ActivTrades is a long-established British broker founded in 2001 and, on regulatory pedigree, one of the strongest names in our ranking. Its UK entity, ActivTrades PLC, is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under firm reference 434413, and clients of that entity are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) up to £85,000. It also holds licences through ActivTrades Corp in The Bahamas (Securities Commission of The Bahamas) and a CMVM-supervised entity in Portugal. Note one correction worth carrying: ActivTrades Europe S.A. was removed from the CSSF register on 18 October 2024, so any page describing the group as CSSF-regulated is out of date. What none of that gives you is a Hong Kong licence — ActivTrades holds no authorisation from the Securities and Futures Commission, so a Hong Kong resident's account sits outside the SFC perimeter and outside the Investor Compensation Fund. Its international entity publishes that 84% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. If you accept that trade-off, it suits traders who want variety: alongside MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 it offers its own ActivTrader platform, and its instrument list stretches beyond forex into shares, bonds and ETFs. Our trading signals arrive with an exact entry, take-profit and stop-loss on every call, so you can execute them on any ActivTrades platform — just note that the free forex signals package is exclusive to Base Markets. The signals page compares the free and paid paths.
Regulation and safety
ActivTrades is supervised by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority through ActivTrades PLC (firm reference 434413) — one of the strictest regulators in the world — alongside ActivTrades Corp in The Bahamas (SCB) and a CMVM-supervised entity in Portugal. ActivTrades Europe S.A. was removed from the CSSF register on 18 October 2024, so the group should no longer be described as CSSF-regulated.
Clients of the UK entity benefit from Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protection up to £85,000. Which entity serves you depends on your country of residence, and a Hong Kong resident will not be onboarded by an SFC-licensed corporation — there is no ActivTrades entity on the SFC register. Confirm at registration which entity holds your account and what protection, if any, comes with it.
The international entity publishes that 84% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. Like every such figure, it is entity-specific — read it from the page your sign-up link actually lands on.
Accounts and costs
ActivTrades does not impose a high minimum deposit (in practice it starts from $0 for most countries), and spreads start from 0.5 pips on major pairs.
A notable advantage: there are no fees on deposits or withdrawals, which lowers the total cost of trading over time. Confirm the funding currency and any conversion cost for a Hong Kong bank transfer before you fund.
Platforms and instruments
ActivTrades stands out for offering its own ActivTrader platform alongside MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, so you can pick whichever suits you for ease of use or professional depth.
Assets span forex, shares, indices, commodities, ETFs, bonds and crypto CFDs — a broader range than is usual among forex-focused brokers, and useful if you want exposure beyond gold and the majors.
Swap-free account
ActivTrades offers a swap-free account (no overnight interest), but it is available to clients in a limited list of countries — confirm your eligibility before registering.
If a swap-free account is a hard requirement and your country is not covered, Base Markets or XM may suit you better.
Using our signals with ActivTrades
Every signal we publish includes a precise entry, take-profit and stop-loss, so it can be executed on ActivTrader, MT4 or MT5 without modification — around the London session in the Hong Kong evening or the New York session overnight. If you already hold an ActivTrades account, you can subscribe to the signals through our Telegram bot.
Bear in mind the free-access route — a $400 deposit (roughly HK$3,120) that stays yours to trade — runs only through Base Markets. Our free trading signals guide explains both options and their total cost.