and font sizes which can be adjusted via the settings area.

The platform is available in 12 languages – English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Arabic, and Taiwanese.

Key Features

Here are the key features of the ActivTrader platform:

• Watchlists: ActivTrader has watchlists broken down by asset class and you can create your own custom watchlists to follow your favorite instruments.
• Charting: Robust charting from TradingView is built-in.
• Standard and Advanced Orders: ActivTrades offers everything from market orders to bespoke order types designed to optimize your performance.
• Position Tracking: You can easily stay on top of the live P/L of your open positions, pending orders, and history of trades within this section.
• One-Click Trading: This feature allows you to execute orders with a single click and no secondary confirmation, enabling you to be more speedy and nimble. This is especially useful for day traders.
• Trading from the Chart: ActivTrader allows the convenience of trading directly from the chart.
• News Feed: The platform now has a news feed with a steady flow of market analysis and news stories from professional-grade sources like ABN AMRO and Commerzbank.

Charts

The ActivTrader platform features TradingView charts, which in my view are the best in the industry. Charts feature:

• 100+ Technical Indicators. These include classic trend indicators, volume indicators, and oscillators.
• 80+ Drawing Tools. These include trend lines, channels, Gann, and Fibonacci tools.
• 9 Time Frames. Traders can choose from nine time frames – from one minute to one month.
• 11 Chart Types. Traders can use everything from popular Bar charts and Japanese Candlesticks to more exotic Kagi and Renko charts.

The chart layout is highly customizable and traders can tile the chats in 20 different configurations.

This allows you to follow multiple markets at once, or the same market across multiple time frames.

Orders

The ActivTrades platform also excels when it comes to orders and gives you an above-average level of flexibility on how they enter and exit the market.

Traders have the following order types at their disposal:

• Market Order: Market orders allow you to buy or sell an instrument at the best current price.
• Limit Order: Limit orders allow you to buy or sell an instrument at a specified price or better.
• Stop Loss Order: Stop-loss orders enable you to buy or sell an instrument when its price reaches a specified level.
• Trailing Stop Order: This is a stop loss order at a defined percentage or dollar amount away from an instrument’s current market price. It allows you to secure profits when you are in a winning trade while not having to exit the position.

The ActvTrader platform goes above and beyond with two unique order types:

• PullBack Order: They allow you to open a position only when the market pulls back by a set amount in the direction you anticipated. It is designed for traders looking for a reversal in price and helps you only get into a trade when the reversal is of a preset magnitude. In other words, it helps you avoid getting into shallow or ‘false’ reversals.
• Progressive Trailing Stop: This order helps protect your profits in the market by enabling you to set two additional tiers to adjust the distance of your trailing stop if preset trigger points are reached. It allows you to progressively scale out of a position while still using a trailing stop.

Traders can stay on top of the latest news in the market without having to leave the platform with the recently added news feed. Multiple stories are published each hour and sources include top banks.

My Key Takeaways After Testing the ActivTrades Platform

After a few weeks of testing, I found the ActivTrader platform impressively user-friendly and equipped with advanced order types and TradingView’s leading charting tools. Despite its sleek design and innovative features, it lacks price alerts, a news feed, and market research.

I rate ActivTrader as ideal for beginners and casual traders, offering functionalities like one-click trading and chart-based trading. It also supports advanced tactics for professionals, including automated trading and custom app development.

ActivTrades Mobile App

General Ease of Use

The ActivTrader app has the same beginner-friendly, intuitive design as the web platform.

Key features of the app are watchlists, tracking of your open positions, pending orders, and trade history along with overall P/L and account balance.

Charts

Charting via the app is a very slightly stripped-down version of what is available via the web platform.

Traders on the move have access to 90+ technical indicators, 70+ drawing tools, 9 time frames, and 11 chart types. This is enough to meet the needs of the most avid chartist and market technician.

Orders

The mobile app offers all the order types available via the web platform, including progressive trailing stops and pullback orders.

My Key Takeaways After Testing the ActivTrader App

The ActivTrader app provided me with a smooth overall experience for following watchlists, placing trades, viewing charts, and tracking my account details. Charting and order types are above average for the industry. There is room for improvement by adding news, analysis, and an economic calendar to the app.

ActivTrades Order Execution Model

ActivTrades is a non-dealing desk CFD broker. It acts in a principal capacity. This means that it takes the other side of the transaction with clients. The residual risk taken on by ActivTrades may or may not be hedged externally.

Tradable Instruments

We rated ActivTrades as above average in every asset category, except for forex and cryptocurrencies.

What are CFDs?

A Contract for Difference (CFD) is an agreement specifying that the buyer must pay the seller the difference between the current value of an asset and its value at the time the contract was initiated.

Like futures and other derivative financial instruments, CFDs allow traders to speculate on price movements without owning the underlying asset.

What Can You Trade with ActivTrades?

In the tables below, you can see a selection highlighting the variety of instruments available at ActivTrades:

My Key Takeaways After Exploring ActivTrades Tradable Instruments

I consider that ActivTrades’ clients really have the world’s markets at their fingertips. The broker offers the standard lineup of instruments found at CFD brokers and goes a step further with instruments like bonds, ETFs, soft commodities, and shares from global exchanges. The offering could be improved by adding more minor and exotic currencies and deepening the range of crypto pairs.

Customer Support

ActivTrades Customer Support Test

Support is a key component of a broker’s offering – whether you are a new trader looking for guidance on how to use the platform or an experienced trader who needs help fast to exit their positions in the event of a technical glitch.

In my tests, AcrivTrades’ live chat support usually responded within seconds, and agents got back to me via email within one business day. Via phone, I experienced very little wait time also.

My inquiries ranged from basic questions about fees to more complex themes relating to platforms, tools, and regulations. I noted that agents were usually well-informed and courteous. Support is available in 10 languages.

Deposit and Withdrawal

ActivTrades Deposit Methods

The range of funding methods is strong and processing times are fast. Clients should be aware of the 1.5% fee for deposits via credit/debit cards, which is not common at major brokers.

ActivTrades Withdrawal Methods

Again, this is a good range of available methods and processing times for withdrawals are faster than average for the industry. Clients should be conscious of the relatively modest withdrawal fee via bank wire.

Account Types and Terms

ActivTrades Account Types and Their Benefits

The broker offers Individual and Professional accounts.

The main advantages of the Professional account include higher leverage, a reduced stop-out level, and a dedicated account manager.

To open a Professional account, at least two of the following criteria must be satisfied:

• 10 real trades per quarter for the last 4 consecutive quarters.
• A portfolio of financial instruments exceeding €500,000.
• At least one year’s work experience in a role that requires knowledge of currency transactions.

ActivTrades Account Opening Process

To open an account with the Bahamas entity of ActivTrades, prospective clients must complete an application covering the following parts:

• Contact and Personal Details: Name, email, phone, birth date, country of birth, nationality, residential address.
• Identity Verification: National ID card, passport, driving license, residence permit.
• Level of Trading Experience: Volume of trading and length of experience.
• Employment Details: Employment status and occupation.
• Financial Status: Income and savings, source of funds.
• Account Details: Trading platform and base currency.

What is leverage in CFD Trading?

One of the reasons that traders are attracted to the forex and CFD markets is the high degree of available leverage. Leverage is the use of borrowed funds to increase the size of your trading positions beyond what would be possible using only the cash in your account.

In the SCB-regulated Bahamas entity of ActivTrades, the maximum leverage for an Individual account is 1:200. This means that with an account of $1,000, you can control up to $200,000 worth of positions in the market.

Leverage is often described as a ‘double-edged sword’ as it can hurt you as much as it helps you. Traders must remember that it can amplify both their profits and their losses.

Maximum Leverage by Asset Class

Available leverage differs according to the asset class, with the most leverage available for CFDs on forex and the least for crypto pairs.

Demo Account

ActivTrades offers demo accounts for ActivTrader, MetaTrader 4, and MetaTrader 5 platforms.

Demo accounts are especially important for beginners as they allow them to practice their strategies and get comfortable with the trading platform without risking real money.

The demo account features live quotes and simulates live market conditions in assets such as forex and CFDs on commodities, indices, and stocks. Once users are up to speed on a demo account, they can easily switch to a live version.

Islamic Account

ActivTrades offers a swap-free Islamic account that adheres to the principles of Sharia law.

ActivTrades Supported Countries

Clients are accepted from the majority of countries across the globe.

However, ActivtTades does not provide services to residents of the United States, Canada, Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea.

Research

Market analysis reports keep readers abreast of key themes in forex, commodities, and global stock markets. The reports include coverage of major economic events and their impact and also provide a technical overlay, with support and resistance levels and price forecasts.

Weekly Outlook reports offer a useful summary of the economic events and earnings releases likely to move the markets and provide opportunities for traders.

My Takeaways from Exploring ActivTrades Research Content

ActivTrades provides insightful coverage of market-moving stories and useful previews of the economic landscape for the week ahead. I would also like to see more coverage of breaking news via a newsfeed, which is currently lacking via the ActivTrader platform.

Education

Educational articles cover everything from fundamentals like margin to specific trading strategies and trading psychology. These articles go into substantial depth and include practical applications in the markets. I liked that there is a series of articles covering how to invest in specific markets like coffee and sugar.

A regular series of webinars helps traders develop strategies. Technical themes like “How to trade 3 Bar Reversals” and “How to use the Key Reversal Candlestick” are covered by analyst Paul Wallace. The lineup also includes veteran market analysts as guest speakers.

ActivTrades offers a series of manuals covering MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, and ActivTrader platforms. Video tutorials are also available via the ActivTrades YouTube channel.

The Bottom Line

With 23 years of experience, multiple regulated entities, and supplemental of up to $1M from Lloyds of London, ActivTrades earned a high level of reliability in our review.

As the saying goes, ‘You get what you pay for’ and this applies in the case of ActivTrades. Fees are not the lowest available, but the company has invested in providing reliable customer support, a unique proprietary platform, and high-quality research and educational materials.

A powerful lineup of intuitive and advanced platforms can cater to beginners and experienced traders. On balance, though, I rate ActivTrades as best suited to beginners, casual traders, and those moving towards becoming a professional.

FAQ