Best Swiss Forex Brokers

Are you thinking about trading Forex in Switzerland? If so, you need to understand the forex market in Switzerland and how to navigate it.

Switzerland has a relatively strict regulatory environment, so if you choose a foreign broker, make sure it is also well-regulated within its local jurisdiction. Several online brokers have offices in Switzerland and many foreign brokers also open accounts for traders who reside in the country.

Remember that not all forex brokerages are created equal, so make sure to carefully determine your specific needs as a trader. Once you know what you need, you can assure your needs will be met by a broker before opening a forex trading account.

Quick Look: Best Swiss Forex Brokers

• Best for High Volume Traders: Tickmill
• Best for Quick Execution Speed: Blackbull Markets
• Best for Low Fees: Axi
• Best for Dedicated Forex Traders: FOREX.com
• Best for Traders of All Skill Levels: Capital.com
• Best for Forex Traders Who Want Choices in Trading Markets: FxPro
• Best for Beginner Forex and CFD Traders: XM Group
• Best for Demo Accounts: eToro
• Best for CFD Traders: Swissquote

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Disclosure: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

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Best Swiss Forex Brokers

If you’re from Switzerland and looking for a reliable online forex broker, choose from among the well-regulated brokers shown below. Here’s a short list of some top online forex brokers to consider:

1. Best for High Volume Traders: Tickmill

Tickmill is regulated by the Financial Services Authority in Seychelles (FSA), ensuring that they adhere to strict financial regulations and guidelines to protect investor funds. They offer competitive spreads and low trading fees, making it a cost-effective option for Swiss traders looking to maximize their profits in the forex market. Tickmill offers a transparent and fair trading environment, with no requotes and fast order execution.

The broker also provides a wide range of trading instruments, including major and minor currency pairs, commodities, indices and cryptocurrencies. Tickmill offers advanced trading platforms such as MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. They provide excellent customer support in multiple languages, including English, German, and French. Customer support is available 24/5 via live chat, email, and phone.

2. Best for Quick Execution Speed: Blackbull Markets

BlackBull Markets provides a range of trading instruments, including forex, indices, commodities, energies, metals and CFDs. BlackBull Markets' global expansion and strong reputation further establish it as a trusted and reliable choice in the trading industry.

With its headquarters in New Zealand and regulation overseen by regulatory bodies such as the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) in New Zealand and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the Seychelles, the broker is a popular choice for all types of traders.

3. Best for Low Fees: Axi

Axi provides a variety of trading instruments such as forex, CFDs, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies, enabling you to diversify your portfolios and capitalize on various market opportunities. They provide competitive spreads, low commissions and offer a secure and reliable trading platform that is user-friendly.

Axi offers educational resources, market analysis tools and expert insights to assist you in your trades. The broker also provides customer support with a team available 24/5 to address any questions or issues. Axi is overseen by reputable financial authorities such as the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), and the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).

4. Best for Dedicated Forex Traders: FOREX.com

FOREX.com is a top broker with respect to client assets. While it may not be regulated by FINMA, it is regulated by the NFA and CFTC in the United States, in addition to the U.K., Australia, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Cayman Islands.

You can open a trading account at FOREX.com with just $250, and the broker allows micro lot trading for those wanting smaller trading amounts.

The broker segregates client accounts from its own and offers an Islamic account option. The company has several desktop, mobile, and web-based platforms, including the popular MetaTrader 4 and 5 platforms from MetaQuotes.

Clients also have access to its proprietary Advanced Trading Platform for desktops and its Web Trading platform for online trade execution.

With respect to leverage, FOREX.com has a rather low (but safe) maximum leverage ratio of 50:1 available to clients trading currency pairs. You can visit the broker’s official website for more information at FOREX.com.

5. Best for Traders of All Skill Levels: Capital.com

Capital.com is a popular choice for traders due to its user-friendly platform, a wide range of tradable instruments and caters to both beginners and experienced traders. 

Beginners can use the user-friendly demo account offered by the broker to learn about charts, positions and indicators. For experienced traders, Capital.com provides intuitive charts, drawing tools and over 75 indicators to improve analysis skills. The broker has fast execution times, quick withdrawal processing and responsive customer service. In addition, the platform offers educational resources and 24/7 support for traders. Traders can also manage their exposure comfortably with flexible position sizing.

6. Best for Forex Traders Who Want Choices in Trading Markets: FxPro

FxPro offers traders access to the forex and contracts for difference (CFD) market where they can access hundreds of assets, including forex, metals, indices, shares and cryptocurrencies. Choose from 8 base currencies and enjoy no account or transaction fees. Inactivity fees will apply after 6 months of no trading.

There’s no commission charged and the spreads are very tight as you trade on MT4 or MT5 with fast execution and customer support 24/5 that’s provided by a helpful and multilingual staff. 

7. Best for Beginner Forex and CFD Traders: XM Group

Set up with over 1,000 trading instruments, XM Group is a CFD and forex platfom that you can use to manage a large, advisory or professional portfolio. Underlying assets for CFDs include stocks, commodities, equity indices, precious metals and energies using MT4 or MT5 or their mobile app. With every transaction, you get fast execution and quality customer care in dozens of languages.

8. Best for Demo Accounts: eToro

eToro has provided forex products and more to retail clients for over 10 years. It is a social trading platform that has over 10 million account holders worldwide; eToro allows users to be a part of the trading community.

eToro’s most popular trading features for forex trading are their Social News Feed, CopyTrader, and CopyPortfolios.

With the Social News Feed, traders get access to a Twitter-esque feed for trader updates. They can discuss the markets, and their strategies, and are able to get alerts based on certain market factors.

With CopyTrader and CopyPortfolio, you can find a successful trader and copy their strategy. With the ability to copy up to 100 traders, this feature is easy to set up and access.

9. Best for CFD Trading: Swissquote

When you plan to invest in forex in Switzerland, you can turn to Swissquote, a firm that went public in 2000, trades publicly and offers a massive range of tradable assets. Yes, you can trade in other things like stocks, ETFs, bonds, themed products, structured products, Swiss OTC derivatives, etc, but Swissquote also uses robo advisors and quantitative management techniques, you get quality results from the platform.

Designed for financial professionals, active day traders, CFD traders, derivatives traders and anyone who wants powerful trading options and elaborate tools, Swissquote makes it easy to improve the quality of your portfolio by offering more options and information. You can set up private and business accounts, and you will benefit from several features like:

• MetaTrader 4
• MetaTrader 5
• Autochartist
• Plugins
• Advanced Trader
• FIX API

With 3 account types and reasonable minimum balances, you can save money, save time and build a complete portfolio that allows you to build wealth and increase your net worth.

Trading Forex in Switzerland

The Swiss national currency is the Swiss franc (CHF), which is divided into 100 smaller denominations. Since Switzerland is a multilingual country, this 1/100 of a franc denomination is known as a rappen in German, a centime in French, a centesimo in Italian and a rap in Romansh.

According to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the Swiss franc was the seventh most-traded currency in 2016, making up around 4.8 percent of overall forex market turnover that year. The CHF also ranked eighth among the world’s most popular reserve currencies, amounting to roughly 0.15% of total central bank reserves in the third quarter of 2018, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

With respect to Swiss financial sector regulation, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) supervises the financial system in Switzerland that includes online forex brokers. The regulator oversees financial institutions and aims to protect investors by making sure that Switzerland’s financial markets function well. Financial institutions need to be authorized by FINMA before commencing operation.

When it comes to trading currencies, Switzerland has several reputable forex brokers based in the country itself, although Swiss residents can easily deposit money and trade forex via accounts held with foreign brokers.

Keep in mind that if you do choose a foreign forex broker, it will generally be overseen by one or more regulators in the country, so make sure to select a foreign broker with a reputable and reasonably strict regulatory organization.

What to Look for in a Swiss Forex Broker

You can also choose among foreign brokers that are regulated abroad but still accept Swiss clients, such as FOREX.com, for example. If English is not your first language, then you will probably want to select a broker that has its website translated into your preferred language, as well as a customer service desk staffed with people who speak it.

All of the Swiss brokers and most of the top foreign forex brokers already have their English websites translated into German, French or Italian. Remember that if a broker has established an office in Switzerland and is regulated by FINMA, then that would be ideal since that tends to make a broker act more responsibly because legal action can be taken against them in Switzerland. Litigating abroad can be challenging and cost you extra time and money to seek justice if problems arise.

Additionally, whether a broker is based in Switzerland or elsewhere, the best online brokerage will generally have the following 11 characteristics:

• A good reputation
• Will accept you as a client
• Well regulated
• Requires a minimum deposit you can afford
• Offers all currency pairs and assets you wish to trade in
• Allows a sufficient leverage ratio for your preferred trading strategy
• Makes prices with competitive dealing spreads
• Provides negative balance protection
• Has minimal order slippage
• Segregates client accounts from its own
• Has intuitive deposit and withdrawal procedures

Another key factor to take into account when looking for a suitable online forex broker is what type of trading software the broker supports. Many brokers offer proprietary trading platforms to clients, while some rely on third-party platforms like MetaTrader 4 and 5 from MetaQuotes.

Final Thoughts on Swiss Forex Brokers

If you live in Switzerland, choose a well-regulated broker that segregates clients’ accounts from its own accounts and deposits with a top-tier bank. Regulation by FINMA is strong and highly recommended, while the NFA and CFTC also provide strict oversight. Select a forex broker if your margin deposit will be kept safe. Any trading gains will be promptly sent to you when asked. Research the client reputation ratings of each broker and check to see if account holders have any unresolved issues with the broker.

Frequently Asked Questions