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Best Forex Brokers in India for 2020 • Benzinga
Trading forex in India involves quite a few limitations and legal issues. Be sure to choose a broker overseen by a major financial regulator, such as the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or Cyprus’ Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), which generally comply with the European Union’s rigorous Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) rules. Not…
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Best Forex Brokers in India for 2020 • Benzinga
Trading forex in India involves quite a few limitations and legal issues. Be sure to choose a broker overseen by a major financial regulator, such as the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or Cyprus’ Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), which generally comply with the European Union’s rigorous Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) rules. Not all forex brokerages are created equal, so make sure your needs as a trader are adequately met by the forex broker you select before committing any funds.
Best Forex Brokers in India
You want the best forex broker for your needs. Your best bet is to open a demo account with a couple of different options before you trade with real money.
Pairs Offered
80+
Account Minimum
100 of your selected base currency
Pairs Offered
80+
1 Minute Review
FOREX.com is a one-stop-shop for forex traders. With a massive range of tradable currencies, low account minimums and an impressive trading platform, FOREX.com is an excellent choice for brokers searching for a home base for their currency trading. New traders and seasoned veterans alike will love FOREX.com’s extensive education and research center that provides free, informative forex trading courses at multiple skill levels. While FOREX.com is impressive, remember that it isn’t a standard broker. You can’t invest in the stock or bond market through your FOREX.com and you cannot open an account with tax advantages. The confusing pricing and margin structures may also be overwhelming for new forex traders.
Best For
- MetaTrader 4 users
- Beginner forex traders
- Active forex traders
Pros
- Impressive, easy-to-navigate platform
- Wide range of education and research tools
- Access to over 80 currencies to buy and sell
- Leverage available up to 50:1
Cons
- Cannot buy and sell other securities (like stocks and bonds)
- Confusing margin requirements that vary by currency
- Limited customer support options
- Cannot open an IRA or other retirement account
Pairs Offered
47
Account Minimum
$50 USD
Pairs Offered
47
1 Minute Review
Though Australian and British traders might know eToro for its easy stock and mobile trading, the broker is now expanding into the United States with cryptocurrency trading. U.S. traders can begin buying and selling both major cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoin and Ethereum) as well as smaller names (like Tron Coin and Stellar Lumens).
eToro offers traders the opportunity to invest their assets into premade portfolios or cryptocurrencies, similar to services offered by robo-advisors through traditional brokers. Though eToro isn’t a one-stop-shop for everything an investor needs, its easy-to-use platform and low spreads is a great way to enter the cryptocurrency market.
Best For
- International Forex/CFD Traders
- New cryptocurrency traders looking for an easy-to-use platform
- Traders who want to buy and sell cryptocurrencies on-the-go
Pros
- Simple platform that is easy to master
- CopyTrader feature that allows new traders to copy the same strategies used by professionals
- Virtual dummy account that gives you $100,000 to practice trades
Cons
- U.S. traders currently limited to cryptocurrencies
- Only 15 major coins available to trade
Pairs Offered
50+
Account Minimum
100 EURO
Pairs Offered
50+
1 Minute Review
A fully regulated broker with a presence in Europe, South Africa, the Middle East, British Virgin Islands, Australia and Japan, Avatrade deals with mainly forex and CFDs on stocks, commodities, indexes, forex, cryptocurrencies, etc. This brokerage is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and began offering its services in 2006. It offers multiple trading platforms and earns mainly through spreads.
Best For
- Beginners
- Advanced traders
- Traders looking for a well-diversified portfolio
Pros
- Controlled by regulatory agencies of multiple countries
- Choice offered in terms of trading platforms
- Support available in 14 languages and trading platforms in 20 languages
- Practice/demo account available for trying out
- Breadth of trading assets
Cons
- Does not accept customers from the U.S. as it isn’t regulated in the U.S.
- Transferring funds to the account may take up to five days; withdrawals could take up to 10 days
Pairs Offered
28
Trading Forex in India
The national currency of India is the Indian rupee ₹ with ISO 4217 symbol code INR. The rupee is divided into 100 smaller denominations known as paisa (p). According to the Bank for International Settlements’ 2016 Triennial Central Bank Survey, the Indian currency was ranked 18th among world currencies, making up 1.1 percent of daily forex turnover.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) set forth the legal framework for foreign exchange transactions by the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) of 1999. The RBI regulates and oversees foreign exchange transactions in India and the Securities and Exchange Board (SEBI) is the principal regulator of the Indian stock market and the forex brokers based in India are licensed under FEMA.
The SEBI-regulated forex brokers, which include the 3 major stock exchanges in India, are only allowed to offer INR-based currency pairs for USD, EUR, GBP and JPY. All other currency pairs are strictly barred from trading in India unless a specific transaction is authorized by the Indian government.
Due to an increase in financial scams involving forex brokers, the Indian government was forced to severely restrict the way Indian citizens can operate in the forex market. If you live in India, you are not legally allowed to trade forex currency pairs that do not have the Indian rupee as the base currency or counter-currency.
You can still open an account with a foreign-based broker as long as you send your deposit through an electronic wallet service such as PayPal, Neteller or another similar online payment service. Avoid using a wire transfer from a bank or other financial institution based in India or a credit or debit card issued by an Indian entity to fund a forex trading account.
What to Look for in a Forex Broker
Despite the general lack of normal online forex brokers based in India, other than 3 stock exchanges, you can still trade forex through foreign-based online brokers. Generally, a quality brokerage has the following 11 elements:
- Oversight by a reputable financial regulator
- Excellent reputation among forex traders
- Allows you to trade in the type of account you prefer
- Requires an affordable minimum deposit
- Gives you trading access to all major and minor forex currency pairs and other assets
- Has a maximum leverage ratio appropriate for your trading strategy and risk tolerance
- Offers competitive dealing spreads
- Provides clients with insurance against negative balances
- Keeps re-quotes and slippage on orders to a minimum
- Maintains client funds in segregated accounts
- Withdrawal and deposit options fit your needs
Another important factor to consider when choosing a forex broker is platform and trading software. In addition to their own proprietary trading platform, many brokers offer cTrader, NinjaTrader, and the very popular MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms from MetaQuotes that both support automated trading.
The Best Forex Brokers that Accept Indian Clients
If you’re from India and you’re looking for a reliable online forex broker, the list below offers some excellent options located outside of India but regulated by reputable financial authorities.
Though these brokers don’t have a physical presence in India, they accept clients from India who make deposits using payment services and electronic wallets. The best forex broker that accepts clients from India depends in large part on your unique situation and your particular needs as a trader.
Account Minimum
100 of your selected base currency
Pairs Offered
80+
Minimum Trade Size
$1,000
Spread
0.2 pips – 1.0 pips
Commisions
$0 – Variable starting at $60 per million traded depending on account
Best For
- MetaTrader 4 users
- Beginner forex traders
- Active forex traders
FOREX.com
FOREX.com ranks as the No. 1 U.S. forex broker by client assets. Regulated by the U.S. National Futures Association (NFA) and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), FOREX.com is also registered and has oversight from regulators in the U.K., Australia, Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Cayman Islands.
Accounts at FOREX.com require a minimum deposit of $250. The broker lets you trade micro lots if your preference is to start with smaller amounts. FOREX.com also offers an Islamic account option in addition to keeping client accounts segregated from its own funds. FOREX.com offers the MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms from MetaQuotes and NinjaTrader.
Trading platforms can be web-based or downloaded to a desktop or mobile app. FOREX.com also gives its customers access to the company’s proprietary Advanced Trading Platform for desktop computers and its Web Trading platform if you prefer to trade via a web browser.
Due to U.S. restrictions, FOREX.com has a maximum leverage ratio of only 50:1. For more information, you can visit the broker’s official website at FOREX.com.
Read Benzinga’s full FOREX.com review.
Account Minimum
$50 USD
Pairs Offered
47
Minimum Trade Size
0.01
Spread
starts at 1.0 pips
Commisions
N/A
Best For
- International Forex/CFD Traders
- New cryptocurrency traders looking for an easy-to-use platform
- Traders who want to buy and sell cryptocurrencies on-the-go
eToro
eToro’s social trading platform has provided forex products and more to its retail clients for over 11 years. eToro creates a trading community for users.
eToro’s most popular forex trading features include CopyTrader, CopyPortfolios, and the Social News Feed.
CopyTrader and CopyPortfolio give you the ability to locate a successful trader and copy their strategy. You can copy 100 traders and the feature is easy to set up and access.
You get access to a Twitter-like feed to trader updates with its social newsfeed as well. Traders discuss everything from markets, strategies and can get alerts based on certain market factors.
Read Benzinga’s full eToro review.
Account Minimum
$5
Pairs Offered
28
Minimum Trade Size
$5
Spread
From 0.2 pips
Commisions
$0
OctaFX
OctaFX regularly conducts global and local promotion campaigns with valuable money and product prizes and trading perks.
OctaFX’s Trade-and-Win loyalty program lets you get gifts just for trading like shirts, caps, sports bikes and other prizes.
OctaFX’s key value is transparency. Its multilingual customer support team is always prompt and to the point and the payments are processed by the most popular systems without delays.
Account Minimum
$100
Pairs Offered
200+
Commisions
from 0.03%
Libertex
Libertex offers high-speed, reliable, cutting-edge technology platforms. Libertex offers an engaging, compelling trading experience and serves Indian forex traders. Besides currencies, you can also trade stocks, indexes, commodities, gold, oil and gas.
You can use Libertex’s Multiplier Feature, set at the moment of opening a trade. The Multiplier is a value that determines how the trade result changes relative to the underlying asset price.
Practice with a demo account and learn more.
Get the Right Forex Broker in India
Trading forex anywhere can be risky, but that seems especially true in India if you’re unfamiliar with the country’s legal restrictions on currency transactions. If you live in India and want to trade the Indian rupee exclusively against USD, GBP, JPY or EUR, then you can legally trade through one of the 3 SEBI-regulated Indian stock exchanges that act as forex brokers.
It’s against the law to use an account from a bank or other India-based financial institution to fund a trading account and make forex market transactions in currency pairs that do not include the INR. If you still wish to trade non-INR currency pairs, then you must make a margin deposit to a foreign broker by transferring funds from an electronic payment service such as PayPal or Neteller.