Trading 212 Review

Choosing a broker is a big decision when you start investing. With so many options out there, finding the right one can be tough. In this guide, we focus on Trading 212, a broker based in Cyprus. We’ll discuss its advantages and disadvantages, fees, account setup process, and safety. By the end, you’ll know if Trading 212 is the right choice for your investments, or if another broker might be better for you. 

🏱 Headquarters London, 107 Cheapside, United Kingdom
📅 Year founded 2004
đŸ—ș Regulation Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) UK,

Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC),

Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) Bulgaria
đŸ’»Â Trading platform: Web platform, a mobile app for Android and iOS
💰 Account currency: USD
📊 Accounts: Trading 212 Invest, Trading 212 CFD, ISA (available for UK clients only)
đŸ’”Â Withdrawal: ank cards: Visa, Visa Electron, MasterCard, Maestro; electronic payment systems: PayPal, ApplePay, GooglePay, Skrill; bank transfer via wire transfer
đŸ’” Deposit: Bank Transfers, Instant Bank Transfers, Card Payments, OnlineBankingPL, Carte Bleue, Blik, Direct eBanking, Apple / Google Pay, PayPal, iDEAL
🚀 Minimum deposit: 1 £, €
⚖ Leverage:  1:500 (Pro clients), 1:30 (retail clients)
â˜Ș Islamic account (swap free) No
🎼 Demo Account Yes
đŸ’±Â Spread: From 0 pips
🔧 Instruments: Currency pairs, CFDs on stocks, indices, futures, commodities, and ETFs
📋 Orders execution: Market Execution
☎ Customer Support: 24/7
📚 Education Yes (about trading and investing)

Commission and Fees

Topforx experts have reviewed the trading conditions at Trading 212, covering both trading and non-trading commissions. They found no hidden fees. The company doesn’t charge a fee for depositing or withdrawing funds.

If you are in the EU and buy an ETF or stock in USD, you’ll pay a 0.15% fee. Currency conversion between euros and USD is a significant part of their business model.

Only Trading 212 CFD accounts have a transfer fee for the next day. The Trading 212 invest account lets you transfer orders without any fees. When compared to other leading companies, Trading 212 is the cheapest broker for European investors. For example, buying €1,000 of the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IE00B5BMR087) has no cost.

Pros and Cons

Pros Cons
Trading 212 has a user-friendly web trading platform and mobile app, winning Best in Class for Ease of Use in our 2024 Annual Awards. The mobile app doesn’t offer news headlines except for economic calendar events.
Offers nearly 10,000 symbols for CFD and forex trading. Research on the web platform is limited to brief updates, except for sentiment data.
Supports many exotic FX pairs, including 16 against the Bulgarian lev, and over 140 forex pairs in total. Despite having many videos, Trading 212 lacks written educational articles.
Provides indemnity insurance up to EUR 1,000,000 per client, backed by Lloyds of London (renewed in 2024). MetaTrader is not available.
Requires a low minimum deposit. Does not offer investment programs.
Offers a wide selection of trading assets. Has limited contact options for support.
Features a multilingual site interface. Does not hold contests for traders.

Regulation and Safety

Trading 212 UK Ltd is based in England and Wales and follows the rules of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has given it the reference number 609146. The FCA, a top-level regulator, oversees its activities. Trading 212 UK Ltd offers protection against negative balances. However, it is not on any stock exchange and does not have a banking history.

Is Trading 212 safe?

Yes, it is.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK, a top-tier regulator, oversees it. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protects your investments up to ÂŁ85,000 per account (this applies if Trading 212 is a scam or poorly managed during bankruptcy. Usually, you only need to transfer your assets to another broker).

Your assets are always yours and are kept separate from the broker’s funds (this is required by financial regulators).

As other users have mentioned, Interactive Brokers, a reliable broker since 1976 with no major operational issues, holds your assets. Trading 212 also has private insurance from Lloyd’s of London, covering up to 1,000,000€.

The only downside is that it is a private company, so it doesn’t face the same level of scrutiny as publicly traded brokers. Other than that, there are no major concerns.

Overall, we understand this is an important issue for many, but Trading 212 is quite safe.

Deposit and Withdrawal

Trading 212 allows users to withdraw funds to their personal accounts whenever they want and may set limits on the minimum withdrawal amount. There is no fee for depositing into or withdrawing from a trading account.

Users can deposit and withdraw funds using Visa, Visa Electron, MasterCard, Maestro bank cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Play, Skrill, and bank wire transfers.

The broker does not specify when the funds will be credited to the user’s account. However, electronic payment transactions are quicker, while bank transfers can take up to 5 business days.

Users can withdraw funds in GBP and EUR. To withdraw funds, users must verify their accounts by providing the necessary documents to the broker.

Account Types

The Trading 212 broker offers three types of real accounts: Trading 212 Invest, Trading 212 CFD, and ISA. These accounts are designed for active trading and investing. The accounts differ in the trading instruments they offer, the minimum deposit required, and the commission for currency conversion. Additionally, there are two types of virtual accounts.

Education

The brokerage company focuses on providing quality services and helping its clients grow. Trading 212 offers training materials for all traders. These materials help beginners understand the basics and nuances of trading, and help professionals improve their skills.

Customer Support

If you have any questions or problems while working, you can contact customer support. They are available 24/7 and will respond quickly, but there are only a few ways to reach them.

Conclusion

Trading 212 is a broker that’s easy for Europeans to use. It’s great for people who know a lot about trading because it offers many choices, but it might be hard to understand at first. If you’re new to investing, it might seem scary. One good thing about Trading 212 is that it lets you buy parts of shares, and it’s not expensive. But it doesn’t help you with taxes, which can be hard if you’re new to investing. So, if you’re just starting to invest, we don’t think Trading 212 is the best choice for you.

FAQs

How does Trading 212 make money?

Trading 212 makes money by converting currencies and through CFDs. CFDs are contracts that let you guess on the price changes of stocks or currencies without actually owning them. Instead, it’s an agreement between you and Trading 212. You agree to swap the difference in price of the stock or currency between when you open and close the contract.

Do I have to tell the Belgian authorities about my Trading 212 account?

Yes, you need to tell the Belgian National Bank and tax authorities about your Trading 212 account because it’s from another country. Check out our guide for help on telling them about your foreign account.

Can I trust Trading 212?

Yes, Trading 212 is reliable because it’s regulated by the top-tier FCA in the UK, CySEC in Cyprus and FSC in Bulgaria.

 

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