Is forex spread betting a CFD? Two providers' own pages
Is forex spread betting a bet, a CFD or a tax dodge? Spreadex's and IG's own forex pages, read 15 October 2026: loss rates, spreads, sizing, tax wording.
FX Times — UK forex, by the book
The latest
Is Exness FCA regulated? Ref 730729 and the UK company file
Review sites say yes, citing FCA ref 730729. The Companies House file for EXNESS (UK) LTD to Sept 2026, and the Register fields that settle it.
Is Vantage Markets FCA regulated? One LLP, six look-alikes
Vantage Global Prime LLP (OC376560) is the entity behind FRN 590299. Six near-namesakes sit on Companies House beside it: records read 11 September 2026.
CP26/24 is a consultation, not a rule
The FCA's consultation on simplifying consumer investment disclosures closed in August 2026. It proposes a new COBS 6A and would codify the 2023 double-dipping expectation on cash. It is not yet the Handbook.
Trade Nation, reviewed: a fixed spread and six sets of small print
Trade Nation sells a price that does not widen. Its own footer says the brand is shared by six companies in six jurisdictions, and names one — Trade Nation Financial UK Ltd — as the company it states is FCA-authorised.
VARIANSE, reviewed: one brand, three companies, one stadium
A stadium deal at Southampton puts a brand-name search in front of British readers. VARIANSE is a trading name shared by three separate companies, and the firm's own region selector lets the domain decide which one a client contracts with.
The Warning List is not the Register
The FCA added nineteen Warning List entries on 27 and 28 August: thirteen social-media handles, four named firms and two clones. The Register, an unauthorised-firm warning and a clone warning are three different records, and only the first records a permission.
A chatbot is not an authorised firm
FCA research published on 27 August finds 56% of investors aged 18 to 40 trust AI tools, 44% took AI-generated financial information to be regulated, and 32% expected compensation-scheme or ombudsman cover. None of those three follows from the others.
Saxo, reviewed: three price tiers and a CFD-only range
Saxo publishes minimum FX spreads by pair and a tier table with its thresholds attached. Both are to its credit, and both say the entry tier pays the most. What the published UK range contains, and what it does not.
Spreadex, reviewed
An independent British spread betting house that publishes its own reference number and its own 61% loss figure. What the closed platform estate costs, and why one brand carrying two regulators is worth a reader's attention.
PS26/15, and what leaves the reporting perimeter
The FCA's final transaction reporting rules take foreign exchange derivatives out of scope from 2028. What the carve-out actually covers, what the made rules still ask firms to report, and why none of it is a consumer protection.
CMC Markets, reviewed
The platform is the pitch at CMC, and the pitch is largely honest. What the density costs, what the small print says, and where the group's attention has wandered.
Leverage limits, revisited
Eight years after ESMA's intervention, the UK's retail leverage caps read as permanent furniture. The 2026 steady state, summarised per the rulebook.
IG, reviewed
The incumbent of UK retail derivatives, read the way this desk reads everything: Register first, published pricing second, marketing last. The scale is real; so are the costs of it.
The authorised-broker landscape, 2026
FCA authorisation and FSCS protection remain the baseline for UK retail forex. A summary of what the FS Register actually tells you — and what it does not.