Pepperstone Broker Review

Regulatory Overview: Founded in 2010, Pepperstone is a globally recognised broker regulated by several financial authorities, including:

• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) – Pepperstone Group Limited (AFSL No. 414530)
• The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of the UK – Pepperstone Limited (FRN No. 684312)
• The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) – Pepperstone EU Limited (Licence No. 388/20)
• The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) of Kenya – Pepperstone Markets Kenya Limited (Licence No. 128)
• The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) – Pepperstone Financial Services (DIFC) Limited (Licence No. F004356)
• The Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht (BaFin) of Germany – Pepperstone GmbH (Licence No. 151148)
• The Securities Commission of The Bahamas (SCB) – Pepperstone Markets Limited (Licence No. SIA-F217)

These regulators vary in terms of investor protection standards. ASIC, FCA, and BaFin are strong regulators that enforce strict compliance standards, including fund segregation, audit requirements, and capital adequacy. The CMA of Kenya, CySEC, DFSA, and SCB are offshore regulators with varying degrees of oversight.

Regulation for Ugandan Traders: Pepperstone is not regulated by the Capital Markets Authority of Uganda or any local Ugandan authority. Ugandan traders are onboarded under Pepperstone Markets Kenya Limited, regulated by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) of Kenya (Licence No. 128). While the CMA provides regulatory oversight, it does not offer the same level of investor protection as top-tier regulators like ASIC, FCA, or BaFin. This means that Ugandan clients trading under this entity do not benefit from the same regulatory safeguards as those under ASIC, FCA, or BaFin.

Client Protection Measures: Despite the lack of local regulation, Pepperstone implements several measures to enhance client security:

• Segregation of Funds: Client funds are held in separate accounts from the company’s operational funds, ensuring that your capital is protected from company liabilities.
• Negative Balance Protection: This feature ensures that clients cannot lose more than their deposited funds, protecting against extreme market volatility.
• Transparent Operations: Pepperstone adheres to international best practices, including regular audits and compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) policies.

While these measures provide a level of security, Ugandan traders are not covered by any investor compensation scheme. Therefore, due diligence and risk management are essential when trading with Pepperstone.

Overview: Pepperstone offers Ugandan traders access to a diverse range of over 1,200 CFDs across global markets. Traders can access the following asset classes, all offered with competitive leverage and the flexibility to go long or short:

• Forex (up to 1:200): Trade over 60 currency pairs, including majors like EUR/USD, GBP/USD; minors such as EUR/GBP, AUD/JPY; and exotics like USD/ZAR and EUR/ZAR.
• Indices (up to 1:200 on majors, 1:100 on minors): Speculate on global stock indices, including the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100, FTSE 100, DAX 30, and ASX 200.
• Commodities (up to 1:50): Access CFDs on precious metals like gold and silver, energy products such as crude oil and natural gas, and agricultural commodities including cotton and corn.
• Shares (up to 1:20): Trade CFDs on shares from major markets, encompassing companies listed in the US, UK, Germany, and Australia.
• Cryptocurrencies (up to 1:10): Engage in CFD trading on popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, available 24/5.
• ETFs (up to 1:20): Diversify with CFDs on a selection of Exchange-Traded Funds covering various sectors and regions.

Opening an account at Pepperstone is a fully digital process but does require a suitability assessment. Once the process is complete, Pepperstone aims to approve applications within 4-8 hours.

Neither the Standard Account nor the Razor Account has a required minimum deposit, though we recommend starting with a minimum of 200 USD to avoid margin calls. Trading costs on both accounts are much lower than most other brokers.

Pepperstone Standard Account

This commission-free trading account has no minimum deposit requirement. Costs are included in the spreads, which average at 1.00 pips on the EUR/USD. This account is especially good for beginner traders who do not want to spend time calculating commissions. Be aware that TradingView integration is no available with this account.

Pepperstone Razor Account

Pepperstone’s raw spread account is the Razor Account and has no required minimum deposit. TradingView is only available with this account. Spreads average at 0.10 pips on the EUR/USD – which is the lowest average spread we have found at ANY broker – and a commission is charged per lot traded. Commissions change depending on your trading platform, the base currency of your account, and your trading volume. We confirmed this spread on the cTrader platform:

Razor Account Commissions

MT4 and MT5: Commissions on the MT4 and MT5 Razor Accounts are charged in the base currency of your account and are frequently updated to take account of the exchange rates, though the USD cost is always $3.50 per lot traded ($7 round turn).

cTrader: Commission for cTrader Razor Accounts is the cheapest, with the cost always at 3 USD per lot traded (6 USD round turn).

TradingView: Always at 3.50 USD per lot traded (7 USD round turn).

Pepperstone Platform: Always at 3.50 USD per lot traded (7 USD round turn).

Active Trader Program

Trading commissions can be further reduced by becoming a member of Pepperstone’s Active Trader Program. The Active Trader Program has several advantages for high-volume traders, including discounted commissions, a free VPS service and priority customer support. The commission discount with the Active Trader Program features 4 tiers as follows:

For more information about tier 4 of the Active Trader Program, traders should contact Pepperstone customer support.

Demo Account

Pepperstone offers demo accounts for all of its platform. The Pepperstone Platform (webtrader) demo acocunt will expire after 30 days unless a live account is created. MT4/5 demo accounts expire automatically after 60 days unless you have a live funded account and request Pepperstone to set it to non-expiry for you. cTrader demo accounts will not expire if they are logged into at least once every 90 days. 

All five of Pepperstone’s trading platforms are available on Android and iOS mobile devices and tablets. Beginner traders should be aware that mobile apps have some loss in functionality when compared to desktop trading platforms, and poor mobile connections will seriously impact trading.

Pepperstone App

Launched in 2024, the Pepperstone app is a user-friendly trading platform that integrates with the Pepperstone web trader. While it is more basic than the third-party apps and platforms offered by Pepperstone, it is easier for beginners to learn. Features include:

• One-click trading: Efficiently execute trades with a single click, saving you time and effort
• Razor sharp spreads: Trade Forex from 0.0 pip spreads with industry-leading liquidity (applicable to Razor accounts only)
• Watchlists: Stay updated on market movements with customisable and public watchlist
• Demo account: Practise margin trading strategies and techniques in a risk-free environment with our free demo account ($50,000 virtual funds)
• View and amend positions and trade on live streaming prices
• Multiple charting options and analysis for comprehensive insights
• Technical indicators and risk management features for informed trading
• Instrument performance, spreads, margins and market hours updates
• Easy instrument search and find

cTrader App

cTrader is one of our favourite trading platforms, and Pepperstone is one of a handful of brokers that supports it. Its clean design makes it easy for beginners to pick up, but it also has the advanced order types and automation options required by more experienced traders. The Pepperstone cTrader app keeps most of the best parts of the desktop version, including the complete range of order types, price alerts, trade analysis, and symbol watchlists.

TradingView

TradingView is free of charge for traders who open a live trading account.  It is an excellent tool for researching, charting, and screening instruments.  Additional features of Pepperstone’s TradingView tool include:

• 50+ intelligent charting tools
• Over 100,000 custom user-built indicators and scripts
• Synchronised layout for multiple charts

Traders should note that TradingView is only available on the Razor Account.

MT4 and MT5 Apps

The Pepperstone MT4 and MT5 apps allow traders to work from anywhere, with nine timeframes, 30 indicators, and interactive currency charts. Functionality to close and modify existing orders, calculate profit/loss in real-time, and tick chart trading further assists traders while on the move.

With MT4, MT5, cTrader, TradingView and Pepperstone’s own web trader platform all available, Pepperstone offers support for more trading platforms than most brokers.

Pepperstone Trading Platform

The Pepperstone trading platform was launched in 2024 and integrates with the Pepperstone mobile app. While not as sophisticated or powerful as the third-party platforms, beginners will find it easier to use. Features include:

• Swap between charts with Quick Switch
• View and amend positions and trade on live streaming prices
• Multiple charting options and analysis for comprehensive insights
• Technical indicators and risk management features for informed trading
• Instrument performance, spreads, margins and market hours updates
• Easy instrument search and find
• Ready to use demo account with every live trading account
• Build customised watchlists
• Access and follow public watchlists

MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView

Pepperstone also offers traders MetaTrader 4 (MT4), MetaTrader 5 (MT5), cTrader, and TradingView, each of which offers Expert Advisors, automated trading support, strategy backtesting, customisable charting, indicators, and copy trading functionality.

All platform choices are free to use, all can be downloaded to your PC or Mac, and all have web versions of the platform. Traders who want more EAs and don’t mind the dated interface should consider using one of the MetaTrader products. cTrader is often a favourite for beginner traders as it requires less setup, has a more modern interface, and offers more advanced order types. Pepperstone’s Razor Account also seamlessly integrates with TradingView, which provides unsurpassed charting options and a well-designed social trading experience. 

Trading Tools

Pepperstone’s trading tool options are above average when compared to similar brokers, with free Autochartist for all traders and Smart Trader Tools for MT4 and MT5.

Smart Trader Tools for MetaTrader4/5

At Pepperstone, MT4 and MT5 traders can benefit from this dedicated suite of 28 tools, expert advisors, and indicators.  Smart Trader Tools help traders manage their risk, control all trades from a single terminal and view the correlations between currency pairs and other CFDs. The full set of tools includes sophisticated alarms and broadcast facilities, with up-to-date market data and functions integrated within the MetaTrader interfaces. 

Autochartist

Free for all Pepperstone clients, Autochartist is an award-winning automated technical analysis tool that plugs into MT4, MT5, and cTrader and scans all available CFD markets for trading opportunities. Autochartist’s advanced pattern recognition engine identifies the strongest potential trading opportunities and predicts future price movements.

API Trading

Pepperstone supports trading via its Application Programming Interface (API).  This technology is ideal for those using trading systems or developing their own custom-built system.  It allows an increased ability to see the depth of market and access to multiple liquidity providers.

Discounted VPS Services

Via two third-party companies (ForexVPS and New York City Servers), Pepperstone offers a discounted VPS (Virtual Private Server) service for traders using the MT4 and MT5 platforms. VPS hosting allows traders to run automated algorithmic strategies, including expert advisors, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on a virtual machine. 

Both ForexVPS and New York City Servers have dedicated 24/5 customer support teams to help new users set up and install EAs and indicators directly to the virtual machines. VPS services have the advantage of never suffering connectivity issues and have extremely low latency due to their proximity to major international exchanges.

Social Trading

While Pepperstone does not offer a dedicated social trading platform, it supports both the Metatrader Signals marketplace and Duplitrade, a popular third-party trading strategy marketplace that allows you to automate your trading by following proven expert traders. TradingView also offers one of the most developed social trading experiences available.

While MetaTrader Signals can be followed by anyone using the Metatrader platform, the Duplitrade copy trading system is only accessible through Pepperstone with a minimum deposit of 5000 USD (or equivalent).

Trading Tools Comparison

Broker

Economic Calendar

Autochartist

Trading Central

Trading View

Free VPS

VPS services are usually offered free with a minimum trade volume, otherwise a monthly subscription fee will apply. VPS services are usually hosted by third-party companies.

Pepperstone

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

XM

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

FBS

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

A well-regulated broker, Pepperstone ensures that all Anti-Money Laundering rules and regulations are followed, and as such, all non-profit withdrawals are returned to the deposit source. 

Accepted Deposit Currencies: Accounts can only be opened in USD or GBP. Because the Ugandan Shilling is not one of Pepperstone’s accepted base currencies, Ugandan traders with UGX bank accounts will have to pay currency conversion fees. Pepperstone charges currency conversions at the current spot rate, minus a conversion fee of up to 1 percent, which is relatively high. 

Funding Methods: Pepperstone accepts deposits and withdrawals via Bank transfer, Credit/debit cards, PayPal, Skrill and more.

Overall, Pepperstone has an average range of funding methods compared to other large international brokers, but no fees are charged, and processing times are fast.

Educational Resources: Pepperstone offers various educational resources, including free trading guides, articles on how to trade Forex and CFDs, various courses, and videos.  Its guides cater to beginner, intermediate, and advanced traders.  It also hosts regular webinars, and archives of previous webinars are available for free on its website. Trading guides cover topics such as ‘the Psychology of Placing Your First Trade’, Forex Trading Basics and how Forex trading works, and introductions to various trading strategies.  It also offers MetaTrader4 and Forex trading courses. 

Webinars: Weekly webinars pick up where the structured education stops, with more detailed strategy sessions led by expert traders. The webinar subjects vary from trading strategies to technical and fundamental analyses.  Note that one has to register a Pepperstone account to access the live webinars.

Pepperstone’s market analysis team are renowned experts in the tradin world and the quality of their output is excellent and available in both video and text.

Analysis Blog: The in-house Pepperstone research team runs a regular blog covering both fundamental and technical analyses. The research provides information on market-moving events outside of conventional news sources.  The research team also provides a ‘Daily Fix’ – a day-to-day analysis of events affecting the markets. 

YouTube: Pepperstone’s trading team post frequent updates to their YouTube channel with discussion on events affecting the markets.

Pepperstone’s award-winning 24/7 customer service is available to help answer questions should you need assistance with either technical or account-based queries. For the purposes of the review, we tested the live chat services. The live chat agents were responsive and highly knowledgeable. As you can see, they responded to our questions within a matter of seconds: