CMC Markets review: is it safe for gold trading?
Founded 1989 · London, UK · LSE: CMCX
- Score (other countries)
- Not offered
- Best score
- 90 · United Kingdom
- Tier 1–2 for you in
- 5 / 22 countries
- Trader Voice
- 80
- Platforms
- MT4 · TradingView · Own
On this page
Is CMC Markets safe?
CMC Markets is a 37-year-old broker headquartered in London, UK, with a listed parent (LSE: CMCX). The group has 5 regulated companies (FCA, BaFin, ASIC, MAS, CIRO). How safe it is for you depends on which one opens your account: in 5 of the 22 countries we cover that is a Tier 1–2 regulated company.
Regulation and licences
| Company | Regulator | Regulator tier | Licence | Retail clients |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMC Markets UK plc | Financial Conduct Authority ↗ United Kingdom | Tier 1 · strictest | Pending check | Yes |
| CMC Markets Germany GmbH | BaFin ↗ Germany | Tier 1 · strictest | Pending check | Yes |
| CMC Markets Stockbroking / Asia Pacific Pty Ltd | Australian Securities and Investments Commission ↗ Australia | Tier 1 · strictest | Pending check | Yes |
| CMC Markets Singapore Pte Ltd | Monetary Authority of Singapore ↗ Singapore | Tier 1 · strictest | Pending check | Yes |
| CMC Markets Canada Inc | Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization ↗ Canada | Tier 1 · strictest | Pending check | Yes |
Each regulator name links to its own public register. Search the exact company name from your account agreement there before you deposit. How to verify a licence
Which company holds your account
CMC Markets assigns clients to different companies depending on where they live. This is the company, regulator and score you would get in each country we cover.
| If you live in | Your account is held by | Regulator | Score | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other countries | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| United States | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| United Kingdom | CMC Markets UK plc | FCA T1 | A+90 | 4 / 13 |
| EU / EEA | CMC Markets Germany GmbH | BaFin T1 | A+90 | 2 / 20 |
| Australia | CMC Markets Stockbroking / Asia Pacific Pty Ltd | ASIC T1 | A84 | 5 / 20 |
| Canada | CMC Markets Canada Inc | CIRO T1 | A81 | 2 / 20 |
| Singapore | CMC Markets Singapore Pte Ltd | MAS T1 | B+74 | 1 / 20 |
| Malaysia | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Indonesia | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Thailand | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Vietnam | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Philippines | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| India | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Japan | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Hong Kong | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| UAE | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| South Africa | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Kenya | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Nigeria | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| South Korea | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Turkey | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Mongolia | Not accepted | — | — | — |
| Brazil | Not accepted | — | — | — |
Scores are provisional until our cost, news-spread and withdrawal tests are in. T1 = strictest regulator tier, T5 = company registration only. Licence details pending register check.
Trading gold with CMC Markets
- Platforms
- MT4, TradingView, Own platform
- Minimum gold order
- 0.01 lot (1 oz)
- Swap-free account
- No
- Minimum deposit
- $0
- Round-trip cost, 1 lot XAUUSD
- Not measured yet
- Spread widening at NFP
- Not measured yet
- Withdrawal time
- Not measured yet
- Overnight swap, 1 lot long
- Not measured yet
Cost, news-spread and withdrawal tests run on live accounts from our gold cost lab. Results appear here as each broker is tested. Gold pip value calculator · Margin calculator
Fees, deposits and withdrawals
What the broker publishes about deposits, withdrawals and fees. These are the broker’s own terms, collected from independent reviews and the broker’s pages, not our lab measurements.
- Minimum deposit
- None
- Inactivity fee
- 10 GBP per month after 12 months without activity
- Deposit fee
- None from broker; bank charges may apply
- Withdrawal fee
- None from broker
- Withdrawal time
- Not stated by the reviewer; bank transfers typically 1–3 business days
- Account types
- CFD · Spread betting (UK) · CMC Pro
- Raw account commission
- No raw FX account; share CFDs from 0.10% commission
- Payment methods
- Bank transfer · Visa/Mastercard
- Listed on the London Stock Exchange
- Only card and bank transfer funding
Checked 2026-11-05. Terms change; confirm on the broker’s site before you deposit.
Regulatory record
Compensated breach2023 · ASIC · CMC Markets Asia Pacific Pty Ltd
One of seven CFD issuers that broke Australia's leverage limits (self-reported) and compensated clients; AUD 4.3m paid across the group
Source ↗
Fines and regulator orders in the last five years reduce the protection score: −4 each, up to −12. Self-reported breaches that were compensated, and public warnings, are shown but not scored.
Score breakdown
CMC Markets only takes clients in countries where it has a local company, so its score depends on the country. See the table above.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Parent company is listed (LSE: CMCX), so its accounts are audited and public.
- Retail clients can be served by Tier 1 regulated companies (FCA, BaFin, ASIC, MAS, CIRO).
- In 5 of the 22 countries we cover, your account would sit with a Tier 1–2 regulated company.
- Can be traded directly from TradingView charts.
- 37 years in business.
Cons
- Licence details come from the broker’s own pages; our register check is not finished.
- Only accepts clients in the countries where it holds a local licence.
- Does not accept residents of 17 of the 22 countries we cover.
- No MetaTrader 5.
- No swap-free account.
What traders say
The Trader Voice score sits beside our expert score and is never mixed into it. It combines public review scores with ratings from our own readers.
Trader Voice
80
Expert score (best, United Kingdom): 90
Our readers
No reader ratings yet. Be the first below.
What reviewers praise
- Clean, responsive platform
- Strong charting tools
- Prompt support
- Wide product range
What reviewers complain about
- Login problems and unexpected logouts
- Slow support on urgent issues
- Slow verification and admin updates
…
Trustpilot scores reflect who a broker invites to review, so we temper them with the share of one-star reviews. Reader ratings count after an account is 72 hours old; one rating per account per broker. Full methodology and data rules
Trader evidence
What readers report from their own accounts: how long withdrawals took, complaints whose evidence our editors checked, and corrections to our data. Nobody can pay to remove a complaint.
Median withdrawal time
—
No reports yet
Arrived within 24 hours
—
Verified complaints
0
0 resolved
…
Questions
Is CMC Markets safe for gold trading?
CMC Markets is a 37-year-old broker headquartered in London, UK, with a listed parent (LSE: CMCX). The group has 5 regulated companies (FCA, BaFin, ASIC, MAS, CIRO). How safe it is for you depends on which one opens your account: in 5 of the 22 countries we cover that is a Tier 1–2 regulated company.
Is CMC Markets regulated?
Yes. CMC Markets UK plc is regulated by Financial Conduct Authority (United Kingdom). CMC Markets Germany GmbH is regulated by BaFin (Germany). CMC Markets Stockbroking / Asia Pacific Pty Ltd is regulated by Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Australia). CMC Markets Singapore Pte Ltd is regulated by Monetary Authority of Singapore (Singapore). CMC Markets Canada Inc is regulated by Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (Canada). These details are from the broker’s legal pages and our register check is still pending.
Which countries does CMC Markets not accept?
Of the countries we cover, CMC Markets does not accept residents of United States, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, India, Japan, Hong Kong, UAE, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, South Korea, Turkey, Mongolia, Brazil.
Does CMC Markets offer MT4, MT5 or TradingView for gold?
CMC Markets offers MT4, TradingView, its own platform. The minimum gold order is 0.01 lot.
Does CMC Markets have a swap-free account?
Not that we could confirm.
What is the CMC Markets minimum deposit?
$0 on the standard account, according to the broker.
Alternatives
See also
Best brokers by country
Data checked: November 2026 · Sources: [1]
CFDs are complex instruments and carry a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Ratings are our opinion, based on the data and rules described in the methodology. They are not investment advice.