Top 10 Forex Brokers in Singapore

Singapore, although it is officially known as the Republic of Singapore, is an island archipelago located between Malaysia and the South China Sea. It is a financial centre for trade in the Asia-Pacific region, on par with London and New York. Its primary island is densely packed, while its entire population is just under six million inhabitants. Its annual GDP, however, is roughly $340bn, thereby making it one of the highest GDP per Capita nation in the world. Singapore is also one of the Four Asian Tigers, along with Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan.

Licensed forex trading brokers proliferate in this island community and are regulated tightly by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), which also acts as the country’s central bank and regulates all sectors of the financial industry, including banks, stocks, foreign exchange and insurance companies. When it comes to making your choice of Singapore-regulated forex broker easier, we have prepared the following ‘top 10’ list of brokers for your review.

The Top 10 Forex Brokers in Singapore

1. Pepperstone
2. Plus500 (CFD provider)
3. IG
4. AvaTrade
5. Saxo Markets
6. XM
7. HYCM
8. OANDA
9. EightCap

#1Pepperstone

#2Plus500 (CFD provider)

#3IG

#4AvaTrade

#5Saxo Markets

#6XM

#7HYCM

#8OANDA

#9EightCap

What does being regulated by the MAS mean?

For anyone visiting Singapore for the first time, it can be a culture shock with respect to the strict enforcement of all manner of rules, from where you might cross a street to what hurdles a forex broker must clear in order to have a presence on the island. These rules have a lengthy overbearing history with its citizenry, but the rules in the financial sector are designed to protect consumers from scams, unfair business practices, and bankruptcies. All accounts must be segregated from the operating funds of the brokerage, for example.

There is a combination of MAS-licensed brokers available to traders. There are several local forex brokers, as well as international brokers located offshore. As a Singapore citizen or foreigner living on the island, the MAS does not require that you deal only with this select group of licensed brokers. The rules permit you to use an offshore broker, but only if it is sufficiently regulated in its own country of origin. The MAS, however, stresses that it cannot be of assistance if and when a trader encounters foul play while trading with one of these offshore forex brokers.

There are tax benefits for individual retail forex traders. You are not taxable on your recorded gains, nor will a brokerage report these figures to the government taxing authorities. If you are a professional trader by occupation, then your transactions are taxable. If you are a professional, you may defer your tax consequences by dealing with an international broker who is offshore. Your profits are taxable, however, when the funds are transferred to a bank account in Singapore.

As an attractive financial centre, Singapore’s standard of living and AAA credit rating add to the allure of this location as a centre for operations to serve all of Asia. Singapore is also a high-tech powerhouse with supporting infrastructure – a reason why large financial institutions and liquidity providers flock to this locale. These factors also make it an ideal environment for forex brokers to operate their servers and provide their products and services to consumers throughout the region.

As a respected financial hub, it is no wonder that trading foreign exchange in Singapore has become very popular, based upon a supportive legal infrastructure and strict regulatory oversight from the MAS. The Singapore Dollar or ‘SGD’ is also considered to be one of the most stable and strongest of the world’s currencies, ranking in between the euro and the US dollar.

Any one of the above brokers could become an effective business partner for you, but always remember that trading foreign exchange is a risky endeavour. Preparation, practice, and a defined strategy will always help to mitigate those trading risks, but monitoring a broker’s performance is necessary, too.

Final thoughts

Forex trading is flourishing in the island community of Singapore and for good reason. Its reputation as a stellar financial centre has drawn banks, liquidity providers, and forex brokers in droves due to its high standard of living, its high-tech infrastructure and its supportive regulatory environment.

For individual retail forex traders, trading profits are not taxable income, and there are a multitude of high quality brokerage houses to ensure a safe and secure trading experience.