Saxo Markets UK Review | Is Saxo Markets Reliable? A Complete Analysis of Regulation, Trading Platform, Fees, and User Reputation

1. Brand Background and Development History

Saxo Markets UK Ltd. is the UK subsidiary of Denmark's Saxo Bank A/S. Founded in 2006 and headquartered in London, Saxo Bank A/S , its parent company, was founded in 1992 and is one of the first financial institutions in Europe to offer online multi-asset trading .

Saxo Bank's vision is to provide professional investors and high-net-worth clients with deep liquidity in global markets and a one-stop investment platform. Over the past three decades, Saxo has grown from a Danish investment bank to a global financial group with offices in over 20 countries, serving over 800,000 clients , including retail and institutional investors, banks, and hedge funds.

In the UK, Saxo Markets UK primarily serves clients in the European and UK markets and is strictly regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) . Unlike many zero-commission brokers, Saxo's focus is on professional trading, cross-market access, and research-driven investing . Consequently, its client base typically has larger capital requirements and more complex trading needs.

II. Account Types and Account Opening Thresholds

Saxo Markets offers three main account types, differentiated by funding amount and service level:

👉 This means that Saxo Markets' positioning is completely different from "zero-barrier" brokerages like Robinhood, eToro, and Freetrade. It is not open to everyone, but rather focuses more on wealth management and professional investment clients .

Account opening process:

1. Apply online (upload identity document and address proof)

2. Deposit funds (minimum £500)

3. Risk Assessment Questionnaire (testing investment experience according to FCA regulations)

Generally speaking, the account opening review is strict, but the process is transparent and meets the compliance standards of international investment banks.

3. Fee and Commission Structure

Saxo's fee structure is relatively complex, but the overall trend is that the larger the capital, the lower the cost .

1. Stock & ETF Trading

• UK stocks: Commissions from £3

• US stocks: $0.02 per share, minimum $10

• ETFs: Same commissions as stocks

• Financing rate: approximately 5–9% annualized

2. Foreign Exchange Trading

• Classic account: spreads starting from 0.6

• Platinum: Spreads can be reduced to as low as 0.4

• VIP: The lowest spread is 0.2 , and you can enjoy the best liquidity quotes

3. CFDs and Futures

• CFD Stocks: Commission starts from 0.1%

• Futures: Fees are calculated per contract, for example, CME E-mini S&P 500 futures have a commission of approximately $1.25 per contract.

4. Hidden costs

• Currency conversion fee: 0.25%–0.5%

• Inactivity fee: If there is no trading for 12 months, the account may be charged €100

• Withdrawal: Bank transfer is free, but third-party fees are borne by the user

📌 Comparison:

• Zero-commission brokers like Robinhood and Freetrade: Beginner-friendly, but limited in functionality

• Saxo Markets: Suitable for high-frequency, large-volume, and cross-market transactions, with transparent costs, but users with small capital may find the threshold high.

IV. Supervision and Compliance

Saxo Markets UK is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) with reference number 551422 .

In addition, Saxo Group has multiple regulatory bodies around the world:

• Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) : Parent company Saxo Bank A/S

• Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) : Saxo Capital Markets (Australia) Pty Ltd

• Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) : Holds Capital Market Services License

• Japan Financial Services Agency (FSA Japan) : Joint venture company licensed

Investor Protection:

• UK clients are covered by the FSCS investor compensation scheme (up to £85,000)

• Client funds and company funds are strictly isolated

• Strict leverage and suitability assessments in line with MiFID II requirements

Its regulatory level is on par with established brokerage firms such as Interactive Brokers and IG Group .

V. Investment Products and Market Coverage

One of Saxo's biggest strengths is its broad market coverage :

• Stocks : Covering 60+ global exchanges (London Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Deutsche Börse, etc.)

• Foreign exchange : 180+ currency pairs, liquidity depth close to bank level

• ETFs & Bonds : Major global ETFs, as well as government and corporate bonds

• Derivatives : futures, options, contracts for difference

• Commodities : gold, crude oil, agricultural products

• Cryptocurrency (derivative form) : such as BTC/USD, ETH/USD CFD

📊 The number of products exceeds 40,000+ , which is much wider than most retail platforms (for example, eToro offers about 3,000+ stocks), covering almost all mainstream markets in the world.

6. Trading Platform and Technical Advantages

Saxo has two core platforms developed independently:

1. SaxoTraderGO

• For retail and professional customers

• Web + Mobile

• Function: one-click order, K-line analysis, trading signals

• A simplified version of Interactive Brokers, but with a more user-friendly interface.

2. SaxoTraderPRO

• For professional investors

• Supports multiple screens (up to 6 screens)

• Provides market depth (Level 2), algorithmic trading, and API access

• Supporting quantitative traders and institutions

Technical highlights:

• Low-latency execution : Direct connections with multiple tier-one banks

• Advanced charts : providing more than 50 technical indicators

• Portfolio Analysis : Risk Diversification, VaR Analysis

insufficient:

• Does not support MT4/MT5 (inconvenience for some forex users)

• The learning curve is steeper than with zero-commission platforms

VII. Deposits and Withdrawals and Fund Security

• Deposit method : Bank transfer, Visa/Mastercard debit card

• Not supported : PayPal, Skrill and other e-wallets

• Transfer speed : 1-2 working days

• Account currency : GBP, USD, EUR multi-currency

Fund security:

• FSCS cover up to £85,000

• Bank-level risk control and encryption system

• Client funds are completely isolated from company funds

8. Customer Service and Research Support

Customer Service

• Channel: Phone, email, online customer service

• Languages: English, German, French, Chinese, Spanish

• Response time: Usually within 1-2 hours (VIP customers can enjoy faster access)

Research support

• SaxoStrats : Saxo's own research team, providing daily market commentary and macro strategy reports

• Portfolio Analysis : Quantitative Risk and Exposure Analysis

• Third-party research integration : Partnership with Morningstar and Dow Jones

IX. Media and User Reviews

Trustpilot

• Website: Trustpilot Saxo Markets

• Rating: ⭐ 3.6/5 (3,000+ reviews)

• front :

• The platform is stable and the research reports are in-depth

• Global market access

• Negative :

• High fees, not suitable for small funds

• Customer service response is not as good as that of similar brokers

Media coverage

• Financial Times: Saxo Bank is called "one of the most professional online trading banks in Europe"

• Bloomberg: Saxo Bank Leads in FX and Multi-Asset Liquidity

• Reuters: Points out that Saxo is expanding rapidly in Asia and the Middle East

10. Risk Warning

• High capital threshold : minimum deposit of £500, not suitable for beginners

• Higher fees : Compared with zero commission platforms, the costs are heavier

• Steep learning curve : SaxoTraderGO/PRO is feature-rich but not easy to use

Suitable for: high net worth investors, institutional clients, professional traders
Not suitable for: small capital, novice investors

11. Comprehensive Rating (10-point system + comments)

• Regulatory Compliance: 9/10 — Multiple regulations ensure fund security

• Fee Structure: 6/10 — Costs are high, but can be reduced for larger funds

• Product Diversity: 10/10 — 40,000+ Global Market Access

• Platform Experience: 9/10 — PRO platform is professional, GO platform is user-friendly

• Customer Service: 8/10 — Multilingual support, but slow response times for average customers

Overall score: 8.5/10
👉 Saxo Markets UK is one of the most professional multi-asset brokers in the UK market , particularly suitable for high-net-worth clients and professional investors , but not for small capital users.