Is Trading 212 Reliable? Review and Analysis

Does Trading 212 meet your trading needs and goals? Is your investment capital protected? Through the Trading 212 review shared by Mytour below, you will find the information you need to know about this brokerage and make investment decisions more easily.

Trading 212 Platform Review

I - What is Trading 212?

Trading 212 originated in Bulgaria in 2005 and entered the UK market in 2016 as a forex trading platform, where clients can trade stocks, forex, commodities such as gold, oil, and indices, as well as other assets without paying any commission fees. Trading 212 boasts a trading app that has surpassed 15 million downloads and was ranked #1 in the UK in 2016, #1 in Germany in 2017.

Trading 212 offers over 2,500 assets, meaning that every investor has plenty of options when trading with this broker. Additionally, tight spreads and no commission fees make Trading 212 an ideal broker for most traders. The excellent trading conditions explain why Trading 212 has experienced remarkable growth since its inception and has attracted over 500,000 investors from around the globe.

II - Strengths and Weaknesses of Trading 212

What are the strengths and weaknesses of Trading 212? This Trading 212 review will give you an overview of that.

1. Advantages of Trading 212

- Licensed and regulated by FCA, FSCS.
- Diverse trading products: forex, stocks, commodities, and indices.
|- Trade stocks, forex, ETFs, commodities... with 0% commission and competitive spreads.
- No monthly/yearly maintenance fees.
- Top-rated trading app with over 15 million downloads, compatible with iOS and Android devices.
- Access to over 2,500 CFD instruments including 150+ forex pairs and 30+ indices.
- Place various order types including stop-loss and take-profit with just one click.
- Provides negative balance protection.
- Supports multiple deposit and withdrawal methods.

2. Drawbacks of Trading 212

- Lack of support for Vietnamese language.
- No MT4/MT5 trading platform.

III - Types of Trading 212 Accounts

Trading 212 offers Demo account and 2 main account types: Trading 212 CFD and Trading 212 Invest.

- Demo Account: Also known as a practice account, it provides traders with the opportunity to learn and practice trading with $50,000 of virtual funds in a risk-free environment.
- Trading 212 Invest Account: Allows investing in over 3,000 stocks and ETFs with no commission, no inactivity fees, and no maintenance fees. The minimum deposit for this account type is $1. The minimum trade quantity is 1 share.

To qualify as a professional client, you must meet 2 out of the following 3 criteria:

- Personal investment portfolio over £500,000 (excluding property or cash).
- At least 1 year of experience working in the financial sector.
- Trading CFDs or Forex with significant volume averaging 10 times in each of the previous 4 quarters with Trading 212 or other brokers.

Opening a Trading 212 account is swift and effortless. Just input your personal details into the available form and upload a copy of personal identification such as a passport or driver's license. Once approved, you can fund your account and commence trading.

IV - Trading 212 Exchange Fees

Fees are a critical consideration when evaluating forex platforms in general and assessing Trading 212 specifically. Trading 212's major advantage lies in its commission-free trading. However, the platform currently charges 0.15% for trades involving currency units other than the account holder's base currency.

Trading 212 generates revenue through the spread between buying and selling prices on their assets. The spread varies depending on the asset types. Additionally, investors are subject to overnight fees and currency conversion charges.

V - Deposits and Withdrawals

Trading 212 accepts a range of convenient deposit methods including bank transfer, credit/debit card payments, Skrill, Dotpay, Giropay, SafetyPay, Carte Bleue, Mister Cash, Direct eBanking, CashU, and UnionPay. Deposits made through these methods are fee-free up to $2,000. A fee of 0.7% applies once you exceed $2,000.

Note that some methods may only apply to specific countries and not all are available for both deposit and withdrawal.

If you use a credit or debit card, your account is typically funded within 10 minutes after approval. For bank transfers, processing may take up to 2-3 business days.

Withdrawals typically take 2-3 business days to transfer funds to your bank account or credit/debit card. Some withdrawal methods such as online payment processors may be processed instantly.

VI - Trading 212 Supported Trading Platforms

When evaluating Trading 212, Mytour found that this broker does not support industry-standard MetaTrader 4 and enhanced MetaTrader 5 trading platforms like many other brokers, but the Trading 212 mobile trading app is highly rated.

To access the mobile apps on your device, you need to download them from the App Store or Play Store. You can also trade via the Trading 212 web platform directly on most web browsers without needing to install any additional software.

Trading 212's platform boasts an intuitive and fully customizable interface. It offers smooth and user-friendly charts for technical analysis, along with a wide range of trading tools. You can view any tool and place trades with just a click. There are instructional videos and demo accounts available to help you get acquainted with this platform. Here are some features of the platform:

- Real-time price table.
- Watchlist for your favorite trading instruments.
- 10 different timeframes, ranging from 1 minute to 1 month.
- 5 types of charts: bar, candlestick, line, area & Heiken Ashi.
- Technical analysis tools (indicators and graphical objects).
- Sentiment analysis.
- Price alerts.
- Latest market analysis and news.
- Economic calendar.
- Tutorial videos.
- Pro Quant (automated trading strategies).

VII - Is Trading 212 Safe or a Scam?

After learning some essential information about Trading 212 such as its pros and cons, account types, and trading platform, let's delve into the broker's regulatory license. It's crucial for a broker to be licensed and regulated by reputable authorities to ensure the safety of clients' accounts.

Trading 212 is licensed and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the licensing body responsible for regulating the financial services sector worth billions of pounds in the UK. With an FCA license, Trading 212 is obligated to keep client funds in separate bank accounts. In theory, this protects your money in case the broker goes bankrupt. FCA licensing also means that all new accounts must be verified with government-issued IDs, and trading risks must be clearly disclosed.

Additionally, client funds are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), meaning each deposit is insured up to £85,000. However, you'll need to be in the UK to benefit from this. Given Trading 212's current financial status, bankruptcy is highly unlikely.

Considering that Trading 212 is authorized and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the Financial Supervision Commission in Bulgaria, and has not been involved in any scandals during its operation, it can be said that this CFD broker is a safe choice.

Alternatively, you can also explore other forex trading platforms such as Interactive Brokers. However, before considering this trading platform, you should first research it. You can refer to a review of the Interactive Brokers platform here for more information.

Read more: Review of Interactive Brokers