Each figure below relates to the company listed on its row. A sister company in the same group often sets different terms, so a number from one doesn’t apply to the other.
Key points
- Every company on this page is regulated in its own country and shows up in its regulator’s published material. The licence numbers they quote can’t be matched because the Seychelles, Bahamas and Bermuda lists show none.
- Negative balance protection is the promise that you can’t lose more than you deposited. The protection varies more than anything else here. The range runs from an unconditional promise to a clause that makes you liable for the deficit.
- Most of these companies name no country in their terms at all. The silence does not mean they are accepting clients from that country.
- Leverage above the retail cap that UK, EU and Australian companies apply is the reason these companies exist. Leverage lets you open trades bigger than your deposit, and you give up the protections listed here to get it (maximum leverage).
What an offshore entity is, in this context
Offshore entities in this comparison are global companies set up and regulated in the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Seychelles or Belize. These companies belong to groups that also have better-known companies licensed in Europe, the United Kingdom or Australia. The website brand is shared, but the company that would hold your money isn’t.
One group in this table lists documents for four separate global companies on a single page, covering the Bahamas, the Seychelles, Mauritius and Saint Vincent. The group doesn’t state which company you’d be routed to. You can’t find out in advance whose terms would govern your account. The choice of company happens to you. You don’t get to choose it (choosing a provider).
The companies, and what their own terms say
Companies appear here under their legal name, not their brand. The brand is shared with differently regulated companies in the same group, and only the legal name can be looked up on a register.
Key NP not published by the provider
| Company | Regulator and licence | What its terms say about the countries covered | Negative balance protection | Highest retail leverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Com Online Investments Ltd | Bahamas SCB SIA-F245, self-stated | Not mentioned either way, for every country covered | A retail right | 200:1 |
| CMC Markets Bermuda Ltd | Bermuda BMA IBA standard licence, self-stated | Not mentioned either way for most, not established: Australia | A retail right | 200:1 |
| Eightcap Global Limited | Bahamas SCB SIA-F220, self-stated | Not established, for every country covered | At the company’s discretion | NP |
| Eightcap International Ltd | Seychelles FSA SD100, self-stated | Not mentioned either way for most, onboarded only at the local company: Australia | A retail right | 500:1 |
| IG International Limited | Bermuda BMA licence number not published | Not mentioned either way for most, not established: Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom, Australia, accepted: Thailand | NP | 200:1 |
| Pepperstone Markets Limited | Bahamas SCB SIA-F217, self-stated | Excluded as part of the EU: Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, not established: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, not mentioned either way: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, excluded by name: United Kingdom, Australia | A retail right | 200:1 |
| XTB International Limited | Belize FSC 6442514 | Not mentioned either way: Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom, not on its list of accepted countries: Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Indonesia, accepted: Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, not established: Australia, excluded by name: Brazil | No | 500:1 |
These figures were checked between 4 October 2026 and 17 October 2026. Confirm them with the broker before you open an account.
The terms column reports what each contract says about people in the countries this site covers, and names any country it treats differently. Most say nothing at all. That’s recorded as not mentioned either way, not as acceptance.
Who regulates each company, and what the lists show
The licence numbers you see on this page mostly come from the firms themselves, because regulators’ lists don’t display them. You can still find each company on its regulator’s published material. Eightcap International Ltd is on the Seychelles Financial Services Authority’s list of securities dealers, which includes its address and website but no licence number (FSA list). IG International Limited and CMC Markets Bermuda Ltd both appear as licensed investment businesses on the Bermuda Monetary Authority’s list (BMA list). Belize’s Financial Services Commission is the exception: its public register shows XTB International Limited with licence number 6442514 and a status of Active (FSC register).
The Securities Commission of The Bahamas publishes a plain list of licensed firms, again with no licence-number column. Its own site says the search tool is still under development. On its list of 30 September 2026 are Pepperstone Markets, Eightcap’s Bahamas company and Capital.com’s Bahamas company, each listed as trading contracts for difference (SCB list). A contract for difference, or CFD, pays out the price change between opening and closing a trade, and you do not own the asset.
What you can confirm is the company’s name on the list, and it’s worth checking this before you open an account. Make sure the legal name in your client agreement matches the one on the regulator’s list (choosing a provider).
What protection survives, and what does not
Between these companies, protection differs sharply in the contracts, not the marketing. Four give negative balance protection as a right to a retail client, under their regulator’s rules or in their contract. So you can’t lose more than the money in your account. A retail client is the label for an ordinary individual trader, as opposed to a professional. Another provides it at its sole discretion, so it’s a courtesy the company can withdraw. One reverses it, with terms that make you pay any deficit on demand. The last one sets out no clear position.
Client money is segregated at most of these companies, meaning it’s kept apart from the company’s own funds. That protection is thinner than it sounds. Several contracts say money passed to a third party may sit in a pooled account, and you’d have only an unsecured claim if that party failed. One contract says money stops being client money as soon as it becomes margin, the deposit held against an open trade. That money also stops being segregated at that point. Under that contract you’d rank as a general creditor with no special claim on the money if the company failed (choosing a provider).
Offshore broker questions people ask
Offshore broker questions mostly come down to what the licence is worth and what you give up for the leverage.
What is an offshore forex broker?
An offshore forex broker is a company that takes clients from other countries and is licensed in a place such as the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Seychelles or Belize. On this page they are global companies, and their groups also run companies licensed in Europe, the United Kingdom or Australia. The brand is shared, but the company holding your money is a different one.
Are offshore forex brokers regulated?
Yes, the offshore forex brokers on this page are regulated. These are global companies, each licensed in its own country and each appearing on its regulator’s published list. The level of protection varies, and negative balance protection depends on the company. A licence from the FCA, ASIC or CySEC comes with more protection (is trading safe).
Why do offshore brokers offer higher leverage?
Offshore brokers can offer higher leverage because the retail caps set in the EU, the United Kingdom and Australia don’t bind them. The rules that cap leverage are the same rules that bring the protections, so you give up some of those in exchange. The highest figure each global company publishes is in the comparison hub.
Risk warning
The protections listed here are the ones being exchanged
At a global company, higher leverage means you give up the protections listed here, in whole or in part. You don’t get that leverage as an extra feature on the same account. It’s available because the rules that cap leverage are the same rules that provide these protections. Offshore, protections vary by company. Some make negative balance protection a right under their regulator’s rules or their contract, while others offer it only at their discretion.
A close-out level marks the point where your broker must close your trades, triggered when your account value drops to a set share of the margin they need. If the company that opens your account is regulated in the EU, that level sits at 50 % of the initial margin for retail clients (Decision (EU) 2018/796). A company regulated in the UK uses the same 50 % level (FCA PS19/18). Offshore, the close-out level is whatever each company’s terms say. Not every company publishes one.
Read the risk disclosure before opening any account, and read the maximum leverage page for what the advertised ratio really means.
Sources
The original documents this page cites, in the order they first appear.
- Regulated entities: Capital Markets, Seychelles Financial Services Authority
- Regulated entities, Bermuda Monetary Authority
- FSC Belize LicenSys, Licensed / Registered Service Providers: XTB INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, 6442514, Financial Services Commission of Belize
- Firms registered under the Securities Industry Act, as at 30 September 2026, Securities Commission of The Bahamas, 2026-09-30
- Financial Conduct Authority, FCA
- Australian Securities and Investments Commission, ASIC
- Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission, CySEC
- ESMA Decision (EU) 2018/796 of 22 May 2018 to temporarily restrict contracts for differences in the Union, Official Journal of the European Union (EUR-Lex), 2018-05-22
- PS19/18: Restricting contract for difference products sold to retail clients, FCA, 2019-07-01