2 Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea – In Depth Review 2024

By Wilbert S

January 10, 2024   •   Fact checked by Dumb Little Man

Want to jump straight to the answer? The best forex broker for traders is Avatrade

The #1 Forex Trading Course is Asia Forex Mentor

The global forex market is open to so many people, including traders in South Korea. Despite this, access to this market is not possible without a good broker. The great news is that there is actually a superb variety of brokerage firms these days. They offer unique trading platforms and general access to the financial markets around the world.

However, although each forex broker has something to offer, there are a few that actually stand out from the rest. These are basically the top-tier brokers that have a history of excellence in the industry. The brokers are also regulated by top-tier bodies including the securities and exchange commission in the US, the Cyprus Securities and exchange commission cysec, and even the financial conduct authority FCA.

Well, in case you have been having issues finding the right broker for your forex trading account, we have a few suggestions here below that should be ideal for anyone. Keep reading and learn more.

Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea

BrokerBest ForMore Details

Advanced Non-US Traders
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securely through Avatrade website
Best Forex Trading Software
Overall Broker
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securely through Forex.com website

2 Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea

Before we get to the full list of the best forex brokers in South Korea, it is important to give you a disclaimer. A lot of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs on forex and other assets. Ensure you understand the high risk of losing before you invest your capital. Most of the brokers out there, including the ones we have included in our list, tend to offer intense educational content to help you get started. Take your time and learn as much as you can.

#1. Best Advanced for Non-US Traders: Avatrade

Photo: Avatrade

Founded in Ireland in 2006, AvaTrade is a global CFD and forex broker that offers over 1200 tradable assets for South Korean traders. However, please note that over 71% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. So, make sure you know what you are doing.

Nonetheless, AvaTrade offers a wide range of unique features for both passive and active forex traders. First, you get a wide variety of trading platforms including MT4, the more improved MT5, and a proprietary trading software offered directly by AvaTrade. All these trading platforms can be accessed through mobile or desktop, giving you the versatility you need to trade on the go.

In addition to this, the trading platform offers innovative trading tools including automation features, risk management tools like stop losses, and so much more. Also, AvaTrade is regulated by the main tier 1 agency in the world including the Australian Securities and Investments Commission ASIC, the Financial Conduct Authority FCA, and others. You also get a demo trading account, excellent customer support, and incredibly low fees.

How does it work?

AvaTrade accepts applications for people in many countries including South Korea. The great news is that it’s actually very easy to open an account here. Everything is done electronically even the verification of identity and address. So, going by these standards, you should be able to have a trading account opened here in less than a day.

There will however be a few questions to gauge your trading experience on several asset classes. This helps you decide whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money when trading CFDs with leverage. The second step would be to fund your account through a deposit. Now, funding methods vary depending on where you live.

But for traders in South Korea, you have at least four deposit options including a bank transfer. After that, you will get access to forex trading platforms available here including the AvaTrade Webtrader where you can invest in a wide range of asset classes.

AvaTrade also has a dedicated research team that providers proprietary research on various asset classes. There is also a copy trading platform as well where you can get investment ideas depending on prevailing market conditions. Although this should not be taken as exclusive investment advice, the research can help you make sense of certain trends in the market and find ways to profit from them. In that case, make sure you take full advantage of this data in your day-to-day trades.

Pros

  • A safe risk-free forex broker regulated by leading financial services authority agencies.
  • Allows you to trade with leverage for maximum profits
  • So easy to open trading accounts with AvaTrade
  • You get various deposit options from South Korea
  • Technologically superior trading platforms with advanced trade and risk management tools
  • Relatively low fees compared to other brokers

Cons

  • There are many non-trading fees, including a USD 100 inactivity fee
  • The advanced trading platforms can be a bit intimidating for beginner traders

Price

AvaTrade has a transparent and easy-to-understand fee structure. In fact, there is even an automatic fee calculator that you can use to assess how much you will pay for a certain trade. Despite this, fees here are not standard and they depend on a host of factors. For example, benchmark fees on a $20, 000 30:1 long position on the EUR/USD pair is roughly $10. The fee significantly drops with higher trade volume.

However, the longer you hold the position, the more you will pay since there are fees associated with leverage. But with everything said and done, the highest you can pay for a $20, 000 30:1 position on some of the major currency pairs is about $12. Although these appear to be fixed commissions, they are not. The fees are spread based too.

You should also know that there are other non-trading fees that may be applied to various trading account types depending on certain conditions. For example, AvaTrade charges an inactivity fee of $50 per quarter if your account goes through 3 months without any trading activity. If indeed the account goes another 12 months without activity, there will be a $100 annual fee.

When it comes to trading fees, AvaTrade matches up to major fx broker firms like Interactive Brokers, Fxpro Fxpro, Olymp Trade Olymp Trade, FBS FBS, and Etoro Etoro. But, as far as the non-trading fees go, AvaTrade charges are very high.

BrokerBest ForMore Details


Best Overall Broker
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securely through Avatrade website

#2. Best Overall Broker: Forex.com

Photo: Forex.com

Forex.com is one of the most notable names in the forex market. The brokerage has been around for quite some time and has built a reputation of safety for all traders. In fact, Forex.com is regulated by the main tier 1 agencies. Also, its parent company Stonex Group is a publicly-traded firm on the NASDAQ. This gives you that extra bit of safety knowing that this is a broker that gets heavily audited.

In addition to safety, Forex.com also offers other incredible features. First, the platform has a huge pool of tradable assets, reaching up to 4500 in total. This includes forex pairs, CFD stocks and indices, commodities, precious metals, and others.

You also get one of the best trading platforms here. Although Forex.com offers the common MT4 and MT5 forex trading platforms, it also has its own web trader that feels more intuitive and easier to use as well.

There are advanced risk management tools, automated trading solutions, and a host of other innovative technologies designed to give you the ultimate trading experience. Traders here also get relatively low trading fees, tighter spreads on forex pairs, and one of the best customer support teams in the market.

How does it work?

As with any stock or forex broker out there, there are a few simple steps to follow in order to unlock the power of Forex.com. So, head over to the main website and click the signup button. As one of the leading global FX brokers right now, Forex.com accepts applications from so many countries and South Korea is part of that.

You will be required to key in some personal info including your income levels. There are also some screening questions to help you decide which trading accounts work best for you. Forex.com also uses these questions to determine the kind of trading experience you have and whether you need more training or not. Once this is done, upload verification documents and wait for a few hours. If everything works out, your account will be verified.

Now you can go ahead and make a deposit using a bank transfer, debit card, and a wide variety of other deposit options. The next step after this would be to choose a trading platform. A noted above, there are up to four trading platforms here, including the popular MT4 and MT5.

But as a rule, you must always go with platforms that feel easy to use for you. It is also advisable to begin trading with a demo account before you finally decide to start. This will give you the chance to familiarize yourself with these platforms and how everything works. And as always, there is a live chat support team waiting to help in case you run into issues.

Pros

  • Top-rated trading platforms with advanced risk management and technical analysis tools
  • Global name recognition and accessibility
  • Takes just a few minutes to open an account and have it verified
  • Low trading fees and tight spreads on various currency pairs and CFDs
  • Over 4500 tradable assets available for South Korean traders
  • No deposit fees required

Cons

  • The desktop trading platform offered here is not as user friendly as we hoped
  • You may actually pay relatively high fees on a few CFDs

Price

Forex.com fees will largely depend on the account type you are using. For the standard account, which is normally used by most folks, average spreads on currency pairs start from 1.4 pips. This is on the EUR/USD pair but even for other major pairs, the average is right about there. In case you would like to pay a bit less, then you can choose the Direct Market Access account or DMA.

Under this account, spreads start as low as 0.03 pips on the EUR/USD pair. There is however a fixed round turn commission on the base tier. When you add up the fixed commission and the spreads, in the end, you will pay roughly a spread of 1.4 pips.

But, in case your trading volume is large, these fees can dramatically go down. We did not find a lot of details about the inactivity fees charged but it is likely that Forex.com is well within the industry average.

BrokerBest ForMore Details
Best Forex Trading Software


Overall Broker
Read Review


securely through Forex.com website

How we rank the Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea?

Photo: Canva

Our analysis of the best brokerage firm for South Korean forex traders involved a lot of in-depth and extensive research. Our team was trying to look at brokers that are perfectly suited for all types of traders, and those that are fully regulated as well. So, this is a comprehensive review based on real data.

There were of course a few things we looked for when ranking these brokers in the review. The first thing was safety, in fact, this was the most important considerations for us. There are so many forex trading scams out there so we wanted to ensure that the brokers we included in our list were all regulated.

Our team also checked to see how easy it is to open trading accounts and deposit funds. Brokers that offer a variety of account types, including a VIP account, were ranked higher. We also gave more priority to brokerages that have simple KYC screening measures. The team also looked at the nature of FX trading platforms.

Although we wanted to find brokers that have the most advanced trading platform, we also considered ease of use and accessibility for the average user. We also looked at customer support including live chat, educational materials, copy trading, and the trading fees as well. Overall, FX brokers that had better trading platforms, low fees, easy account opening, and good customer support were top of our list.

How to choose the Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea?

Photo: Canva

The best forex brokers in the world tend to have certain important characteristics. Although different people have different needs when choosing these firms, these main characteristics have to be present if indeed you want to get value from your brokerage.

The first thing to look at is the nature of the trading platform. The forex market is very volatile and prices change rapidly. You need a superior trading platform that offers state of art tools and fast trade execution. Secondly, try out the demo account before you go to real trading. A demo account can make it easier for you to learn how the trading platform works before you jump into the real market.

It is also advisable for new traders to leverage the educational materials that are offered by each broker. Yes, you will probably need to learn more outside the brokerage but these materials can help you fine-tune your forex trading strategies. So, pick a brokerage that has advanced trading assistance, including in-depth research, and trading signals.

The fees also matter. In fact, this is a huge consideration for most traders because, at the end of the day, fees determine the kind of profits you will return. Other factors to look for include good customer support with live chat, regulation by tier 1 authorities, and of course your own personal preference.

Choose Asia Forex Mentor for Your Forex Trading Success

If you have a keen interest in establishing a successful career in forex trading and aspire to achieve substantial financial gains, Asia Forex Mentor stands as the optimal choice for the best forex, stock, and crypto trading course. Ezekiel Chew, renowned as the visionary behind trading institutions and banks, is the driving force behind Asia Forex Mentor. On a personal note, Ezekiel consistently achieves seven-figure trades, a distinction that truly sets him apart from other educators in the field. Here are the compelling reasons that underpin our recommendation:

Comprehensive Curriculum: Asia Forex Mentor offers an all-encompassing educational program that covers stock, crypto, and forex trading. This well-structured curriculum equips aspiring traders with the knowledge and skills necessary to excel in these diverse markets.

Proven Track Record: The credibility of Asia Forex Mentor is firmly established through its impressive track record of producing consistently profitable traders across various market sectors. This achievement serves as a testament to the effectiveness of their training methodologies and mentorship.

Expert Mentors: At Asia Forex Mentor, students benefit from the guidance and insights of experienced mentors who have demonstrated remarkable success in stock, crypto, and forex trading. These mentors provide personalized support, enabling students to navigate the intricacies of each market with confidence.

Supportive Community: Joining Asia Forex Mentor brings access to a supportive community of like-minded traders pursuing success in the stock, crypto, and forex markets. This community fosters collaboration, idea-sharing, and peer learning, enhancing the overall learning experience.

Emphasis on Discipline and Psychology: Success in trading necessitates a strong mindset and disciplined approach. Asia Forex Mentor provides crucial psychological training to help traders manage emotions, handle stress, and make rational decisions during trading.

Constant Updates and Resources: The financial markets are dynamic, and Asia Forex Mentor ensures that students remain up-to-date with the latest trends, strategies, and market insights. Continuous access to valuable resources keeps traders ahead of the curve.

Success Stories: Asia Forex Mentor takes pride in a multitude of success stories where students have transformed their trading careers and achieved financial independence through their comprehensive forex, stock, and crypto trading education.

In summary, Asia Forex Mentor emerges as the premier choice for those seeking the best forex, stock, and crypto trading course to carve a rewarding career and achieve financial prosperity. Through its comprehensive curriculum, experienced mentors, practical approach, and supportive community, Asia Forex Mentor provides the necessary tools and guidance to mold aspiring traders into accomplished professionals across diverse financial markets.

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Conclusion: Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea

Photo: Canva

South Korean traders have some incredible options when it comes to forex brokerages. But there is no doubt the two we have listed above are quite good and they stand out for several reasons. However, if we were to choose between the two, then AvaTrade gets the node. There is a huge variety of assets to trade with Ava and you get a superbly built trading platform.

Besides, AvaTrade also has MT4 and MT5 trading platforms just to give you more options when you trade. You are also likely to enjoy low trading fees which are below the industry average. AvaTrade has also invested in top-rated customer support, including live chat teams, that help you on a real-time basis. Traders will also love the fact that you can get a demo account and start honing your skills before you start real money trading.

Ava has amazing educational materials too and trading research and signals that you can use to make investment decisions. But even with these amazing pros, there are a few areas where the broker should work on. First, a minimum deposit of $100 is needed for all new accounts. This can be a bit off-putting for small ticket investors.

There are also a lot of nontrading fees including high inactivity charges. But other than that, AvaTrade is a solid broker with global name recognition. It is perfectly ideal for forex investors in South Korea and CFD traders who want to maximize returns through leverage.

Best Online Forex Brokers in South Korea FAQs

Is Forex trading legal in South Korea?

Yes, trading forex in South Korea is perfectly legal. Of course, there are some risks associated with the forex market but with the right approach, you can easily trade without any issue. The most important thing is to have the right broker.

The two above are great to start with but others like the swissquote swissquote bank can be ideal. There may be certain KYC screening measures that are part and parcel of the regulatory requirements of brokers operating in South Korea. But other than that, anyone should easily get started with Forex trading here.

Is Metatrader 4 good for beginners?

Well, to be fair Metatrader 4 is a very advanced trading platform. It may not always be an easy place to start for a beginner. When you consider that brokers also offer easier-to-use proprietary trading platforms, a lot of beginners would rather use those.

But the good news is that the Meta 4 is packed with some amazing trading features. If you can learn to use it, you will find it more interactive and intuitive. But you will need a few weeks if not months to get there.

Does forex broker lose money?

It is very unlikely that a forex broker would lose money. Top-tier brokers tend to store client money in separate accounts. Also, the money that you deposit on your trading accounts will not be used by the brokerage for any in-house service including providing leverage for other traders.

So, if you are trading with some of these top brokerages, then you can be sure your money is safe. But there have been cases where trading firms have been hacked and money lost. This is why top-tier firms tend to have comprehensive insurance to ensure nothing goes a miss.

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Wilbert S

Wilbert is an avid researcher and is deeply passionate about finance and health. When he's not working, he writes research and review articles by doing a thorough analysis on the products based on personal experience, user reviews and feedbacks from forums, quora, reddit, trustpilot amongst others.

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