Forex Brokers in the USA have the tightest regulations out of all other brokers around the world. However, American residents do not have many alternative options.
Most brokers around the world do not accept clients from the United States of America. Some brokers even blocked their website from visitors with IP addresses in that geographical region.
Here is why: U.S. federal laws prevent offshore brokers to solicit potential U.S. clients. Americans must find an NFA regulated broker located in the USA.
List of Brokers in the USA
The following forex brokers are located within the USA and are regulated by the NFA. To view offshore brokers that are outside of the U.S., see our main international brokers list.
| Broker | Description | Rating | Website (secure link) |
|---|---|---|---|
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4.7 / 5 "Tight spreads with fast execution" "Exceptional customer service" "MT4 Platform works great" |
Official Website Our review |
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4.2 / 5 "Fast and free withdrawals and deposits" "Safe and secure" "Small learning curve" |
Official Website Our review |
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3.4 / 5 "Trading against you so you cannot win" "Many trading markets" "Bad platform" "Hidden costs" |
Official Website Our review |
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2.0 / 5 "Bad customer service after depositing money" "Withdrawal to PayPal" "Bad spread" "Clean user interface" |
Official Website Our review |
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3.2 / 5 "Fair broker" "Worst customer service" "Financially secure company" |
Official Website Our review |
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2.1 / 5 "Good platform" "Sued for fraud" "Long customer service hold times" |
Official Website Our review |
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1.7 / 5 "Misleading commissions" "Slow orders" "FIFO restrictions" |
Official Website Our review |
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1.1 / 5 "Wrong currency data" "Trade against you immidiately" "Slow servers" |
Not Recommended Our review |
Background about Forex in the U.S.
In 2011, the United States government restricted all U.S. residents to national brokers that are regulated by the NFA (National Future Association), which is run by the CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission). The restrictions were implemented through the Dodd-Frank Act.
Limitations by the NFA
- Leverage: limited to 50:1 for major currencies and 20:1 for minor currencies (minor currencies carry a higher risk).
- Short (and Long) Forex Options: the trader must maintain a security deposit.
- Traders cannot hold simultaneous positions in one forex asset (FIFO – First In First Out).
- Brokers must hold their money in a qualifying institution in the USA.
Verification
The NFA offer a system to check whether a brokerage is approved and has the proper regulatory compliance. If you select a U.S. broker that is not listed above, you need to verify it with BASIC (Background Affiliation Status Information Center).
The BASIC verification report provides the following:
- Current Status: is the company approved and registered?
- FCM Financial Information: financial reports and debt status.
- Firm Activity Status: acceptable firm practices.
- Regulatory Actions: case history and outcomes.
- NFA Arbitration Decisions: cases that involved the NFA Arbitration Panel.
- CFTC Reparations Cases: futures-related disputes.
- Business Address
- Doing Business As: list of subsidiaries.
- Listed Principals: list of owners and head administrators.
- History: approval and registration timeline.
