Pepperstone

Deposit and withdraw with ease. Regulated broker.

Pepperstone is a Forex and CFDs broker founded in 2010. The broker is significantly younger than some established names out there. However, we urge readers to check the review first to see if the 9 years old Pepperstone is worth their time and money.

There are two companies that operate under the Pepperstone name:

Pepperstone Limited (Pepperstone.com/uk/) is regulated and licensed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that operates within the UK. By being regulated by the FCA, clients of Pepepperstone are covered by the FSCS, a compensation fund that, in the event the broker stops trading or downright fails, reimburses them of up to £85 000.

Pepperstone Group Limited’s (Pepperstone.com/en) watchdog is the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC). Their main goal is to enforce the law when need be, and initiate good investor outcomes. However, the ASIC lacks a compensation fund.

The broker claims to put the security of its clients funds as the number one concern, and as such Pepperstone has segregated accounts for clients in National Australia Bank and Barclays Bank in the UK.

Leverage offered is as high as 500:1 for traders that are not bound by the laws introduced by ESMA that restrict all UK and EU brokers and traders to a maximum leverage of 30:1 for pairs and 20:1 for CFD’s.

Pepperstone’s instruments of trade are what you might call the average requirement any online broker has to offer in order to retain its clients. The staple of the industry- currency pairs are here to be meddled with, as well as CFDs, metals, energy and crypto currencies.

Pepperstone comes supported by some exotic languages, giving it access to a financially diverse audience: Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Arab, Thai, Portuguese and English.

PEPERSTONE LOGIN

The classic MT4/5 platforms return to greet clients from all backgrounds, while cTrader’s user friendly design extends its arms to newer traders.

METATARDER 4

By now MT4 has become the most used trading platform in the Forex industry, even with MT5 being out for almost 10 years. The success of MT4 is due to the fact that almost all brokers and traders are so used to MT4 that switching to its successor seems like unnecessary hassle.

With a direct approach to online trading MT4 does not waste any time in presenting the huge array of options available to traders. MT4 provides Expert Advisors that can automatically trade for traders 24/5. Add to that analysis tools, multiple order types, 85 pre-installed indicators, and many more big and small additions.

The average spread depends on your account type. Standard account owners will notice an average of 1.16 pip spread for EUR/USD, while Razor account owners will have a 0.16 pip spread on average. However Razor MT4 account holders will be charged with a commission on each trade. For USD accounts the commission for 1 standard lot is $7.53. When adding the commission ($7.53) to the aforementioned spread (0.16 pips), users will be getting a spread of, on average, 0.9 pips.

The leverage can reach up to 500:1 if outside the ruling zone of ESMA and 1:30 in EU.

Expanding on the MT4 are Pepperstone’s Smart Tools that boosts the experience of the trading terminal. These tools were designed to help out traders by giving them the edge on current trends, market conditions, plus other interesting features that have the potential to alter their trades. For instance there is the Correlation Trader that serves to compare the differences in markets in real-time. The 10+ tools have detailed operation guides on the website enough to introduce anyone to them. Note that a deposit of at least 500 AUD is required to start using the tools.

MT4 has converged to virtually every operating system, as well as smart phones and tablets. Pepperstone has included a browser version of the platform for clients who find it more convenient to not install any software. However browser based MT4 does not support automated trading bots.

METATRADER 5

Metatrader 5 has continued to extend the legacy of MT4 with great success, however MT4 still reigns as number one. With that out of the way, MT5 can be considered a much more flawless and fluid trading terminal.

With accelerated process times, the ability to trade in centralized markets, and the addition of new and more responsive indicators, and increased time frames, MT5 seems like the way to go. And let’s not forget that MT5 is compatible with the aforementioned Smart Tools, giving it even more props. Standard account holders spread averages on 1.6 pips, while Razor account owners can expect an average of 0.16 pips. However MT5 Razor account holders will be charged with a commission of $7 per 1 standard lot. With the added commission the minimum Razor spread changes to 0.9 pips.

The leverage in the EU and UK is limited to 30:1.

Take MetaTrader 5 for a spin on any device be it Android, Apple or Windows (desktop). This broker does not support a browser based MT5 platform.

CTRADER/CALGO

Pepperstone has included the functional cTrader, which handles with ease and possesses a much better visual style than both MT4/5. The interface is highly customizable, giving end users a much needed aesthetic touch of their own.

The average spread has not changed: 1.6 pips for EUR/USD, and minimum 0.8 pips (with commission) for Razor account users. The leverage reaches 1:500 for non-ESMA constrained traders.

One of the main features of cTrader is the ability for traders to access provider’s liquidity making room for better pricing and lower spreads. There is also automated trading, and great back testing facilities.

The unique feature of cTrader comes in the shape of a supplementary component called cAlgo. Users can write their own trading algorithms using a set of C# instruments, and can have bots to do trading in their place. cAlgo has its own standalone platform, yet it seems a bit confusing as to why they didn’t combine it with cTrader as a built in option.

cTrader is available for download as a standalone software for desktop; to mobile users, and can be accessed via a browser.

PEPPERSTONE MINIMUM DEPOSIT

Pepperstone has a minimum deposit of $200 AUD, yet its website does not clearly state so. Such conditions should be at least mentioned at a coherent spot on the website.

Pepperstone.com/en (Australia) offers the following deposit methods: Credit / Debit Card, PayPal, POLi, China UnionPay, Skrill, Neteller, Broker to Broker (B2B), Bpay, Wire Transfer, MasterCard, VISA. Base currencies are as follows: AUD, USD, EUR, GBP, CHF, JPY, NZD, CAD, SGD and HKD.

Pepperstone.com/uk/ users are limited to fewer funding methods: VISA, MasterCard, Credit/Debit card, Skrill, Neteller and B2B. The base currencies are: USD, GBP, EUR, CHF.

Account funding is instant for Credit/Debit Card, PayPal, POLi, China Union Pay, Skrill, Neteller, Broker to Broker (B2B). Bank Transfer payments, on the other hand, can take up to 72 hours, while Bpay processes range from 12-24 hours. Broker to Broker (B2B) can take up to 3 days.

There are no fees for deposits, but the broker does warn its clientele of probable international banking and payment system fees.

PEPPERSTONE WITHDRAWAL TIME AND FEES

FCA and ASIC reassure that all withdrawals are safe and secure under their watchful eye.

The website does not indicate the withdrawal methods available, so we must assume that they are the same as the depositing ones: Credit/Debit Card, PayPal, POLi, China Union Pay, Skrill, Neteller, Broker to Broker (B2B), Bpay, Wire Transfer, MasterCard, VISA.

It’s possible for Pepperestone to process a withdrawal request within the same day, if said withdrawal is made before 21:00 GMT for all methods stated above except Bank Transfer. As always, Bank Transfer can require between 3-5 working days to process withdrawals for Pepperstone.com/en, and 1-3 days for Pepperstone.com/uk/. After the processing in handled by the broker, the time for withdrawal depends entirely on international bank system.

There are no fees related to withdrawals, making Pepperestone one of few brokers who offer this advantage. There is also no mention of sleeper account fees, allowing for traders to keep an account inactive for as much as they want without being intimidated by time sensitive account charges.

BOTTOM LINE

With solid regulations from some of the most notorious organizations, we think that both rookie and pro traders alike will find a suitable online environment for their future financial endeavors.

The inclusion of trading platform supporting tools and extensions is a great touch, and it offers some helpful insights to the sometime confusing MT4/5 platforms. What’s most important is the safety of the customer’s funds, and with Pepperestone they needn’t worry.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 76.5% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.