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Saxo Markets is a globally renowned CFD broker with a wide range of offerings, including options, equities, futures, and bonds.
It is also a key provider of liquidity and infrastructure to banks, wealth managers, and smaller brokers, with over 850,000 global clients, 200+ banks and brokers, and 400+ financial intermediaries currently using the popular broker. Saxo claims to be your one-way ticket to the global market with more than 600 000 financial products.
Today we seek to investigate, and verify the broker’s claims by diving deep into the company’s business model, the unique features which stand out, general pros and cons, fees, and what customers have to say.
Review of Saxo Pros
- Wide variety of financial products and instruments.
- Regulated by the FCA.
- Multiple layers of account protection for clients.
- Dependable trading platform with a proven reputation.
- Small commission.
- Direct access to global markets.
Review of Saxo Cons
- Not beginner-friendly.
- Does not accept U.S. clients.
Review of Saxo: Why We Like Them
Saxo Markets suits traders with advanced skills. Its platform, analysis, and direct market access may be overwhelming for novices, but its coverage, commissions, and research are unparalleled for experienced traders.
Saxo Bank Group was established in Denmark in 1992 and is a fintech specialist that prioritizes multi-asset trading and investment. It also provides "banking-as-a-service" to wholesale clients.
In 1998, Saxo Bank was one of the early adopters of online trading platforms, utilizing the technological advancements of the late '90s.
Saxo Bank's subsidiary, Saxo Capital Markets U.K. Ltd. (SCML), has operated in the United Kingdom since 2006. Like some other forex brokers, Saxo Bank does not accept traders from the United States.
Saxo offers two main platforms for trading, SaxoTraderPRO, and SaxoTraderGO. While SaxoTraderPRO is more suited for experienced traders and requires downloading, SaxoTraderGO can be accessed through web browsers and mobile devices and has a user-friendly interface with functional trading features.
Saxo also provides access to third-party tools and APIs to help clients build customized applications. However, it is essential to note that Saxo Markets does not offer the commonly used MT4 interface that is typically found in the best forex trading platforms.
Saxo Markets offers an extensive product catalog that includes commodities, shares, indices, forex, options, futures, and bond. Via CFDs, forward contracts, direct ownership, or a combination of these, these instruments can be either purchased or sold short.
However, Saxo's spread betting is only available for "professional clients." The broker's FX spreads are very competitive across all retail account tiers (Classic, Platinum, VIP).
Investopedia's ranking algorithm has recognized Saxo Markets as Best Forex Broker for Advanced Traders due to its advanced user interfaces, extensive product catalog, and superior research offerings.
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Review of Saxo: Who Saxo Markets Is For
Saxo Markets caters to advanced traders and offers a range of brokerage services designed for active traders, investors, professionals, and institutions. However, customers with smaller accounts may face higher account minimums, multiple fees, and limited customer support options.
The trading costs decrease, and the benefits increase as the equity grows in tiered accounts, but most retail traders may need help to reach the higher customer tiers. In the UK, these tiers start at £200,000 (Platinum) and £1,000,000 (VIP).
Review of Saxo: Costs
As noted in our review of Saxo, Saxo Markets generates revenue by including the trading costs in the spread or by adding commissions. The minimum forex bid-ask spread is 0.4 pips.
The "platinum" and "VIP" accounts offer lower spreads and higher benefits, but the minimum amount required to upgrade is £200,000, which may discourage average retail clients. Commission charges are applied when trading other instruments on top of the listed spread.
The charge for holding positions overnight is on par with industry standards. There is a fee of $100 (or the corresponding amount in the account currency) if there are no trades executed within six months, which is known as an inactivity fee.
When combined, other fees categorized as "general charges" can be quite burdensome for regular retail traders. Nevertheless, customers with accounts will enjoy the benefit of free withdrawals.
Saxo Markets fails to explain the varying fees and costs associated with trading CFDs, contracts, and direct sales of the same instruments, contributing to an overall lack of transparency on both its website and trading platforms.
While this may not be intentional, the complexity of the broker's offerings makes it difficult to provide a comprehensive explanation. Despite this, Saxo Markets makes efforts to maintain transparency.
The documentation provided by Saxo Markets for its other operating regions did not match the information on the U.K. website. The conflicting information included fees and trading conditions for the same products and position sizes, even after considering currency conversions.
Additionally, there was a possibility of confusion due to small trades being subject to an additional surcharge mentioned in the fine print, which could be overlooked.
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Review of Saxo: Trade Experience
Our review of Saxo notes that Saxo, the broker, has created its own user interface for its trading platforms, SaxoTraderPRO and SaxoTraderGO. These platforms were designed with the trader in mind and offer significant improvements over industry standard options like MT4 and cTrader.
Saxo's user interface allows for integration with third-party tools, which provides advanced traders with various of possibilities.
Traders can easily access SaxoTraderPRO on their Windows or Mac operating systems by downloading the fully customizable desktop interface. Utilizing up to six screens is an option for users, which is highly beneficial due to the advanced workspace management provided by this platform.
The trader's analysis can be greatly aided by the multichannel linking between modules, a charting package with over 50 technical indicators, and a comprehensive suite of annotations and drawing tools.
To enhance productivity and ensure all relevant details are displayed, order tickets are designed. Additionally, upon activation, automated trade orders can be incorporated.
Tools with a subscription model, such as "depth of market" and "time and sales" data, are also available to provide additional value to traders. While SaxoTraderGO may not have all the advanced features of SaxoTraderPRO, it still boasts an impressive range of capabilities.
The key benefit of SaxoTraderGO is that it is much more user-friendly than its more advanced counterpart. While customization options are limited, this does not negatively impact its overall functionality.
Traders can easily organize charts, news, research, and watchlists based on their specific requirements using this web-based platform.
Saxo offers comprehensive charting and technical indicators with customizable time management and linking capabilities across platform windows. Its diverse range of market and pending orders surpasses its competitors, demonstrating Saxo's dedication to attracting skilled traders.
The order ticket for each platform includes five basic order types that can be modified with "take-profit" and/or "stop-loss" orders.
Traders also have the option to choose between a trailing stop-loss or a stop-limit for their stop-loss order.
Although this may discourage inexperienced traders, those who are more experienced know that a guaranteed stop-loss order goes against the nature of the market.
Brokers who provide this feature are essentially responsible for covering any extra losses that may occur in specific market conditions. Here are a few other features of the platform to keep in mind:
- Limit: A trader can place a pending order for buying or selling at a predetermined point above or below the current market rate. The trader can also choose when this order should expire.
- OCO: The trader can place two orders (an entry stop and an entry limit), but the other will be automatically canceled if one is executed. Additionally, the trader can choose when the order expires.
- Market: When a trader wants their trade request to be executed at the current market rate, they can choose the easiest option. The trading platform has a feature called "quick trade" that enables the trader to place a trade instantly without any stop-loss or take profit orders. This feature is designed to cater to the trader's requirement for fast execution.
- Stop: A trader can place a pending order at a set point either above or below the current market rate, depending on whether they intend to buy or sell. Additionally, they can choose the expiry time for this order.
- Stop-limit: A trader can place a pending order either above or below the current market rate, depending on whether they want to buy or sell. This order includes a tolerance range for execution, which allows traders to select their desired level of risk. The order is canceled if the market rate moves beyond the selected rate and tolerance range. Additionally, traders can choose when the order expires.
The SaxoTraderGo applications designed for iOS, Android, and tablets offer users simple and quick access to the extensive functionalities available on the web, making it one of thebest forex desktop trading platforms.
The list of indicators is concise but inclusive, and traders can stay updated with the latest news and research through real-time feeds accessible with a few swipes. Although the apps offer the convenience of fingerprint identification access, it is not part of the dual authentication process.
It is important to note that Saxo Markets does not provide MT4, a common interface found on most forex brokers' platforms. However, Saxo allows clients to create custom applications using its own OpenAPI and third-party APIs, such as Excel. These applications can access Saxo's data feeds.
Additionally, clients can utilize third-party applications like Dynamic Trend, TradingView, and MultiCharts to improve their trading experience. TradingView is a social trading platform, and MultiCharts allows traders to test their strategies. Saxo does not provide VPS hosting.
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Review of Saxo: Range of Offerings
Our review of Saxo reveals that Saxo Markets provides a wide range of leveraged and investment products across various asset categories to its clients. The company's catalog is so vast that it's difficult to find anything that Saxo doesn't offer. Saxo's UK and international websites list the available instruments, which include:
- 140 FX forwards.
- 12,500+ mutual funds.
- 3,000+ ETFs.
- Cryptocurrency ETNs (non-U.K. International accounts.
- 20 commodity CFDs.
- Managed portfolios.
- 40+ FX vanilla options.
- 1,200+ listed options.
- 19,000+ stocks (36 worldwide exchanges).
- 9,000+ CFDs.
- 200+ futures contracts.
- 5,000+ bonds (government and corporate).
- 182 FX spot pairs.
Several trading platforms and methods can facilitate the exchange of various instruments, offering a wide range of options, but certain platforms may result in greater expenses. Nevertheless, the selection of products available is impressive and will undoubtedly satisfy anyone interested in global markets.
Review of Saxo: Education
Many users who leave a review of Saxo mention its good for experienced traders, but the scarce amount of educational resources doesn’t help beginners much.
The educational resources provided mainly consist of tutorials on the platform and product, as well as basic coverage of fundamental and technical analysis topics. However, there are limited resources available for developing skills. This aligns with Saxo's objective of appealing to experienced traders who have ample funds.
Review of Saxo: Portfolio Analysis
As stated in our our review of Saxo, Saxo provides portfolio analysis on all of its platforms which includes information on the performance of investments, risk assessment and portfolio breakdowns.
The platform reporting suite allows clients to export all historical position, trade, and performance data in both PDF and Excel formats, enabling users to consolidate holdings in an external spreadsheet or third-party reporting tool.
The trade tickets contain crucial information, such as margin requirements, and give the user the option to select the unit (percent, pips, price, or value) to set stop-loss and take-profit orders. The data is updated in real-time, helping traders make informed decisions.
Saxo Markets allows its clients to use third-party portfolio tools known as Eximius, and they can also request external tax reporting and reclaim services from GlobeTax.
In addition, all clients are provided with a comprehensive reporting suite on the trading platforms, which displays information such as performance, financial management success, dividends, interest earnings, and fees in both PDF and Excel formats, making tax reporting easier.
Review of Saxo: Research Amenities
It is worth acknowledging the commitment of Saxo Markets to offering its clients a wide range of relevant and timely research materials. The availability of these resources alone may persuade a professional trader to consider opening a live account with this brokerage firm.
These research materials can be accessed via the website or the platforms themselves. Saxo Markets has a remarkable team of in-house analysts who regularly provide market updates, ratings, and prompt commentary.
Saxo Markets provides a range of resources to cater to the needs of experienced traders, such as live news streams, various market reports available in different time formats, Autochartist's Trade Signals and trade ideas from Sales Traders and SaxoStrats, as well as access to analyst rating reports.
With these tools, clients can make well-informed trading decisions as Saxo Markets offers a comprehensive research solution.
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Review of Saxo: Security
Our review of Saxo shows that Saxo Markets places great importance on security and has obtained licenses from several jurisdictions globally, which can be viewed on their website.
They also comply with the client money rules of the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) by keeping client funds separate from corporate funds in segregated accounts at regulated banks, ensuring that client assets are safeguarded in case of Saxo's insolvency.
Moreover, clients are further protected through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which provides additional asset protection of up to £85,000.
ESMA's negative balance protection rules, enforced in 2018, ensure that Saxo's clients never lose more than their account balance. However, guaranteed stop-loss protection is not available, which leaves accounts vulnerable to significant losses during extreme market conditions such as the 2015 Swiss franc currency shock.
Saxo's best forex mobile trading platforms software security is top-notch, featuring two-factor and biometric authentication, as well as automatic logouts from both the web and mobile applications after a specific period of inactivity.
According to our review of Saxo and investigation, the disclosures on the web contain details of the methods employed by the company to guarantee optimal executions, supported by a diverse array of direct market access (DMA), combined, and in-house liquidity providers.
Review of Saxo: Frequently Asked Questions
Is Saxo Markets Safe?
Saxo Markets is subject to regulation by the FCA, and the FSCS guarantees the protection of your funds.
Does Saxo Markets Offer Spread Betting?
In the past, Saxo collaborated with London Capital Group to offer a spread betting service. However, Saxo declared its plan to discontinue the spread betting service in 2015. Consequently, clients of Saxo Spread Betting were redirected to Capital Spreads to continue their trading activity.
The Saxo spread betting service was essentially a rebranded version of the Capital Spreads platform.
The decision to shut down the service was made following significant changes at London Capital Group, which included a significant staff turnover. The CEO, Charles-Henri Sabet, focused on restoring the spread betting and forex broker's profitability.
Do Saxo Markets Have a Monthly Fee?
Creating an account with Saxo Markets is not charged. However, some fees need to be paid monthly to access live data on specific markets. Additionally, if you maintain only cash in your account, you will be charged a quarterly fee of £50.
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What Is the Minimum Deposit for Saxo Markets?
To open a traditional account, one must deposit no less than £500. However, if one is interested in a Platinum account, the minimum deposit required is £200,000; for VIP accounts, the minimum deposit is £1,000,000.
Is Saxo Markets Good for Beginners?
After our thorough review of Saxo markets, you can conclude that the platform may be overwhelming for absolute beginners since it caters more to seasoned traders. Still, even newcomers can create an account and invest in the stock market without engaging in derivative trading.
Does Saxo Markets Charge a Withdrawal Fee?
Our review of Saxo shows no charge for withdrawing funds, but it is important to update your account information to prevent any delays in the process. Saxo Markets must adhere to anti-money laundering regulations before returning money, so keeping account details current is crucial.
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Review of Saxo: Final Verdict
Saxo Markets is an ideal choice for experienced traders and experts who have substantial funds in their accounts. The platform offers a wide range of research facilities, an API interface, and reduced fees for high-tier accounts which can enhance profitability.
Saxo's small trade surcharges, limited educational resources, high account minimums and limited support options may not be favorable for less-experienced traders who may find better deals elsewhere.
However, Saxo could be an appealing option for skilled traders with substantial funds because it offers everything an experienced investor needs to succeed.
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