In the UAE, there are three main financial services regulators who have independent jurisdictions and authorizing frameworks. These include the Capital Markets Authority (CMA), Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
In addition to these regulators, there is also the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) that regulates crypto trading in a defined jurisdiction.
In this article, we will take a look at the various licensing authorities, their jurisdictions, and provide you with a list of regulated Forex brokers who are authorized to offer their services in the United Arab Emirates.
Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Forex and CFD trading carries a high risk of loss.
List of financial services regulators in the UAE
There are three main financial services regulators in the UAE. The Capital Markets Authority is the regulator governing financial services companies in the UAE mainland. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) focuses solely on companies registered in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) free zone, while the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) governs companies registered in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) economic free zone.
The term ‘forex trading’ in the retail investor sector often refers to CFD trading. CFD, or Contract For Difference, is a form of leveraged derivative trading where investors speculate on the price movement of an asset like stock, forex currency pairs, or indices.
All three regulators – the CMA, the DFSA, and the FSRA – offer licenses to CFD and forex brokerages.
| # | Authority | Jurisdiction | Typical broker activities |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Capital Market Authority (CMA) | UAE federal / mainland | Forex, CFDs, securities, commodities, derivatives, international markets |
| 2 | Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) | DIFC | Forex, CFDs, securities, derivatives, investment services |
| 3 | Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) | ADGM | Forex, CFDs, securities, derivatives, investment services |
Several CFD brokers also offer crypto trading services. Crypto activities are regulated differently.
The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has a dedicated Virtual Assets Framework (VAF) that governs eight different trading activities, including dealing in virtual assets (like crypto) as a principal and as an agent.
Similarly, both the ADGM’s FSRA, and DIFC’s DFSA have their own crypto-governing methodologies.
Under the updated DFSA Crypto Token Regime, crypto brokers operating in the DIFC are granted a Financial Services Permission (FSP) to carry out trading activities.
With FSRA as well, crypto brokering is integrated with the core financial services framework, and brokerages apply for a Financial Services Permission (FSP) to carry out activities.
In addition to this, Dubai has its own licensing authority – the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) – that requires firms registered in mainland Dubai or one of the many economic free zones in the emirate (besides DIFC) to follow a structured multi-step regulatory process to receive the VASP (Virtual Asset Service Provider) license.
Now that we have outlined the different licensing authorities that exist in the UAE, let’s take a look at the various Forex brokers who are licensed in the UAE.
Quick note before we proceed: this list is not exhaustive. However, we have tried to make sure that our list is diverse in terms of who they are regulated by.
Regulated Forex Brokers In the UAE – At A Glance
We have prepared a list of CFD brokerages that are licensed to operate in the UAE. For this list, we have made sure that the brokerages are diverse and not all governed by the same licensing authorities.
| Forex Broker Name | Licensing Authority | Leverage | Swap-free accounts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equiti Securities Currencies Brokers LLC | Capital Markets Authority (CMA) | Up to 1:500 | Yes |
| IG Limited | Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) | Up to 1:30 | No |
| Ava Trade Middle East Limited | Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) | Up to 1:400 | Yes |
| Capital Com MENA Securities Trading L.L.C | Capital Markets Authority (CMA) | Up to 1:500 | Yes |
Equiti
Equiti (Equiti Securities Currencies Brokers LLC) is a popular CMA-licensed online broker in the UAE that offers traders the ability to buy and sell up to 60 different Forex currency pairs – including EURUSD, GBPUSD, AUDJPY, AUDUSD, and USDCHF.
In addition to these currency pairs, traders may also speculate on popular indices (US500, UK100, etc.), US stocks (Apple, Meta, Disney, Tesla, etc.), commodities, futures, ETFs, and Crypto CFDs.
Key features:
- Platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Equiti Trader
- Instruments: Forex, indices, commodities, futures, shares & ETF CFDs
- Swap-free mini account: Zero overnight or admin fees on their Swap-free account, subject to conditions. Other fees may apply.
- Account types: Classic, Standard, Premier, Micro and Demo accounts
- Fees: Rollover costs, spread, and admin fees based on your account type
IG Limited
IG (trading as IG Limited) is a CFD broker licensed by the DFSA. The platform lets traders buy and sell up to 90 major, minor, and exotic currency pairs. In addition to this, traders using the IG platform also have access to 700+ US shares, indices, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and ETFs.
Key features:
- Platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, ProRealTime, L2 Dealer
- Instruments: Forex, indices, share CFDs, commodities, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies;
- Swap-free accounts are not available
- Account types: UAE-licensed entity offers up to 1:30 leverage for retail traders, while IG International Limited (licensed by Bermuda Monetary Authority) offers leverage up to 1:200
- Fees: spreads, daily interest fee, guaranteed stop-loss order fee, currency conversion fees. Accessing live-market data for some instruments may require a subscription fee.
AvaTrade
In the UAE, AvaTrade is licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). The platform allows traders to buy or sell over 50 currency pairs, 600 stocks, indices, commodities, ETFs, bonds, and options.
Key features:
- Platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, WebTrader, and the AvaTrade app
- Instruments: Forex, indices, share CFDs, commodities, ETFs, options, and bonds
- Swap-free accounts: no fees charged on overnight positions. This is subject to conditions. Other fees may apply.
- Up to 1:400 leverage along with tight spreads and low commissions
- Fees: buy/sell spreads, overnight fees, inactivity fees, and administration fees
Capital.com
Capital is also licensed by the UAE’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA). The platform lets traders buy and sell over 5500+ instruments, including 120+ currency pairs, 4500+ shares, bonds, ETFs, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and indices.
Key features:
- Platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, TradingView, and API
- Instruments: Currency pairs, share CFDs, ETFs, cryptocurrencies, bonds, indices, and commodities
- Swap-free accounts with no interest fees
- Fees: Minimum cap on deposits and withdrawals, spreads, currency conversion fee, overnight funding fee, and guaranteed stop-loss fee
Amana
Amana is a DFSA-licensed broker offering trading in Forex, crypto, gold, stocks, among other things. The platform provides you with access to 70+ forex pairs with no funding or withdrawal fee, and a 24-hour support line in both English and Arabic.
Key features:
- Platforms: MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, Amana web and mobile app
- Instruments: Currency pairs, US shares, ETFs, crypto, gold, metals, commodities, and also MENA stocks
- Integration with Zoya API to highlight instruments that are Shariah-compliant.
- Up to 1:100 leverage on Forex derivatives
- Fees: Overnight fees and execution fees on certain instruments
List of licensed Forex brokers in the UAE
CMA-licensed trading brokers of OTC derivatives and currencies in the spot market
- Equiti Securities Currencies Brokers LLC
- ADS SECURITIES – L.L.C – S.P.C
- Anax Capital Financial Markets L.L.C
- CAPITAL COM MENA SECURITIES TRADING L.L.C
- Century Financial Consultancy LLC
- CFI FINANCIAL MARKETS L.L.C
- CMS FINANCIAL LLC
- DAMAN MARKETS FINANCIAL SERVICES L.L.C
- DAMAN SECURITIES LLC
- DEFINITECOM FINANCIAL BROKERAGE SERVICES L.L.C
- Deriv Capital Contracts & Currencies L.L.C
- EXNESS MENA FINANCIAL BROKERS L.L.C
- KAMA CAPITAL SECURITIES BROKER L.L.C
- KIRA FINANCIAL BROKERS LLC
- MENA CAPITAL FINANCIAL MARKETS L.L.C
- MEX GLOBAL FINANCIAL SERVICES L.L.C
- Mex Markets Financial Services LLC
- NAVIRA FINANCIAL MARKET L.L.C
- NCM FINANCIAL SERVICES L.L.C
- NOOR CAPITAL PJSC
- Orient Financial Brokers LLC
- Plus500Gulf Securities L.L.C
- ROBOMARKETS FINANCIAL BROKERAGE L.L.C
- Traders Hub Capital Markets
- Traze Securities L.L.C
- WAFRA GULF F X CURRENCIES BROKERS L.L.C
- XTB FINANCIAL SERVICES L.L.C
DFSA-licensed brokers who carry authorized financial services with retail clients, and arranging deals in investments
This may not be a comprehensive list
- HYCM Limited
- Swissquote MEA Ltd.
- IG Limited
- CMC Markets Middle East Limited
- Amana Financial Services (Dubai) Limited
- Trading Point MENA Limited
- AxiCorp Financial Services Pty Ltd
- TF Global Markets (UK) Limited (DIFC Branch)
- Pepperstone Financial Services (DIFC) Limited
- HF Markets (DIFC) Limited
- Plus500AE LTD
- XTB MENA Limited
- Interactive Brokers (U.K.) Limited (DIFC Branch)
- Fortrade (DIFC) Limited
- Trading 212 ME Limited
Over to you
Which regulator licenses a broker decides how much protection a trader gets, and it also shapes the trading conditions on offer. A CMA-licensed broker covers the UAE mainland, a DFSA-licensed one operates inside the DIFC, and an FSRA-licensed one is based in the ADGM. The rules, product permissions and leverage limits differ across these three. Crypto adds another layer, since VARA, the CMA’s Virtual Assets Framework, and the DFSA and FSRA crypto regimes each apply to different jurisdictions.
The brokers profiled here, Equiti, IG, AvaTrade, Capital.com and Amana, are a starting point. They are not a ranking, and the lists above are not exhaustive. Platforms, swap-free options, leverage and fee structures vary from one broker to the next, so match them to how you actually trade.
Before depositing money, confirm the exact legal entity on the regulator’s public register. A well-known brand name does not guarantee that the UAE entity you are signing up with is the one that holds the license. Leveraged CFDs also carry a high risk of loss, and many retail accounts lose money. Trade only with capital you can afford to lose.
