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🇰🇪 Kenya · 🇿🇦 South Africa · Forex broker check

Is your forex broker regulated? Check before you deposit.

Type a broker name to see if it is regulated by the CMA in Kenya or the FSCA in South Africa, and which licensed company would hold your money. Legit or a scam, find out in seconds.

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  • 16 CMA-regulated online forex brokers tracked
  • 0 paid placements in licence results
  • Weekly register checks

Find & compare · October 2026

Best regulated forex brokers in Kenya and South Africa

Every broker below is checked against the official register: the CMA in Kenya and the FSCA in South Africa. We show the licensed local company that would hold your money and its licence number, so you can verify it yourself.

CMA-regulated forex brokers in Kenya (October 2026)

Sponsored links: we may earn a commission when you open an account. It never changes a licence status or the order of this list. Source for Kenya: CMA register.

See all CMA regulated forex brokers in Kenya →

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Why Africa.Forex

Why traders trust our forex broker reviews

Many forex broker review sites rank brokers that are not regulated in your country, bury you in ads and keep old data under new dates. Here is what we do instead.

Local licence comes firstLive

We only rank brokers licensed where you live. No CMA or FSCA licence, no “Visit broker” button.

Every number has a dateLive

Licences, fees and payment methods each show when we last checked them. Licence registers are re-checked every month.

No banner ads, no pop-upsLive

No flashing broker banners, no exit pop-ups, no “100% deposit bonus” hype. Just the facts you came for.

Clear about how we earnLive

Some links pay us a commission. It never changes a licence result or the order of a list, and every sponsored link is labelled.

Real-money testsComing

We deposit with M-Pesa or ZAR, place a trade and withdraw. You see the screenshots and how long each step took.

Real people, real namesComing

Every review is written and signed by a named trader with real trading experience, never an anonymous “editor”.

At least three cons per brokerComing

Every review has a “What we didn't like” section. A review with no downsides is an advert.

“Not licensed here” listComing

Big brokers that accept you without a local licence, and why we don't send you to them.

Real withdrawal timesLive

Traders report how long their M-Pesa, bank or card withdrawal took, and every broker page shows the typical time. Our own tests come next.

Broker historyComing

Each broker page shows its licence changes, regulator warnings and fines over time from Broker Watch.

Report a scamComing

Tell us about a suspicious broker or signal group. We check it against the registers and publish what we find.

Alerts by email and WhatsAppLive

Get an email the day a licence changes, a regulator issues a warning or we spot a new scam. A WhatsApp channel is next.

Economic calendar for AfricaLive

SARB, CBK and CBN rate decisions, inflation and US jobs data that move the rand, shilling, naira and gold.

African markets in one placeLive

Gold, platinum, oil, cocoa and the rand, shilling and naira, with what each price means for your economy.

Built for phones and mobile dataLive

Light pages that load fast on a phone, because that is where most traders in Africa read.

Find my brokerLive

Four questions about where you live, how you pay and your experience give you a short, licensed list.

Markets

Gold, platinum, oil and cocoa prices: Africa's commodity markets

Live prices for the metals, energy and crops Africa produces and trades, plus the rand, shilling and naira and the stocks of African miners. Use them alongside our forex broker reviews to follow the markets that move your economy.

Prices by TradingView. Quotes may be delayed. Not investment advice. See what moves them next in the economic calendar.

Want more than the free charts? See TradingView plans Affiliate link

Why these commodity prices matter in Africa

GoldLive price
Ghana, South Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, Sudan, Tanzania

Ghana is Africa's largest producer. Gold is a top export across West Africa, so its price feeds straight into currencies and state budgets.

Platinum & palladiumLive price
South Africa, Zimbabwe

South Africa mines most of the world's platinum. When the price moves, the rand and JSE mining shares usually move with it.

CopperLive price
DR Congo, Zambia

Zambia's kwacha, jobs and tax income follow the copper price closely.

CobaltNo free quote yet
DR Congo (about 70% of world supply)

The key battery metal for electric cars. Africa dominates supply, but there is no free public quote yet.

Crude oil (Brent)Live price
Nigeria, Angola, Libya, Algeria, Egypt

Most African crude is priced off Brent. It drives the naira and kwanza, fuel prices and government revenue.

Natural gasLive price
Algeria, Nigeria, Egypt, Mozambique

Algeria and Nigeria export gas to Europe and Asia; new projects in Mozambique and Senegal are adding supply.

CocoaLive price
Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Cameroon, Nigeria

Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana grow about 60% of the world's cocoa. Farmer income and the cedi depend on it.

CoffeeLive price
Ethiopia, Uganda, Côte d'Ivoire, Tanzania, Kenya

Ethiopia is Africa's largest grower and Uganda a major robusta exporter. A key export income for East Africa.

WheatLive price
Africa mostly imports: Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria, Morocco

Egypt is one of the world's largest wheat buyers. When wheat rises, bread and food prices across North and West Africa follow.

Maize (corn)Live price
South Africa, Nigeria, Tanzania, Ethiopia

A staple food across the continent. World prices shape what millions of households pay for meals.

SugarLive price
South Africa, Egypt, Eswatini, Kenya

Grown and processed across Southern and East Africa, and a big import for others.

Iron ore & bauxiteNo free quote yet
South Africa, Mauritania, Guinea

Guinea is one of the world's biggest bauxite (aluminium ore) producers; South Africa ships iron ore to China.

How we check

How we check forex brokers

Every broker goes through the same four checks, starting with the licence. Each fact links to its source and shows the date we checked it. Commissions never change a licence result or the order of a list. Real-money tests and a broker score come next, and we will say clearly when they start.

Read the full methodology →
  1. 1
    LicenceMatched to the official CMA or FSCA register, with the local company, licence number and date
  2. 2
    Deposits & withdrawalsM-Pesa, ZAR and bank options from the broker's own local site
  3. 3
    Costs & platformsSpreads, commissions, swaps, fees and platforms from the broker's documents
  4. 4
    Weak pointsEvery review lists cons and links its sources; changes go to Broker Watch

Broker Watch

Forex regulation news: Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria

New broker licences, regulator warnings and rule changes. Every entry links to its official source.

All Broker Watch newsDaily market brief
Licences

CMA lists two dealing forex brokers: Capital.com and Empire FX

Besides the 14 non-dealing brokers, the CMA register lists two dealing online forex brokers: Empire FX Trade Limited (licence 203) and CC Kenya Securities Limited, trading as Capital.com (licence 244). A dealing broker can take the other side of your trades.

Licences

CMA register lists 14 regulated non-dealing online forex brokers

From FXPesa (licence 107) to AvaTrade Kenya (licence 262). Every Kenya status on this site is matched to this list.

Regulation

Nigeria's SEC publishes draft rules for online forex and CFD trading

The draft covers offshore brokers that serve Nigerians, sets capital rules for introducing brokers and requires SEC approval for ads. It is a proposal, not yet in force.

Warning

Banxso: FSP licence withdrawn, R2 billion FSCA penalty, company in liquidation

The FSCA withdrew the licence of Banxso (Pty) Ltd (FSP 37699) and imposed a R2 billion administrative penalty after finding that client money was mixed with company money and misused. Its investigation started from deepfake ads for a scheme called Immediate Matrix. The Western Cape High Court placed Banxso in final liquidation in March 2026. Do not open an account with Banxso or anyone using its name.

Warning

Kenya: unlicensed forex brokers may not advertise to or onboard Kenyans

The CMA has ordered unlicensed online forex brokers to stop onboarding Kenyan investors and says offshore firms advertising locally without a licence act illegally.

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WhatsApp channel

The same alerts on WhatsApp.

Coming soon

Scam Guide

Forex scams in Kenya and South Africa: 5 red flags

Regulators in Kenya and South Africa keep warning about fake forex brokers, signal groups and impersonators. These are the patterns they share. Check any of them before you send money.

  1. 1
    Guaranteed profits

    No regulated broker promises returns. “Double your money” is the first sign of a forex scam.

  2. 2
    An “account manager” on WhatsApp or Telegram

    Legit brokers do not ask you to trade through a chat group or send money to a person.

  3. 3
    A licence number you cannot find

    Search the number on the regulator's own website. A logo or screenshot proves nothing.

  4. 4
    Pay to withdraw

    If you are told to deposit more or pay a “tax” before you can withdraw, stop.

  5. 5
    Crypto to a personal wallet

    Deposits should go to the broker's company account in your country, not to an individual.

Read the full forex scam guide →

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Real market prices, no deposit, no risk. Weekly challenges, a scorecard for every trade and a leaderboard. Learn how you trade before you put real money on the line.

  • Virtual money only. Nothing to deposit.
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Learn

Learn forex trading: the basics for beginners

01Start hereWhat forex trading really is, and the risks nobody mentions02How to find a legit brokerMatch the company name, the licence number and the register03Leverage, explainedWhy 1:500 can wipe out an account in minutes04Risk per tradeThe 1% rule and how to size a position
See all 42 free lessons in the Africa.Forex Academy →

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FAQ

Forex broker questions from Kenya and South Africa

Is forex trading legal in Kenya?

Yes. Online forex trading is legal in Kenya when you use a broker licensed by the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) under the Capital Markets (Online Foreign Exchange Trading) Regulations, 2017. The CMA has said unlicensed brokers may not onboard Kenyan investors.

Is forex trading legal in South Africa?

Yes. Forex brokers serving South Africans must be authorised by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) and carry an FSP number that you can look up on the FSCA register.

How do I check if a forex broker is regulated?

Find the broker's local company name and licence number on its website, then search them on the CMA list of licensees (Kenya) or the FSCA register (South Africa). The company name must match exactly. You can also type the broker's name into our forex broker check.

Is Exness legit in Kenya?

Exness serves Kenyan clients through Exness KE Limited, which is on the CMA list of regulated non-dealing online forex brokers with licence number 162. A licence does not remove trading risk: most retail CFD accounts lose money.

Which forex brokers accept M-Pesa in Kenya?

Among the CMA-regulated brokers we track, Exness, HFM, XM and FXPesa (Equiti) are reported to accept M-Pesa from Kenyan clients. Payment methods change, so confirm on the broker's Kenyan website before you deposit.

How many forex brokers are regulated by the CMA?

On 29 October 2026 the CMA register listed 14 non-dealing online forex brokers, including Pepperstone Markets Kenya, HFM Investments, Exness KE, FP Markets, IC Markets (KE) and Ava Trade Kenya, plus 2 dealing brokers: Empire FX and Capital.com.

Which forex brokers are FSCA regulated in South Africa?

Brokers with FSCA authorisation include HFM (FSP 46632), AvaTrade (FSP 45984), FXTM (FSP 46614), FP Markets (FSP 50926), Tickmill (FSP 49464) and FxPro (FSP 45052). We are still confirming each number against the FSCA register.