South African Day Trading

CFD Sites in South Africa

We have already explained that there are two different routes for South African traders, but the next step is how to define between good, bad and mediocre brokers. A great starting point is to look through this section of our guide which relates to some factors that are crucial to a successful day trader.

Mobile Trading

South Africa has very reliable Internet service and there is a good reason to take advantage of that fact. Nobody in the modern world will choose to be constrained to a desk for many hours when the opportunity is right there to take your work with you. In recognition of this, brokers are placing far more emphasis on providing a top-class mobile experience than ever before. Whether your preference is a high-quality downloadable application for your device or a mobile-optimised version of the main website, you will not be short of choices.

Deals And Incentives

As you study a variety of brokers, undoubtedly will see that some are almost ‘over keen’ to attract clients with the temptation of bonuses or other financial incentives. Although it is not always the case, this initial offer may be at the expense of overall fair trading conditions and competitive spreads and should be approached with caution. It is always a better deal in the long run that will reward you in accordance with your loyalty, by increasing your leverage, optimising spreads or reducing fees. Always look carefully at the broker’s T&Cs relating to any ‘great’ offer you may encounter before taking it up.

Diverse Asset Types

No two brokers are the same in terms of the assets and derivatives they offer, although some of the most-traded assets, like the major currency pairs, are almost always available. Some brokers prefer to specialise, whilst others have an all-round selection in the hope of pleasing a wider client base. If you have enough experience to have a preference or trade within a niche market then you may have to look a little harder to find your ideal broker.

Good Customer Support

Unfortunately, many traders do not consider customer support of much importance until the point where they have an urgent question, or worse still a problem. That is why we always urge you to look carefully at this side of the broker’s business. Generally speaking, brokers provide various ways to contact the customer support team, usually a web form or e-mail address for non-urgent matters and a toll-free telephone number for anything that cannot wait. However, when these services are available and the speed of response you can get is crucial, always aim for a broker that supports access to assistance 24 hours per day through the trading week.

South African Licencing

South Africa operates a very solid regulatory system for brokers and licensing them is the responsibility of Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA), which took over the reins from the Financial Service Board (FSB) in 2018 and it has been said is a far more stringent regulator. Prerequisites for licensing acceptance are extensive and the licence fee is high, so it is mainly the biggest brokers who are up for the challenge.

This is a major advantage for South African day traders, not only do the bigger brokers hold multiple licences, they often include licences issued by the jurisdictions recognised across the world as being strict, for example:

• FCA (Financial Conduct Authority)
• CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission)
• ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission)

Generally speaking, South African authorities are very much on the side of the consumer and this is very much the case where brokers and their clients are concerned.

For traders, there is just one regulation that you must adhere to, which is concerned with the amount of money you can legally transfer out of South Africa, including to offshore destinations. The figure is currently fixed at 10 million SA Rand (about £500,000), but you will need to obtain a Tax Clearance Certificate from the revenue service first. However, it is also possible to apply for a ‘single discretionary allowance’ of up to 1 million SA Rand (approximately £50,000) which will only require pre-approval from your bank, but you will need to be honest about the purpose of the money, or risk a fine.