How to check a broker's licence in Europe (step by step)

Every serious broker is authorised by a financial regulator, and every regulator publishes a public register. Checking takes five minutes and is the single most effective protection you have against losing money to a fraudulent or offshore firm. Here is the routine we use when we add a firm to our register.

#Step 1: Find the legal entity, not the brand

"Example Markets" is a brand. The company that will hold your money is something like Example Markets (Europe) Ltd, and large groups often run five or more such companies in different countries. You find the legal name in:

• the footer of the website (EU rules require firms to identify themselves);
• the client agreement or terms of business you are asked to accept;
• the key information document (KID) for any CFD you are shown.

Write down the exact company name, its registration number and the licence number it quotes.

#Step 2: Search the regulator's own register

Go to the regulator's website yourself – type the address or use the links on our regulator pages – rather than clicking a link supplied by the broker. Search for the company name. The main registers are:

• Cyprus: CySEC's list of investment firms, which includes each firm's approved websites.
• UK: the FCA register, which also flags known clones.
• Germany: BaFin's company database; Ireland: the Central Bank of Ireland registers; Luxembourg: CSSF entity search.
• EU-wide: ESMA's registers collect MiFID II investment firms from all member states.

#Step 3: Match the details

On the register entry, check:

1. Status – "authorised" or "licensed", not "withdrawn", "suspended" or "in liquidation".
2. Permissions – the firm must be allowed to deal in the products you want. A payment institution or crypto-asset licence does not authorise CFD trading.
3. Websites and domains – many registers list the domains a firm may use. If you are on example-markets-eu.com and the register lists only examplemarkets.com, you may be on a clone.
4. Contact details – phone numbers and addresses on the register should match what you were given.

#Step 4: Confirm the firm may serve your country

An investment firm licensed in one EEA country can serve clients across the EEA only after notifying its home regulator – this is called passporting. Your national regulator's register will list incoming firms that have passported in. UK and Swiss firms cannot passport into the EU, and firms licensed outside Europe generally cannot actively market to EU residents at all.

#Step 5: Check warning lists

Regulators publish warnings about firms operating without permission and about clones of genuine firms. Search:

• IOSCO I-SCAN, which aggregates alerts from regulators worldwide;
• your national regulator's warning list (for example the FCA warning list, CSSF warnings or FINMA's warning list).

A firm missing from the register and on a warning list is a clear no. A firm missing from both still should not get your money.

#Red flags that override any licence

Even a genuine licence does not help if the contact itself is fraudulent. Walk away if:

• someone contacted you first by phone, social media or messaging app;
• you are promised guaranteed or unusually high returns;
• you are asked to install remote-desktop software such as AnyDesk or TeamViewer;
• you are told to pay a "tax", "release fee" or "insurance" before a withdrawal;
• payment is requested in crypto, by gift card, or to a personal bank account.

These are the hallmarks of the scams described in our guide to clone firms and investment fraud.

#Use our tools as a starting point

Our licence checker shows the licences we have on record for more than 500 firms and links you straight to the right register. It is a starting point: the regulator's register is always the final word.