
Forex.com in South Africa — review, licence and costs
Score (5 of 6 axes scored)
ranked against full-basis brokers
- Reviews25%90
- Round-turn cost20%90
- Safety20%0
- Track record10%100
- Platforms10%80
Numbered by weight: axis 1 counts for most.
Key facts (6 facts)
- Onboarding entity
- GAIN Global Markets Inc
- Founded
- 2001
- Retail leverage
- 50ZA
- Round turn
- 7 USDZA
- Currencies
- USD, EUR, GBP, others; no ZAR base verified at review.
- Swap-free account
- yes
"group" marks a figure the broker publishes for the group rather than for this country. It is shown because the broker states it, and it is not ranked, averaged or used to sort.
Licence check
The broker's own website. Not a partner link — we earn nothing from it.

Who actually onboards you
- Entity that onboards South Africa residents
- GAIN Global Markets Inc
- Local standing
- Offshore; not on FSCA register as a Forex.com FSP at review. Group holds tier-1 licences elsewhere, but SA clients lack onshore FSCA cover.
- Licence as the register states it
- No FSCA FSP licence verified. Onboarding under Cayman CIMA international entity.
- Leverage for this entity
- Up to ~1:50 under international terms; Pro up to 1:400.
- The firm behind it
- Brand of GAIN Capital, subsidiary of US-listed StoneX Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SNEX); tier-1 global group.
- What we hold against it
- Tier-1 group, but SA clients served offshore without a verified FSCA FSP number; verify on FSCA register before funding.
Leverage by entity
The licence belongs to the firm; a leverage figure belongs to one entity. Only the entity that onboards South African residents enters the score.
Scale from 1:10 to 1:3000, logarithmic.
Client protection
- Local entity onboards youOffshore; not on FSCA register as a Forex.com FSP at review. Group holds tier-1 licences elsewhere, but SA clients lack onshore FSCA cover.
- Regulator warning on filenone found
— means the broker does not state it in any source we captured. It is not read as “no protection” and it is not scored.
Price against South Africa market median(priced from 80 of 103)
Medians run over the 80 of 103 brokers that publish a price for South Africa, never over the whole base. A spread without its commission is not a price and is not counted.
Accounts
Account types the broker names for this country: Standard, MT4/MT5, DMA. Min USD 100. The figures below are the broker's own and do not differ by account in any source we captured.
Swap-free account terms
Terms read from the account page on 01.10.2026. The cap on open positions is not published.
Where Forex.com sits in the South Africa base(103 brokers)
Round-turn cost, USD (80 of 103 priced)
Median 7 USD · range 1-20 · this broker 7 USD · 23 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Minimum deposit, USD (49 of 103 priced)
Median 50 USD · range 0-1000 · this broker 100 USD · 54 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Retail leverage (72 of 103 with a South Africa figure)
Median 1:500 · range 20-5000 · this broker 1:50 · 31 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Withdrawal time published (103 brokers)
Payouts
Identical for every row: Deposit, h 24 · Fee, USD 0 · Min, USD 50.
Deposit and withdrawal methods (3 methods · 0 local rails)
Cards, bank wire, e-wallets;
- Cards
- Bank wire
- E-wallets
- Account currency
- USD, EUR, GBP, others; no ZAR base verified at review.
- Fee declared
- 3 of 3 methods
- Withdrawal back to
- the funding method
Where it does not serve(60 countries)
From the client agreement, clause 2.3. A country missing from a translated page is not read as “served”.
Platforms and markets(6 platforms)
- Web Trader
- mobile app
- MT4
- MT5
- TradingView
| Class | Count | Min spread |
|---|---|---|
| Web Trader | — | 1.2 |
| mobile app | — | 1.2 |
| MT4 | — | 1.2 |
| MT5 | — | 1.2 |
| TradingView | — | 1.2 |
| Forex pairs | 82 | — |
184 further account types are named by their brokers but publish none of these figures, so they are not in the comparison: IC Markets Raw Spread MT4/MT5, IC Markets Raw Spread cTrader, Eightcap Standard, Eightcap Raw, Fusion Markets Classic account, Pepperstone Standard and 178 more.
Identical for every row: Leverage 50 ZA.
Reviews(1 platform · 25% of the score)
| Snapshot | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| 02.10.2026 | 4.8 | — |
Share of reviewers in South Africa: — The platform does not publish it.
Pros and cons(3 for and 5 against, each tied to a figure on this page)
- Swap-free account available
- Track record 100 of 100, its strongest of 5 scored axes
- 5 platforms: Web Trader, mobile app, MT4, MT5
- No South Africa authorisation on file: the entity that onboards you is licensed elsewhere
- Min deposit 100 USD, over the South Africa median 50
- Withdrawal time not published
- Safety 0 of 100, its weakest of 5 scored axes
- Not scored on payouts: the broker publishes no figure we could read
Alternatives in South Africa(6 of 103 scored in South Africa)
- Round turn, USD
- 7ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 100 groupZA
- Leverage
- 500ZA
- Rank in this country
- #45
- Round turn, USD
- 8ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 100ZA
- Leverage
- 500ZA
- Rank in this country
- #40
- Round turn, USD
- 8ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 500ZA
- Leverage
- 500ZA
- Rank in this country
- #61
- Round turn, USD
- 7ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 100 groupZA
- Leverage
- 1000ZA
- Rank in this country
- #62
- Round turn, USD
- 8ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 100ZA
- Leverage
- 200ZA
- Rank in this country
- #43
- Round turn, USD
- 9ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 100ZA
- Leverage
- 400ZA
- Rank in this country
- #9
Methodology(6 axes · formula v1.0)
Score = 2 + 3 × weighted mean of six axes scored 0–100. Range 2.0–5.0. An axis without data drops out and the remaining weights are renormalised; it is never scored zero or estimated. Group-wide figures never enter a South Africa score. Full methodology
| Axis | Weight | What is measured | Forex.com |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 25% | Rating, volume and recency on one public review platform | 90 |
| Round-turn cost | 20% | Round turn on 1 lot EURUSD: spread plus commission, against the country median | 90 |
| Safety | 20% | Local authorisation, the entity that onboards you, any regulator warning | 0 |
| Payouts | 15% | Published withdrawal time, fees and the methods available in the country | — |
| Track record | 10% | Years since the firm was founded, from its own filings | 100 |
| Platforms | 10% | Which trading platforms the broker confirms for this country | 80 |
FAQ
- Does Forex.com accept residents of South Africa?
- No. Offshore; not on FSCA register as a Forex.com FSP at review. Group holds tier-1 licences elsewhere, but SA clients lack onshore FSCA cover. Onboarding entity: GAIN Global Markets Inc
- Is Forex.com licensed to serve clients in South Africa?
- No FSCA FSP licence verified. Onboarding under Cayman CIMA international entity. Checked on 09.07.2026.
- How much does one round turn cost at Forex.com?
- About 7.0 USD per standard lot on EUR/USD. The median across brokers measured for South Africa is 7.0 USD.
- What leverage does Forex.com offer to retail clients in South Africa?
- Up to 1:50. Up to ~1:50 under international terms
- Which trading platforms does Forex.com support?
- Web Trader, mobile app, MT4, MT5, TradingView. Instruments: FX, indices, commodities, shares, crypto (5,500+ instruments).
- How can I withdraw money from Forex.com in South Africa?
- Cards, bank wire, e-wallets; dedicated ZAR rails not verified at review.
- What account types does Forex.com offer?
- Standard, MT4/MT5, DMA. Min USD 100.
- Does Forex.com offer a swap-free (Islamic) account?
- Yes. Forex.com offers a swap-free (Islamic) account to South Africa residents.
Taxes for a South African resident(1 rule)
- SARS taxes residents on worldwide income.https://forexbrokers.com
Not tax advice. Check with SARS.