AvaTrade

Overview of AvaTrade

AvaTrade is a global CFD broker that offers crypto CFDs, forex, indices, and commodities under several regulatory jurisdictions. Founded in 2006 in Dublin, Ireland, AvaTrade operates as a margin-based, globally regulated CFD broker rather than a crypto exchange or prop trading firm. While it's not available to US traders, the broker is regulated by a handful of top tier financial regulators in Europe, Australia, and the UK, among others.

AvaTrade's core focus is providing leveraged CFD trading across forex, stocks, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrency CFDs. They have multi-region regulatory oversight, and a broad selection of trading platforms like MT4, MT5, WebTrader, as well as its features on AvaTrade's mobile app.

{{ITALIC}}Overall, AvaTrade is a practical, user-friendly option for traders seeking accessibility, and tightly regulated global markets. However, since AvaTrade is a CFD broker, clients do not gain ownership of assets. Crypto trading does not include wallet custody or transfers, and stock CFDs do not include voting rights or dividend ownership.{{/ITALIC}}

Crypto Trading Fees

AvaTrade offers a commission-free retail CFD trading account with a 1:2 leverage cap and 50% margin. They have a simple fee structure as a spread only fee model for crypto trading, so there's no commission fees because they're built within the spread.

AvaTrade does charge a significantly large $50 inactivity fee for traders who do not trade for three months, and if you're inactive for a year, they charge you an additional $100 fee. AvaTrade also may charge an overnight funding fee when your positions remain open past 22:00 GMT.

Since AvaTrade operates on a commission-free model, the entire trading cost is embedded within the spread. Spreads are floating and change based on market volatility and liquidity.

Instrument Pair	Margin	Spread (Over-market)
BTC/USD	1%	0.08%
ETH/USD	2%	0.10%
XRP/USD	2%	0.25%
LTC/USD	2%	0.30%
BCH/USD	4%	0.30%
DOGE/USD	2%	0.40%

The crypto spreads are slightly different on an MT5 platform:

Crypto Pair	Min Spread (USD)	Typical Spread (pips)
BTC/USD	$8	8-40 pips
ETH/USD	$0.8	5-20 pips
LTC/USD	$0.15	2-10 pips
XRP/USD	$0.008	1-6 pips
BCH/USD	$0.35	3-12 pips
DOGE/USD	$0.0008	0.5-4 pips

AvaTrade also offers a VIP account status with four tiers: Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. VIP benefits include tighter spreads, reduced trading costs, faster withdrawals, and priority customer support. Silver status requires $10,000 in deposits or $30 million in annual trading volume, up to $150,000 for Diamond.

For crypto trading fees and account types, AvaTrade scores a 7/10 for its decent tiered cost structure. Though the standard account offers commission-free trading, the spreads are wider, and the inactivity fee is notably high. However, the VIP account option provides clear cost incentives for active traders.

Crypto Markets

AvaTrade offers a standard selection of around 25 cryptocurrency CFD listings, including major coins and various altcoins.

BTC

ETH

LTC

XRP

ADA

DOGE

SOL

AVAX

+ 17 more

Altcoins like Pepe, Polygon, Shiba Inu, MelaniaUSD, and TrumpUSD are available only on MT5.

AvaTrade's AvaProtect is a unique risk management tool that allows traders to hedge against losing trades up to one million dollars, but it comes with a premium price. Major coins like BTC and ETH have the highest liquidity with tight spreads, while altcoins and niche coins have wider spreads reflecting lower liquidity. Trading hours are 24/7 including weekends.

AvaTrade also offers a comprehensive range of other instruments:

AvaTrade delivers a great balance of major cryptocoins. However, because their coverage focuses on the most popular ones along with mid-cap assets, they lack the broad altcoin selection found on most competitor tables. We gave AvaTrade a 6/10 for this reason.

Trading Platforms and Tools

AvaTrade's ecosystem includes both MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5), their own proprietary web and mobile platforms, as well as dedicated options and futures platforms.

MetaTrader 4

MetaTrader 5

MT4 remains one of the most widely used platforms in the CFD industry. It supports technical analysis, copy-trading integration, Guardian Angel risk feedback tool, and algorithmic trading. MT4's lightweight interface, large library of custom indicators, and Expert Advisors make it a solid choice for crypto traders.

MT5 is the improved version with a wider selection of asset classes and a programming language for advanced automated strategies. It has a multi-threaded strategy tester for more accurate backtesting of volatile crypto CFDs.

AvaTrade's WebTrader is a secure web-based platform with charting tools and the AvaProtect feature. AvaTradeGO is the proprietary mobile app with real-time feeds, trends, charts, and copy-trading via AvaSocial. AvaOptions handles Vanilla Options on currency pairs, and AvaFutures (launched June 2024) provides access to regulated CME futures contracts.

AvaTrade scores 8/10 for their versatile ecosystem with essential crypto trading platforms. Their AvaProtect risk management tool is a major feature that makes the firm stand out as a broker that proactively integrates safety into their platform.

Safety and Availability

AvaTrade offers a solid level of protection with an extended list of regulations and strict trading rules for different jurisdictions. Cryptocurrency trading is not available for UK-based retail accounts.

AvaTrade operates through multiple regulated entities across nine global jurisdictions including CBI (Ireland), ASIC (Australia), CySEC (Cyprus), FSCA (South Africa), ADGM (Abu Dhabi), IIROC (Canada), BVIFSC (British Virgin Islands), ISA (Israel), and FSA/FFAJ (Japan).

All client funds are held in segregated bank accounts, completely separate from AvaTrade's operational capital. European clients under the CBI license are covered by the ICCL (Investor Compensation Company Limited), which protects losses up to €20,000 per investor. Retail clients benefit from negative balance protection, and the website is protected by 256-bit SSL encryption with McAfee Secure.

AvaTrade does not hold a licence from the UK's FCA but services UK clients via CBI/CySEC authorization. The broker does not accept clients from the United States.

AvaTrade scores 8/10 for its strong list of regulatory licenses across nine global jurisdictions. While there's no access for US crypto traders, they offer convenient safety features like Negative Balance Protection.

Funding and Withdrawals

Unlike most brokers, AvaTrade generally imposes no fees for deposits or withdrawals, and the minimum deposit to open a trading account is accessible at €100.

AvaTrade recommends depositing at least 1,000 to 2,000 units in your preferred base currency to adequately enjoy the full range of products.

AvaTrade's AML method requires traders to return up to 100% of the deposited amount to the original payment method before withdrawing profits via alternative methods.

For diverse, no-fee methods and near-instant processing time, we scored 8/10 for AvaTrade's Funding section. The strict anti-money laundering policies requiring initial deposit return to the original source can be less than ideal for most traders.

Risk and Trading Rules

AvaTrade operates as a market maker for its CFD products, which directly influences execution quality. The margin and leverage terms for cryptocurrencies are dictated almost entirely by the regulatory body overseeing the trader's account.

Because of volatility concerns, retail traders in regions like the EU and Australia are strictly limited to a maximum of 1:2 leverage. Offshore or lower tier regulators allow higher leverage up to 1:25 for major crypto pairs.

AvaTrade imposes strict limits on maximum accumulated open crypto CFD positions:

AvaTrade permits hedging, short selling, and automated trading through Expert Advisors. Scalping is allowed on MT4/MT5 provided the strategy doesn't exploit system flaws. AvaTrade strictly prohibits transactions relying on unrealistic quotes, platform anomalies, latency-based arbitrage, or high-frequency order trading.

AvaTrade's flagship feature AvaProtect allows you to pay a small fee to protect a specific trade against losses for a chosen time period, with compensations up to one million dollars. To be eligible, you must trade via WebTrader or AvaTradeGO.

AvaTrade earns 8/10 for leverage, risk, and operational mechanics. The rule framework is heavily dictated by regulation with fair policies. Retail EU and non-EU crypto traders are limited to 1:2 and 1:25 leverage respectively. As a market maker, execution quality is directly influenced which isn't ideal for high-volume algorithm traders.

Final Thoughts on AvaTrade

AvaTrade earns a 75/100 score based on our testing across fees and accounts, platforms and tools, funding, markets, safety, and trading rules. AvaTrade is commendable for its impeccable regulation licenses, industry-standard platforms in combination with essential tools, and its flagship feature, AvaProtect.

The score is slightly decreased because of their relatively limited cryptocurrency market diversity, and their Market Maker execution model and strict AML withdrawal rules makes them less appealing for quick-profit traders.

The careful blend of AvaTrade's tight security and trading tools is downgraded by its market restrictions which is why we gave this broker an above average score.