Best Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) Regulated Brokers 2025
We’ve personally tested and ranked the top brokers regulated by Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), ensuring high standards of trust and reliability.
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1Pepperstone, established in Australia in 2010, is a highly-regarded forex and CFD broker serving more than 400,000 international clients. It provides access to over 1,300 instruments through leading trading platforms such as MT4, MT5, cTrader, and TradingView, while keeping fees relatively low and transparent. The company is regulated by known authorities including FCA, ASIC, and CySEC, offering a safe trading environment for all.
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Trust Platform Assets Fees Accounts Research Education Mobile Support 4.7 Established in 1989, CMC Markets is a reputable brokerage firm authorized by various top regulators such as the FCA, ASIC and CIRO, and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They boast a global client base of over 1 million traders and have received numerous awards. -
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Trust Platform Assets Fees Accounts Research Education Mobile Support 4.0 FXCM is a well-known forex and CFD broker that was set up in 1999. Its head office is in the UK, but it operates globally, including in places like Australia. FXCM offers trading without any commission fees, a selection of more than 400 assets, and a variety of analysis tools. Many traders prefer it, which is why it has received several awards. Major entities such as FCA, ASIC, CySEC, FSCA, and BaFin regulate FXCM.
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Safety Comparison
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Mobile Trading Comparison
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Comparison for Beginners
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Comparison for Advanced Traders
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Accounts Comparison
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Detailed Rating Comparison
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Fee and Cost Comparison
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Broker Popularity
See how popular the Best Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) Regulated Brokers 2025 are in terms of number of clients.
Broker | Popularity |
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Pepperstone |
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CMC Markets |
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FXCM |
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Why Trade With Pepperstone?
Pepperstone is a leading choice for trading with low spreads, quick execution, and advanced charting for experienced traders. New traders benefit from no minimum deposit, a wealth of educational resources, and 24/7 support. Operating under ASIC regulation, Pepperstone is a top option for Australian traders and won DayTrading.com's 'Best Aus Broker' award for 2025.
Pros
- Pepperstone has simplified deposits and withdrawals, adding Apple Pay and Google Pay in 2025, and PIX and SPEI for Brazilian and Mexican clients in 2024.
- Pepperstone provides impressive transaction completion speeds, averaging about 30ms. This allows for quick order processing and execution, making it suitable for traders.
- Get top-notch customer support through phone, email, or live chat. Expect responses within <5 minutes based on our trials.
Cons
- Pepperstone does not support cTrader Copy, a popular feature in the cTrader platform available at alternatives like IC Markets, though it has launched an intuitive copy trading app.
- Despite market improvements, the crypto options provided are fewer compared to other brokers like eToro, with no chance to buy actual coins.
- Pepperstone's demo accounts last for 30 days. This might be insufficient for learning the various platforms and testing trading strategies.
Why Trade With CMC Markets?
CMC Markets offers a great online platform for traders. It has advanced charting tools and a wide variety of CFDs to trade, including a large selection of currencies and customized indices. It caters to traders at all levels.
Pros
- CMC provides great pricing, with narrow spreads and low fees for trading except for stock CFDs. The Alpha and Price+ programs also give benefits to active traders, including up to 40% spread discounts.
- We upgraded its 'Assets & Markets' rating due to frequent product additions in early 2025, including extended hours trading on US stocks and new share CFDs.
- The CMC web platform offers an excellent user experience, featuring advanced charting tools and customizable options for trading. It suits both beginners and experienced traders. It supports MT4 and will add TradingView in 2025.
Cons
- CMC provides a commendable range of assets, but lacks support for actual stock trading and UK customers are unable to trade cryptocurrencies.
- A $10 monthly inactivity fee is charged after one year of no trading activity. This could discourage occasional traders.
- The CMC Markets app provides full trading services, but its design and user experience are not as good as leading competitors such as eToro.
Why Trade With FXCM?
FXCM is a top choice for traders using automated strategies because of its four strong platforms, strategy testing, and API trading. The company is also highly recommended for active traders due to its reduced spreads and minimal or zero commissions on frequently traded assets.
Pros
- You can fund your account through several methods such as bank cards, Apple Pay, and PayPal. Processing is instant.
- The broker provides spread reductions and other great benefits for skilled traders using the Active Trader account.
- FXCM now offers 24-hour stock CFD trading via MetaTrader 4 platform.
Cons
- The live chat support might not be as quick or dependable as that of leading competitors.
- FXCM primarily caters to proficient traders, but unfortunately, they do not provide managed accounts.
- Traders do not have the option to choose between different retail accounts, and there are no options for Cent/Micro accounts.
Filters
Overview of BaFin and Its Role in Trading
The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, commonly called BaFin, is Germany’s main watchdog for financial activities, particularly overseeing online brokers. Seen as a top-tier regulator known for its high standards, BaFin ensures that traders in Germany are well protected.
Brokers that operate under BaFin’s oversight must stick to strict rules, especially those outlined in the Securities Trading Act. If they don’t, they face serious consequences—BaFin issued fines totaling over €8.1 million in 2023 alone because of non-compliance.
We’ve taken the time to find some of the best brokers that BaFin regulates by checking their official credentials in the regulator’s Database of Companies.
How We Evaluated the Top BaFin-Regulated Brokers
Here’s how we found the best brokers operating under BaFin’s rules:
- We searched our database for brokers claiming BaFin regulation.
- We confirmed their authorization by checking the public register.
- We ranked them based on ratings, which combined over 100 data points with our own tests.
How to Verify a Broker’s BaFin Regulation
Ensuring a broker is BaFin-regulated is simple:
- Go to BaFin’s Database of Companies website.
- Type the broker’s name or BaFin-ID in the search bar and click ‘search’.
- Look for details about their authorized activities and issue date in the results.
For example, a search for CMC Markets showed they are authorized. On the other hand, a search for eToro did not show authorization.
German traders can also opt for brokers licensed in the European Economic Area (EEA), thanks to a system called a European passport for trading firms. This aligns with the principle of free movement of services.
Requirements for BaFin-Regulated Brokers
Brokers overseen by BaFin must adhere to strict rules to protect traders and ensure market stability. These include:
- Providing high-quality order execution, taking speed, price, and likelihood into account.
- Displaying risk warnings about trading products, particularly important for short-term traders like those using CFDs.
- Offering limited leverage up to 1:30 and managing CFD accounts carefully.
- Implementing negative balance protection so clients don’t lose more than they deposit.
- Using segregated bank accounts to safeguard clients’ funds in case of bankruptcy.
- Regularly reporting financial data to BaFin.
- Refraining from using bonuses to attract more deposits.
- Meeting at least €750,000 in capital requirements.
If brokers don’t follow these rules, they might face penalties. For instance, Degiro was fined €1,050,000 in 2023 for related control failures.
BaFin also has informative reports that help educate traders about online investing risks, trading products, and trends in the financial market in Germany. Here are some insightful reads:
- Beware of fraud
- Crypto tokens remain a risk for consumers
- Risks of CFDs – every other provider fails to comply with the requirements
- The promises neo-brokers make – and the ones they keep
Bottom Line
For German traders, using a broker regulated by BaFin is a smart choice. BaFin is known for its trusted and active role in ensuring brokers provide a safe and transparent trading environment.
However, online trading carries risks, even with BaFin-regulated brokers, so always trade with money you can afford to lose.