The trading account with FxPro

A price contract with a foreign firm, beside a share recorded in your name at Strate

FxPro offers contracts for difference, including CFDs on shares of companies listed around the world and on stock indices. A CFD on a share is a contract on the price of that share: no share is bought, nothing is registered in the reader's name at any depository, and the holder has no vote and no shareholder rights. The contract is with FxPro, not with the company whose share price it references. A share bought through a local broker and settled at Strate is recorded in the holder's name or in a nominee's name, carries voting rights where the articles allow, and receives company mail. A CFD carries none of that. The two are different instruments with different risks, and the reader should not mistake one for the other.

A CFD is a leveraged product and losses can be fast. The broker states that clients cannot lose more than the funds they deposited, a feature known as negative balance protection, and offers a free practice account. The practice account uses the same platforms as the live account, but its results say nothing about future results on a live account.

Why a contract has no CSDP, no nominee and no company mail

A CFD is not recorded at Strate, South Africa's central securities depository. There is no CSDP participant, no nominee, and no entry in a share register. The holder has no claim on the underlying share, no right to attend a company meeting, and no right to receive the company's annual report. The only claim is against the broker under the contract terms. Where a share CFD is offered, any dividend-related payment is a cash adjustment made by the broker around the ex-dividend date under its own contract terms. It is not a dividend paid by the company, and its size and tax treatment are set by the broker's terms, which this site does not state. The reader must read the contract specification before relying on it.

This site does not state whether FxPro lists any share from this country's exchange. What the broker's account offers is a price contract on global shares and indices, which is a different thing from buying a share through a local broker and depository, which is what this site's guides describe.

What to read in the terms and check on the FSCA register before an account is opened from South Africa

Opening an account requires identity verification. The platforms offered are MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5, cTrader, a browser platform and a mobile app. Each platform has its own order entry and account screens, and the reader should understand the fees and margin rules before trading. The broker's own FAQ says it is regulated by the FSCA in South Africa. This site cannot confirm the licence number or which FxPro company serves a South African resident, so it must not state a licence number. The reader must check the FSCA register, find the exact legal name and FSP number of the entity that would hold the account, and compare the website and contact details before sending any money. A CFD is not recorded at Strate, and no payment is taken by this site.

The absence of a warning on the FSCA register does not authorise an unlicensed firm, and a register entry does not guarantee that a particular product is suitable. The reader should read the client agreement, the contract specification for the instrument, and the broker's terms on negative balance protection and dividend adjustments before deciding.

FxPro states that it is regulated in South Africa by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) for its South African business, but which company of the group would hold a particular reader's account, and under which licence, is not stated here: check the FSCA's register of authorised financial services providers before relying on any of it. A contract for difference on a share is not ownership of a share and is not recorded at Strate. Sending rand abroad is subject to South African exchange control rules. This site does not give investment advice of any kind.