Pepperstone is our choice for forex from Hong Kong. Its Razor account quotes raw spreads from 0.0 plus a commission from $3.50 per lot per side, it offers 93 currency pairs including USD/CNH, and you can hold your account in HKD. It is regulated offshore, not by the SFC, which caps licensed forex dealers at 20:1 leverage.
Short answer: Choose Pepperstone for forex if you want raw-spread pricing, platform choice and an HKD base currency, and accept an offshore regulator.
93 forex CFDs, Razor spreads from 0.0 with a commission from $3.50 per lot per side, or Standard with a 1-pip mark-up and no commission.
Retail leverage at Pepperstone's international entity: up to 1:200 on major and minor pairs; Pepperstone Pro clients can go higher.
SFC-licensed forex dealers must take at least 5% initial margin, which means 20:1 leverage at most.
Pepperstone offers 31 crypto CFDs that trade 24/7, with BTC/USD spreads from $15 and retail leverage of 1:20.
Capital.com and XS also accept Hong Kong residents; XS's Elite account averages 0.1 pips on EUR/USD plus $6 round turn.
What the SFC limit means for you
In Hong Kong, leveraged foreign exchange trading is a licensed activity under the SFC, known as Type 3. The SFC's code of conduct requires licensed dealers to collect initial margin of at least 5% and maintenance margin of at least 3% of a contract's value. That is why SFC-licensed firms rarely offer more than 20:1 on currencies.
Pepperstone, Capital.com and XS serve Hong Kong residents through companies licensed in other places, so the higher leverage on their sites comes from those regulators, not from the SFC. The trade-off is protection: the SFC's rules on margin, client money and complaints apply to its licensees, not to your offshore account. Decide which matters more to you before you choose on leverage.
Our forex pick
Raw spreads from 0.0 with clear commissions, 93 pairs including USD/CNH, HKD or JPY base accounts and MT4, MT5, cTrader and TradingView.
XS publishes no loss percentage; its risk warning says it is possible to lose all your capital.
Pepperstone, Capital.com and XS are our partners. We may earn a commission if you open an account through our links. That does not change the facts on this page.
Your questions, answered
Which brokers offer crypto CFDs in Hong Kong?
Pepperstone, Capital.com and XS all list crypto CFDs for clients who live in Hong Kong. Pepperstone offers 31 of them, open 24/7 with no weekend downtime, at retail leverage of 1:20 on BTC and ETH. Capital.com lists around 450 crypto CFDs. Note what a CFD is: you trade the price only, you never own the coin, and you cannot move it to a wallet. If you want to own crypto, that is a different product and a different regulatory regime.
What's the best forex trading platform?
There is no single best, so match the platform to your style. MetaTrader 4 is still the most common for expert advisors; MetaTrader 5 adds more timeframes and markets; cTrader suits traders who want depth of market and transparent commissions; TradingView is the strongest for charting. Pepperstone offers all four from one login, plus its own app. Capital.com offers MT4, MT5 and TradingView; XS offers MT4 and MT5.
Which brokers offer the tightest EUR/USD spreads?
Raw-spread accounts win here, but compare the all-in cost. Pepperstone Razor publishes a 0.0 minimum on EUR/USD plus $7 round-trip commission per lot on MT4 and MT5. IC Markets states a 0.1-pip average with the same $3.50 per side. XS Elite averages 0.1 pips plus $6 round turn. Fusion Markets charges $2.25 per side, cheaper on commission than Pepperstone. A minimum spread and an average spread are different measures, so test both in a demo during the London session.
Which broker has the tightest spreads on USD/CNH and USD/HKD?
Pepperstone lists USD/CNH, the offshore yuan, among its forex CFDs, but it does not publish a spread for it on its site, so we will not claim a figure. We did not find USD/HKD in Pepperstone's published instrument data; check the platform's symbol list. Keep in mind that the Hong Kong dollar is held within a 7.75 to 7.85 band against the US dollar by the HKMA, so USD/HKD moves very little and is rarely worth trading with leverage.
Which forex broker is best for trading USD/JPY?
Pepperstone suits USD/JPY traders in Hong Kong: Razor spreads start from 0.0 and Standard from 1 pip, and JPY is one of its account base currencies. USD/JPY is most active during the Tokyo morning and around US data, both within Hong Kong daytime and evening. Watch the Bank of Japan: its policy meetings can move the pair sharply. XS's Elite account also offers a JPY base currency.
Which forex brokers in Hong Kong offer the highest leverage?
Offshore firms offer far more than SFC licensees. Pepperstone's international entity lists 1:200 on major and minor pairs for retail clients, and up to 1:500 for Pepperstone Pro clients, with its Pro page mentioning up to 1:1000 on gold and forex. XS advertises dynamic leverage up to 1:2000, reduced as positions grow. Capital.com's professional accounts go to 500:1. Higher leverage is not a feature to chase: at 1:500 a 0.2% move erases your margin.
Which broker has the lowest spreads on BTCUSD?
Pepperstone advertises BTC/USD spreads from $15 and ETH/USD from $2, and crypto is commission-free on both of its accounts. Capital.com and XS publish their crypto spreads as variable, so we cannot rank them honestly. Crypto spreads widen when the market is fast or thin, especially at weekends, which is when Pepperstone keeps trading open. Retail leverage on crypto at Pepperstone is 1:20, the safer level given how far Bitcoin can move in a day.
Which forex broker has the tightest spreads during Asian trading hours?
Spreads in the Asian session depend more on the pair than the broker: yen, Australian dollar and yuan pairs stay liquid, while euro and sterling pairs thin out. With Pepperstone, avoid the daily rollover at 5pm New York time, which is 05:00 in Hong Kong during the US summer period and 06:00 in winter; spreads widen around it. Razor accounts show the raw price, so you see that widening directly rather than through a fixed mark-up.
Published 2026-10-21. Informational only, not investment advice. CFDs are leveraged products and most retail accounts lose money.
Our forex pick
Spread-only pricing
Dynamic leverage