Pepperstone Review

Since opening its doors in 2010, Pepperstone Group has emerged as a top-tier player in the online brokerage landscape, building a highly competitive and full-featured trading portal that focuses on forex, shares, indices, metals, commodities, ETFs and even cryptocurrencies (as CFDs and ETFs).

A minimum opening deposit of 200 units in the base currency helps new traders get into the game, underpinned by leverage levels as high as 30:1 for retails and 500:1 for professional. The company is regulated in the U.K. and registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA #684312) as well as the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC #147055703), in EEA by CySEC, in germany by BaFin, in UAE by DFSA, in APAC and LATAM by SCB, and in africa by CMA. Pepperstone does not accept U.S. traders.

Disclaimer: (CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 74-89 % of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money)

Customer accounts are segregated from company funds, providing an additional layer of security in an industry that is prone to turbulent periods. Support options are plentiful, highlighted by 24/5 chat/phone support and a functional FAQ that includes clearly stated policies on deposits, withdrawals, and trade disputes.

Numerous desktop, mobile, and web-based platforms, an industry-standard product catalog, above average educational resources, tight spreads, and multiple account types all combine to offer a trading experience that will appeal to novice and professional traders alike.

Pepperstone main highlights

Country of regulation	UK, Germany, Cyprus, Australia, United Arab Emirates, Bahamas, Kenya
Trading fees class	Low
Inactivity fee charged	No
Withdrawal fee amount	$0
Minimum deposit	$0
Time to open an account	1 day
Deposit with bank card	Available
With electronic wallet	Available
Number of base currencies	10
Demo account provided	Yes
Products offered	Forex, Commodities, Index, Cryptocurrencies, Share, ETFs

Fees

Pepperstone has low forex and non-trading fees, including no inactivity or account fees. However, CFD financing rates are high for a few assets.

Pepperstone fees snapshot

Assets	Fees Level	Fees Terms
S&P 500 CFD	Low	The fees are built into the spread, 0.4 points is the average spread cost during peak trading hours.
GBPUSD	Low	MT4/MT5 Razor account: $3.50 commission per lot per trade plus spread cost. 0.2 pips is the average spread cost during peak trading hours.
EURUSD	Low	MT4/MT5 Razor account: $3.50 commission per lot per trade plus spread cost. 0.1 pips is the average spread cost during peak trading hours.
Inactivity fee	Low	No inactivity fee

Markets and products

Among cryptos, you can trade Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Litecoin and Polkadot. Speaking of commodities, we really liked that you can have positions in gold against multiple currencies (USD, EUR, AUD, GBP, CHF).

At Pepperstone, you can trade 600+ US stocks as share CFDs, including large-cap companies like Boeing, Facebook, Apple, Exxon and Alibaba. You can go long and short. After-hours trading is possible (this is when earnings are typically released).

Their share CFD selection also includes 100 popular UK stocks, a number of German shares as well as more than 200 Australian shares. You’ll need MetaTrader 5 to trade share CFDs. It’s good to know that, unlike traditional share trades, there is no stamp duty to be paid on UK CFD trades.  As an alternative to CFD trading, UK residents can use spread betting. In the UK, spread betting profits are exempt from capital gains tax and the stamp duty.

This selection is average compared to competing brokers.

Disclaimer: (CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 74-89% 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)

Research

You can find trading ideas based on technical tools and read market reports written by Pepperstone’s research team.

You can find Pepperstone’s research tools in three locations:

• Trading platform
• Pepperstone’s website, under ‘Market analysis’
• Secure Client Area

Education

Pepperstone has great educational materials. You can use demo accounts, participate in webinars and watch educational videos.

At Pepperstone you can learn in the following ways:

• Demo Account
• Webinars
• Platform tutorial videos
• Quality educational articles
• Trading Glossary

You can use demo accounts for getting familiar with the platforms. We think this is the best way to learn how Pepperstone trading platforms work.

In addition, you can participate in webinars, access educational content, and learn from platform tutorial videos in a dedicated MetaTrader 4 Course. There are also educational videos available on Pepperstone’s YouTube channel.

Another useful feature is a trading glossary that helps you understand unfamiliar words, expressions or acronyms.

Final thought

Pepperstone is a great forex and CFD broker, regulated by multiplse top-tier authorities, including the FCA, the BaFin and ASIC.

The account opening is fast and fully digital. Customer service is great, providing lightning-fast and relevant answers. Deposit and withdrawal are a breeze, with no fees charged in most cases.

On the other hand, at Pepperstone you can trade mostly forex and CFDs. If you’re looking for advanced features in your trading platform, you might find the MetaTrader platform slightly disappointing.

Feel free to try Pepperstone as there is no inactivity fee or minimum deposit for standard accounts.