The Forex industry in Australia is perfectly regulated. The main regulatory body is ASIC (also known as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission), meaning that all Forex brokers there are required to hold an ASIC license in order to be able to operate in Australia. Despite the fact that the market is huge and full of possibilities, rules and regulations are not very liberal – for instance, brokerage firms wishing to operate in the country must have at least $1 million in working capital.
The local currency of the country – AUD is an important currency for Forex traders not only there but around the world, especially because of its special relationship with the Japanese Yen. Traders from Australia will definitely be able to find a lot of brokerage companies offering AUD for trading purposes.
The maximum leverage in Australia is capped at 1:30. In 2021, ASIC announced leverage changes that must be complied with all the Forex brokerage companies that are regulated by this financial regulatory body.
As in the majority of countries, trading Forex is taxed in Australia. However, there are some rules that one should keep in mind. Mostly, traders are subject to Forex trading tax which has a 23% rate.
If you are someone who wishes to start the trading journey in Australia, then you will be able to choose from a variety of payment methods such as Visa, Mastercard, Skrill, Neteller, or PayPal.
Finding a suitable Forex broker can sometimes be difficult and other times even overwhelming. Since there exists no single universal set of criteria that would be applicable to each and every trader’s needs and wishes, one needs to dig deep into the research and figure out what works best for them. Fortunately, Australia has a lot to offer in terms of reputable and reliable broker services. We have researched and made a list of the best online Forex brokers in Australia for you to choose from.
5$
CySEC, FCA, ASIC
30$, 50%+20%
1:1000
2009
MT4, MT5, WebTrader
$100
CySEC, CBI, FSA, FFAJ, BVI FSC, FSCA, FSRA
1:400
2006
MT4, MT5, WebTrader, AvaTradeGO
USD 5,000
FINMA, FCA, ASIC, FSA, MAS, AFM
N/A
1:30
1992
SaxoTraderGo, SaxoTraderPro
$5
SVGFSA, FCA, DFSA, FSCA, FSA
From 30% to 100%
1:1000
2010
MT4, MT5
15
CySEC
30%
1:500
2015
MT4, WebTrader
$250
FSCA
1:200
2012
MT4, WebTrader
100$
FCA
N/A
30:1
2008
Custom
$10
Risk Warning: YOUR CAPITAL MIGHT BE AT RISK
N/A
1:1000
2013
Proprietary
10 USD
FCA, CySEC, FSA
N/A
1:Unlimited
2008
MT4, MT5, WebTerminal
$10
N/A
N/A
1:500
2019
MT4, custom
$10
1:500
MT4
250$
FCA, NFA
N/A
200:1
1999
MT4
$25
ASIC, CySEC, FSA, BVI
50%
1:400
2001
WebTrader, MT4, TradingView
100
FCA, CySEC, DIFC, CIMA
N/A
500:1
1977
MT4, MT5
$100 AUD
ASIC
N/A
500:1
2005
WebTrader, MT4, MT5, IRESS
AUD$200
ASIC, SCB, CMA, CySEC, FCA, BaFin and DFSA
N/A
1:400
2010
MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView
250 EUR
FSA (Seychelles)
None
1:200
2023
FXRoad web & mobile platforms
$50
N/A
N/A
1:500
2015
MT4
1 USD
ASIC, FCA
10 USD
1:500
2005
MT4, MT5, WebTrader
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89% 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.
A single governing body regulates the Forex market in Australia, and this agency has the power to oversee the entire Commonwealth of Australia. The name of the organization is ASIC, which stands for Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
The primary role of the agency is to oversee and control the financial sector, but there are various “smaller” duties and responsibilities that ASIC also has to perform on a daily basis. For instance, some of those tasks include corporate governance, monitoring financial services and operations, protecting the client’s rights and privileges, and so on. Also, ASIC is in charge of controlling the insurance of trader’s funds and protecting the personal information of the investors at all times. Of course, Australian Forex trading platforms are the ones who must perform some of these tasks, but ASIC is continuously monitoring the market and issuing warnings and bans in case any irregularities appear.
Another important role of ASIC is its educational dimension, and this agency is the only regulatory body in the world that provides learning materials on its website. Their portal is called MoneySmart, and as the name clearly indicates – it is designed to educate the investors about clever ways in which they can invest their funds. This unique feature is what separates ASIC from other governing bodies in the world of foreign exchange and binary options, and Australians are lucky to have such a consumer-friendly agency at their disposal. Also, unlike FCA, CFTC, or some other regulatory body, ASIC has slightly easier demands, which means that it is simpler to obtain a license for Forex Brokers Australia.
Trade with a regulated broker – XM
People trading Forex or other trading assets such as options or futures, have to pay tax which is up to 23%. This rate is calculated based on long/short-term capital gains/losses. As your Forex trading activities aim to gain a profit, it is very likely that you will have to pay tax on your profits throughout the year.
When it comes to Forex trading tax in Australia, you should know that this tax applies to people who are not a resident of Australia but has a source of income in the country. In case you want to have foreign exchange trading activities through a broker based in Australia, you will have to pay tax on your profits.
Yes, it is very likely that all Australian regulated Forex brokers you will come across will have AUD currency pairs available as AUD is one of the major currencies available for trading purposes, being in the ten most used currencies in the Forex community.
The Australian Dollar is the fifth most-traded currency, which is quite impressive as the economy of the country is not very large. AUD has 6.8% of daily turnover and its popularity is mostly due to the fact that country is rich in natural resources, positions itself as a reliable trading partner, and has high-interest rates.
Considering the fact that Australia is known for a safe trading environment for a couple of reasons, investors from all around the world are quite happy to open accounts and start trading with local currency. This is due to the fact that customers do not need to worry about scams and fraudulent companies, which makes their trading experience much more comfortable and enjoyable.
Yes, Australian Forex brokers have a cap on leverage. Due to regulations set by ASIC, the maximum leverage that brokerage companies can offer to their clients is 1:30, however, it can be even lower for different classes of assets. For instance, a cap is 30:1 for major currency pairs, while the same for minor currency pairs might be 20:1. It is very clear to us that ASIC has decided to follow a European-style approach, trying to protect customers from potential losses.
Usually, financial regulatory bodies put restrictions on leverage due to the simple fact that they can not only help you gain profits but can also play an important role in losing all your funds. Whether you are dealing with an Australian or international broker, it is important to check leverage ratios. The industry’s standard is somewhere between 1:200 and 1:300 and anything above that might already be suspicious, especially with unregulated Forex brokers.
Australian dollars are in use with the majority of the Australian-based Forex brokers and this lowers the total amount of fees that would otherwise be spent on conversion rates. Credit and debit cards are predominantly used when investors are depositing and withdrawing their funds, but other methods are also possible. For example, wire transfers or modern e-wallets can be a great alternative if you are not a fan of carrying too many plastic cards in your pocket. We have to mention that the absolute favorite payment method of Australian traders is PayPal, which is the most widely accepted payment solution in the world. Most of the brokerage companies based in Australia support the payments through PayPal.
One of the most frequent activities that you will be performing when trading with currency pairs is transferring the funds to and from the accounts that you opened with the broker company. The efficiency and convenience in the transfers will facilitate the overall trading, and it is also important the broker uses reliable and protected payment methods.
Start trading Using Paypal on XM
The first thing you need to do when looking for a Forex broker Australia is to find a company that is credible and legitimate, which means that the broker in question has to be regulated by a reputable agency. The importance of regulation is indeed a crucial determiner of whether to trust the firm or not. The reason behind this is that the regulated agencies are strictly required to conduct audits of their accounts. The audits serve as a guarantee that the brokers will always hold enough funds to ensure the successful accomplishment of their clients’ transaction requirements. Moreover, The company is obliged to hold separate accounts for themselves and their clients. Therefore, if anything goes wrong with the financial stability of the firm and it eventually ceases to exist or goes broke, clients will receive compensation for their funds.
Other than finding out whether the firm you are eyeing is regulated or not, researching the best Forex trading platform Australia can offer will educate you on the subject of types of brokers, prices for the services, and what distinguishes them from less credible brokerages. However, one should bear in mind that research should not be limited to solely reading the website of the broker firm, as most likely most of their content will be promotional and subjective. It is always recommended to go through different authentic sources that hire professionals to exam the brokers and write objective, quality reviews about their scope of operations. It will also save you time, as such reviews take the key points, which are the most crucial in deciding whether to consider a particular broker or not and analyze them in-depth.
Another important thing to consider might be execution speed. Execution speed is closely connected with the quality of the trading platform, and this aspect of your future broker is critical if you are planning on making a fortune by investing with Australia’s Forex trading brokers. The quality of the software solution will determine the speed of the trading process, and the entire user experience will suffer if the trading terminal is not good enough. Australian Forex trading platforms mostly include MetaTrader and cTrader, which offer the best performance and are very easy to use.
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