Best Forex Brokers in Malaysia

Forex trading can be a profitable endeavor, but it’s important to choose a reputable and well-regulated broker that can support your trading. Each broker has its own strengths and weaknesses, so traders need to do their research before settling on one. With careful consideration, Malaysian forex traders can select a top-rated forex broker that can support their trading experience.

This article will compare some of the best options available to help traders make an informed decision. Considering factors such as regulatory compliance, trading platform, customer service, and pricing, Benzinga reviews the top forex broker Malaysia offering forex trading to clients in Malaysia. 

Quick Look: Best Forex Brokers in Malaysia

• Best for MT4 Traders: Axi
• Best for Trading in the App: Octa
• Best for Platform Trading Variety: IFC Markets
• Best for Long-Term Traders: Vantage Markets
• Best for Beginner Forex and CFD Traders: XM Group
• Best for Beginners: FOREX.com
• Best for Security: IG Group
• Best for Experienced Traders: Interactive Brokers

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Disclosure: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 69% 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.

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Best Malaysia Forex Brokers

The right trading platform is crucial, as well as demo account options. If you reside in Malaysia and want to sink your teeth into forex trading, here are the best forex brokers worth considering

1. Best for MT4 Traders: Axi

Formerly known as AxiTrader, Axi allows you to trade CFDs in a safe environment, even going so far as offering a demo account that allows you to work with $50,000 in virtual currency. The platform works off Meta 4, and it also offers:

• Copy trading to make your life a little easier
• Educational tools
• AI and Machine Learning tools that learn from you and help you make better trades

Plus, you can trade a number of different assets, including:

• More than 40 forex pairs
• Leverage trading
• More than 30 indices
• Precious metals
• Oil
• Commodities
• Over 30 leading cryptocurrencies

Fee are competitive with low trading fees, $10 monthly maintenance fee for inactive accounts and no deposit or withdrawal fees.

2. Best for Trading in the App: Octa

Octa is a multi-platform forex broker that offers account support for Malaysian users. You can use MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 and OctaTrader. There’s also the web, desktop, Android and iOS versions of each platform, depending on what you prefer. Not sure what to do? Use the comparison chart on the site.

Islamic accounts are available. Funds security is of the utmost importance, negative balance protection is available and there are several accounts from which you may choose. There are contests and giveaways that can make this platform that much more fun to use, and you can even use CopyTrading to learn how investing should work before you get fully comfortable.

3. Best for Platform Trading Variety: IFC Markets

With IFC Markets, traders have access to over 600 financial instruments - like forex, stocks, indices, commodities, crypto futures and synthetic assets - through top-notch trading platforms like MetaTrader 4 and 5 plus the proprietary NetTradeX advanced platform. The broker also gives clients infinite trading prospects with the GeWorko Portfolio Quoting Method which enables them to build their own synthetic instruments or select from the PCI Library of professionally developed synthetic instruments.

4. Best for Long-Term Traders: Vantage Markets

Vantage Markets is a forex trader and CFD market that brings you instruments with underlying assets like indices, oil, gas, gold and much more. A high volume trader will appreciate the high liquidity of the platform, and they will also get

• Low fees
• A 50% welcome bonus
• Negative balance protection to prevent you from being wiped out entirely

24-hour support helps you stay on top of your account should something occur, and you can choose from over 200 assets as you begin to enter the CFD space.

5. Best for Beginner Forex and CFD Trading: XM Group

With more than 1,000 trading instruments, XM Group creates a unique trading environment for both forex and CFD investors. When you want to buy into CFDs, you can look at underlying assets like stocks, commodities, equity indices, precious metals and energies. Use the mobile app on the go or MT4 and MT5 if you’re at your desktop to get fast execution and the customer support you deserve.

6. Best for Beginners: FOREX.com

FOREX.com is a multi-trading platform broker offering MetaTrader 4 and 5, NinjaTrader and its proprietary Advanced Trading platform. The broker supports Islamic account options to serve the sizeable Muslim population in Malaysia. Its educational material is extensive and will benefit both beginner and experienced traders.

7. Best for Security: IG Group

IG Markets provides clients with the opportunity to trade across a wide range of currency pairs, totaling up to 80 options. The broker has a minimum deposit requirement of $250.

IG holds customer funds in segregated accounts, ensuring added security through trustee arrangements. In addition to its proprietary trading platform, IG provides support for third-party forex platforms like MetaTrader 4 and ProRealTime. It also enables trading with application programming interfaces (APIs). IG provides a range of investment options for forex trading.

8. Best for Experienced Traders: Interactive Brokers

Interactive Brokers is a reputable broker that offers a wide range of trading options including forex, stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrency, bonds, options and futures. Clients enjoy access to over 100 tradeable currency pairs, competitive spreads as narrow as 1/10 PIP, real-time quotes from 17 major FX dealers, and transparent commissions without hidden spreads or markups.

Understanding Trading Forex in Malaysia

Forex trading in Malaysia allows traders to buy and sell foreign currencies in the Malaysian currency, the ringgit. Traders must first open a trading account with a broker to begin trading in the forex market. Once the account is opened, traders can buy and sell currencies, taking advantage of the differences in exchange rates. 

Forex brokers are establishing their presence in Malaysia as local demand has been increasing. The Malaysian ringgit, the local currency, was formerly pegged to the U.S. dollar. But in 2005, the Central Bank of Malaysia ended the peg. The currency is now a managed floating currency monitored against a currency basket to make sure the exchange rate remains close to fair value to help maintain the stability of the ringgit exchange rate.

Malaysian residents can confidently trade forex knowing that brokers there are regulated by the Securities Commission Malaysia (SCM). Islam is Malaysia's official religion, and forex brokers operating in the county offer products that comply with Sharia law. Regular forex account products charge or pay interest on funds deposited in the account, contrary to Islam's tenets. 

Generally, trading practices that contain elements of interest or high-risk speculation are prohibited in Islam. As a result, brokers operating in Malaysia design trading account products that exclude loans, margin trading and short sales.

How to Choose a Forex Broker in Malaysia

Since not all online brokers are equal, the most important thing to be confident about before opening a forex account is that the broker is secure and offers the services you require. The bullet points below describe the more common considerations you’ll want to review before you select a broker as a trading partner.

Regulation

The primary consideration when choosing a broker should be the security of your funds deposited as margin. Select a well-regulated broker with at least one reputable regulatory body overseeing its operations and that segregates client accounts from its own.

Most foreign brokers accepting clients from Malaysia will be overseen by one or more good regulatory agencies, such as the National Futures Association (NFA) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the United States or the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Broker Type

Online brokers will typically act either as market makers or as electronic communications network (ECN) brokers. Market makers take the other side of your trades, while ECN brokers pass on the best price of a selection of market makers who use its electronic communications network.

ECN brokers typically show narrower variable spreads but may charge a per-trade commission, while market makers often have wider fixed spreads but no commission.

Dealing Spreads and Commissions

The difference between the bid price and the offer price in a broker’s quotation is known as the dealing or bid/offer spread.  Since spreads and commissions add a cost to trading, active traders will want to keep them down as low as possible, while less active traders typically seem less sensitive to such considerations.

Trading Platform

Ideally, you want to find a broker that offers trading software with a customizable interface and that has the analysis features you require, as well as runs on the desktop, mobile or web platform you prefer.

Virtually all of the best online forex brokers will support using the popular MetaTrader 4 and 5 trading platforms developed by MetaQuotes that offer a complete technical analysis functionality with numerous valuable trading tools, including a wide range of third-party expert advisors (EAs) and custom indicator software that you can use or purchase.  Some brokers also offer access via cTrader, NinjaTrader, their own proprietary platforms and social copy trading platforms like ZuluTrade.

Customer Service

Most traders, especially those with less experience, know the importance of being able to communicate promptly with their broker’s customer support staff in case errors or issues arise. Traders new to the broker can also appreciate the material on how to use their trading platforms.

Research, Analysis and Educational Materials

These written and visual aids can be a major plus for traders with less experience. Even more advanced traders may appreciate having access to a high-quality news feed and market analysis performed by professionals.

Trade Forex in Malaysia

Forex trading in Malaysia is slightly different from other countries because of the country's unique regulations and restrictions. The Malaysian population is primarily Muslim, and the country's official religion is Islam. Therefore, FX brokers operating in Malaysia have adapted their products to comply with Islamic sharia laws, which strictly forbid interest on deposits and risky speculations.

The brokers listed here offer the best trading account options in Malaysia with products and features considered Halal (permissible). However, forex trading can be risky, and you should do thorough research before selecting the right forex broker in Malaysia.

Frequently Asked Questions