A Review of the Famed CFD Broker, Plus500
The search for a broker is always an odious one, and to help you out, we bring you a review of one of the most talked-about brokers for a while: Plus500. It is an Australian company, though it was initially based out of Haifa, Israel, in 2008. However, in the first decade of its life, Plus500’s stock rose to the point of its shares being listed on the London Stock Exchange’s main market, as well as being made a part of the prestigious UK FTSE 250 index of companies.
If that makes you think that using Plus500 trading as your main option for CFDs is a good idea, hold off on making a decision until you finish reading this Plus500 CFD review. We go in-depth and tell you everything you need to know!
Pros and Cons
To start you off, we will list the various pros and cons associated with Plus500 forex trading:
| Pros | Cons |
|
+ The platform is easy to use + Customer support is available around the clock + Free deposit and withdrawal + You are only charged an inactivity fee if you do not log in for a while + The minimum deposit amount is low + Two-step authentication for login, which is safer + The charts it provides are good and interactive |
– The product range is limited – Research tools are not up to snuff – The fees for CFDs are average – Poor quality of news flow – Customer support is not available over the phone or live chat |
Key Features
The world revolves around performance, and whether a business well or not depends mostly on its key features and attributes. Given how well Plus500 forex is regarded in the business of trading, it has some very impressive features on display. In this section, we will take a look at them all:
| Headquarters | Sydney, Australia |
| Regulations | CySEC, FCA, ASIC, FMA, FSB, MAS |
| Instruments Traded | ETFs, CFDs, Commodities, Metals, Stocks, Oil, Gold, Indices, Forex, Crypto, Options |
| Type of Broker | Market Maker |
| Minimum Deposit | $100 |
| Maximum Leverage for Retail account | 1:30 |
| Maximum Leverage for Pro account | 1:300 |
| Plus500 Demo Account | Yes |
| Currencies traded | USD, GBP, EUR, AUD, NZD, CAD, JPY, CHF, SGD, DKK, HUF, NOK, SEK, CZK, MXN, PLN, ZAR, TRY, THB, CNH, HKD, HRK, KRW |
| Islamic Account | Yes |
| Supported Countries | The trading platform is not available to residents of the United States and countries where CFD trading activity or similar services are contrary to local law or regulation. |
Account Types
As you may have seen from the previous table, there are two kinds of accounts that people can access: Retail and Pro. What does each type have to offer? We will find out in this section.
Leverage
| Instrument Category | Retail | Pro |
| Major Forex | 1:30 | 1:300 |
| Minor Forex | 1:20 | 1:300 |
| Major Indices | 1:20 | 1:300 |
| Gold | 1:20 | 1:150 |
| Commodities (excluding Gold) | 1:10 | 1:150 |
| Minor Indices | 1:10 | 1:300 |
| Shares | 1:5 | 1:20 |
| Options | 1:5 | 1:5 |
| ETFs | 1:5 | 1:100 |
| Crypto | 1:2 | 1:20 |
Other Criteria
| Protection | Retail | Pro |
| Client Money Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Negative Balance Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Transparent Execution and Pricing | Yes | Yes |
| Real-Time Disclosure | Yes | Yes |
| Product Disclosure Statement and Financial Services Guide | Yes | No |
| Recourse to AFCA | Yes | No |
| Margin Close Out Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Inducements | No | Yes |
Deposit and Withdrawal Options
Below, we have a table describing all the various ways you can fund and withdraw money from your account:
| Payment Option | Minimum Deposit | Minimum Withdrawal | Processing time (deposits) | Processing time (withdrawals) |
| Bank Wire Transfer | $100 | $100 | Instant | Within 5-7 working days |
| Credit and Debit Cards | $100 | $100 | Instant | Dependent on Bank |
| Trastra Visa card | $100 | $100 | Instant | Within 1 working day |
| Skrill | $100 | $50 | Instant | Within 3-7 working days |
| PayPal | $100 | $50 | Instant | Within 3-7 working days |
Promotions
When it comes to promotions, Plus500 offers a bonus to its customers based on the volume of deposits and withdrawals they made. When you meet certain criteria, you will be assigned a number of Trader Points or TPs, which you can then exchange for a bonus. These bonuses are set in chronological order – when you meet the requirements for one and use it, you will immediately start collecting Trader Points for the next bonus.
When you are eligible for a bonus, Plus500 will send you a notification. Whether you want to use it is up to you, and Plus500 forex broker bears no liability for any losses you may incur if you trade with the bonus amount. Keep in mind, though, that all bonuses expire after 90 days.
The requirements for every bonus available are detailed in the table below:
| Minimum Deposit | Bonus Amount | Required Trader Points | Bonus Code |
| AU$300 | AU$80 | 80 | Welcome |
| AU$750 | AU$200 | 150 | BRONZE |
| AU$1500 | AU$300 | 200 | SILVER |
| AU$6000 | AU$1500 | 1000 | GOLD |
| AU$15000 | AU$3000 | 2500 | PLATINUM |
| AU$75000 | AU$15000 | 10000 | DIAMOND |
Best payment solutions for Plus500 users
If, after reading this review, you decide that you want to go with the Plus500 app as your broker, good on you. However, before you do, we wanted to tell you about the best payment solutions at your disposal.
First of all, we would advise keeping bank transfers and card payments as a backup because they can take a few business days to get done. It can vary on a case by case basis, of course, but that is the trend in general. Instead, you could use Skrill as your go-to option.
Another good option is Trastra. They issue Visa cards that you can use for transactions, but with the added benefit of anonymity. A Trastra Visa card allows you to spend up to 8,000 Euros every day, manage your funds and load up your card from anywhere, get live notifications, and disable it at any time. All of that certainly makes for an attractive option.
What is more, due to Baxity’s working relationship with them, we can fast track your way to success if you sign up for Skrill and Trastra here.
FAQ
What is the minimum deposit / withdrawal on Plus500 forex broker?
The minimum amount you can deposit or withdraw on Plus500 broker depends on the payment method and starts from $25.
Is there a thing as Plus500 trading fees?
No. Plus500’s main source of compensation is through its market spread. They do not charge dealing commissions, either.
How do you contact Plus500 customer support?
On the website, there is an option for contacting customer support through submitting a form. There is no calling function, but the crew responds to queries 24/7.
Does Plus500 allow scalping?
Halmara, thank you for your question! According to their official respond in FAQ section, scalping as well as any prohibited activity such as an abuse of their bonus system, is not allowed on Plus500 trading platform. In such circumstances, they reserve the right to void all of trades and/ or close account.
Does Plus500 charge a currency conversion fee for deposit and trading?
Harry, thank you for your comment! Yes, that is correct.
“Plus500 will charge a Currency Conversion Fee for all trades on instruments denominated in a currency different to the currency of your account.” – https://www.plus500.com/FAQ/FeesCharges/DoYouChargeCurrencyConversionFee
Also while depositing funds to Plus500 via Skrill, currency conversion fee will be applied by the payment system if the currency of your ewallet and the currency of transaction are different.
What if the fee applied by Skrill?
Harry, as I wrote above – the payment system can also charge a commission for the conversion on its part. Therefore, our advice is – in order not to lose money on possible conversions, create an account with a broker and Skrill in the same currency, ideally if it coincides with your local currency.
Why did you guys add the inactivity fee as a Pro? An inactivity fee is still a fee no matter if it’s because you haven’t logged in for a while or something else. I prefer brokers that don’t have any kind of inactivity fee.
malamala109, thank you for your comment. At the moment, all major market players (not only brokers, but also payment systems, for example) are introducing a commission for inactivity. Moreover, it begins to be charged only after half a year or a year. And this period is very significant, if we talk about working on the stock market.
One of th things I like about Plus500 is their Plus500 Traders’ Sentiment. You can be notified when this Traders’ Sentiment (the % of buyers and sellers among Plus500 clients) reaches a certain levels so you can react accordingly.