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To check whether a stock-trading platform is licensed in your country, identify the legal company behind it and search that company in your financial regulator’s official register. Confirm that the record says authorised, covers the exact products and services you intend to use, and lists the same website, address and contact details. Then check warning and clone-firm notices, cross-border permissions, complaint channels and compensation arrangements. A licence can reduce misconduct risk, but it does not guarantee profits, solvency or that every loss is covered.
What should I collect before searching a register?
Start with the platform’s legal identity, not its logo. Save the exact legal entity name, trading names, licence or reference number, website domains, mobile-app publisher, registered address, telephone number, email address and the country in which you live. Take screenshots or download the platform’s legal terms and regulatory disclosures before opening an account; details can change after a dispute.
A single brand may use different companies in different countries. The entity serving a customer in the United Kingdom may not be the entity serving a customer in an EU country, the United States or elsewhere. Look in the footer, “Legal,” “Regulation,” “Client agreement” and “Terms” pages for wording such as “provided by,” “operated by” or “a trading name of.” Record the entity exactly, including punctuation and any company number.
Also note what you plan to trade. “Stocks” may mean real shares, fractional shares, contracts for difference (CFDs), options, futures, leveraged products or a copy-trading service. A firm authorised to arrange share dealing may not be authorised to offer derivatives or investment advice.
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How do I search the regulator’s official register?
Open the regulator’s website by typing its address yourself or using a bookmark you created. Do not rely solely on a “regulated by” link, licence badge or screenshot supplied by the platform. Search the regulator’s own register for the legal entity, then open the full record.
- Search the exact legal name. Try the spelling in the platform’s client agreement and then the reference number. Repeat the search for approved trading names and common punctuation variations.
- Open the complete record. Check the status, authorised activities, products, customer types, restrictions, registered address, telephone number, email and website domains.
- Read the permissions, not just the status label. “Authorised” is useful only when the permission covers the service being offered to you. A record that says a company is registered, appointed, exempt or authorised for a different activity is not enough.
- Confirm your location. Check whether the record or a cross-border listing allows the firm to provide investment services to residents of your country.
- Use regulator-listed contact details. If you need confirmation, call or email the regulator using details shown on its website—not the phone number in a sales message.
Registers and warning notices are living records. Recheck immediately before opening or funding an account. The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) says its Firm Checker information may take, on average, 24 hours to update, so a very recent change may not appear instantly.
What is the difference between “registered” and “authorised”?
Registration alone does not establish that a platform may provide the service it is selling. A company can appear in a database for a limited purpose, as an appointed representative, or under a regime that does not authorise retail brokerage. The FCA warns that a registered but unauthorised firm may not provide the regulated service or the associated protections.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsRead the activity and permission fields in the record. Depending on your plan, you may need permission for dealing as agent, arranging deals, safeguarding client money, operating a trading venue, providing investment advice, or dealing in derivatives. Check whether the permission applies to retail clients, professional clients or both, and whether a restriction excludes your product.
For a platform offering CFDs, spread betting, options or futures, a record showing only ordinary share dealing is a mismatch. Likewise, a firm authorised to introduce customers to another broker may not be authorised to hold your money or execute orders itself. Ask the regulator if the wording is unclear.
How can I detect a clone firm?
A clone firm copies the name, logo, registration number or website of a genuine authorised business. The register may show a real company while the people contacting you are unrelated. Matching the identity and contact details is therefore as important as finding a name.
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- Compare every domain, subdomain, email address, telephone number and office address with the regulator’s record.
- Check whether the app publisher and the legal entity match. An app with a similar name is not proof that it belongs to the authorised firm.
- Type the regulator’s domain yourself and follow its approved-domain or contact listing. Do not use a link in an email, chat message or advertisement.
- Call the authorised firm using the number in the register and ask whether the website, app and account-opening invitation are genuine.
- Be especially cautious when a salesperson insists on encrypted messaging, remote-access software, cryptocurrency deposits or immediate payment.
Cyprus’s securities regulator, CySEC, specifically advises investors to access its website directly and to match an entity’s contact details with those published by the regulator. Its 21 August 2024 warning also notes that unauthorised firms can change names and details. A name match with a different domain or phone number is a reason to stop, not a minor discrepancy.
Which regulator should I check in the United Kingdom?
Use the FCA’s Firm Checker and the Financial Services Register. The FCA describes the Register as the official public record for firms and individuals. It includes current and former firms, unauthorised firms, warnings, clone information, permissions, restrictions and contact details.
Search the legal entity named in the platform’s client agreement. In the record, verify that the firm is currently authorised for the relevant investment service and that the website and telephone number match. Check the permissions and any restrictions rather than relying on a green-looking status or a badge on the platform’s page.
Next, search the FCA’s warning list and read notes attached to the firm’s record. If the firm is absent from the warning list, that is not proof of legitimacy: warnings can lag behind new scams and names can change. If the platform’s details conflict with the Register, do not deposit money while waiting for an explanation.
The FCA says that if a firm is not authorised or lacks permission for the financial service you need, you should avoid dealing with it. The Firm Checker also cannot by itself confirm that Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) or Financial Ombudsman Service protection definitely applies; verify those points separately.
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There is no single EU retail-broker licence that replaces national registers. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) directs investors to the public register of the national competent authority in the country where investment services are provided. Start with the country in which you live and identify the entity serving residents there.
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For a Cyprus-based firm, use CySEC’s investor-protection pages and its authorised-entity, warning and approved-domain information. For a firm licensed elsewhere in the EEA, open that country’s regulator through ESMA’s investor information and search its official register. Confirm any passporting or cross-border entry for your country; a licence in one EEA state does not automatically prove that a particular website may serve you under the same entity.
Check whether the platform’s disclosures name a branch, an incoming-service provider or a separate local company. Compare that exact name with the national register and make sure the products—shares, funds, CFDs or other instruments—are included in the permission.
How do I check a US platform?
For a US broker, use FINRA’s BrokerCheck to review registration, employment history and disciplinary information. FINRA’s investor guidance also recommends checking its disciplinary databases and the securities regulator in the state where you live. A platform may be registered with a federal or self-regulatory body while still needing state authority or a state notice for your location and service.
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Check whether the relevant broker is a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC). SIPC protection is not insurance against market losses, bad investment decisions or every type of fraud; it generally concerns the shortfall of customer securities and cash at a failed SIPC-member brokerage, subject to statutory limits and conditions. Ask the state regulator or FINRA when the platform’s structure is unclear.
How do I verify an overseas licence?
An overseas licence is not automatically permission to serve residents where you live. Search the regulator in your own country first, then the foreign regulator named by the platform. Look for a cross-border, passporting or local-branch entry that identifies the same legal entity and the same service.
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Some firms route customers to an offshore subsidiary with weaker safeguards, different leverage limits, a different complaint route or no local compensation scheme. Read the account agreement and privacy notice to determine which company receives your money, executes trades and resolves disputes. If the documents name one entity but the regulator record or payment instructions name another, stop before funding.
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How should I check warning, enforcement and disciplinary records?
Search the regulator’s warning list, enforcement notices and the notes attached to the register entry. Look for “unauthorised,” “revoked,” “no longer authorised,” restrictions, supervisory action and clone-firm alerts. Also search the firm’s legal name, trading names and domains because a warning may use a different spelling.
A clean search is not a guarantee. Regulators publish warnings after receiving information, and a new clone may not yet be listed. Treat pressure tactics, guaranteed returns, requests to pay taxes before withdrawals, or a demand to send funds to a personal account as independent red flags even when a similarly named authorised firm exists.
What does a licence actually protect?
Authorisation means a regulator has permitted a defined business activity under specified rules. It does not promise that investments will rise, prevent a company from failing, or make every product suitable. Compensation, segregation of client money, custody and dispute-resolution rights depend on the entity, product, customer type and jurisdiction.
Verify protection in separate documents:
- Client-money and custody rules: Determine whether cash and securities must be segregated, who the custodian is and what happens if the broker fails.
- Compensation scheme: Identify the scheme, eligibility conditions, per-person limits and exclusions. Do not assume that a licence automatically qualifies every account.
- Complaints: Find the firm’s formal complaint address, response deadlines and the ombudsman or dispute body available after the firm’s final response.
- Product-specific protections: Leverage caps, negative-balance protection and disclosure rules may differ between shares, CFDs, options and other products.
The FCA explicitly says its Firm Checker cannot confirm FSCS or Financial Ombudsman eligibility. Confirm those arrangements in the firm’s disclosures and with the relevant scheme before relying on them.
What should I do if the information does not match?
Do not deposit, upload identity documents or install remote-control software while a mismatch is unresolved. Save the platform’s terms, emails, payment instructions, domains and screenshots. Contact the regulator through its official website and ask whether the entity and domain are genuine.
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If you already sent money, contact your bank or card issuer immediately, request a payment recall where possible and report the incident to your national fraud authority. Change passwords, enable multi-factor authentication and revoke remote-access sessions. Do not pay an additional “release,” “tax” or “recovery” fee to anyone promising to retrieve the funds.
Can I compare two platforms safely?
Use identical checks for both platforms rather than comparing badges or advertising claims. Record the legal entity and regulator; current authorisation; exact permissions and products; customer-country coverage; matching domains and contact details; warning or disciplinary history; complaint route; compensation scheme and limits; and the entity identified in each platform’s disclosures.
| Register result | What it means | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Authorised with matching permissions and contacts | The entity appears authorised for the checked activity. | Continue due diligence; licensing does not guarantee returns or universal protection. |
| Registered only or permission mismatch | The record does not establish authority for the service offered. | Do not fund until the regulator confirms the status. |
| No result, revoked or no longer authorised | The entity cannot be verified as currently authorised. | Do not transact; recheck the exact legal name and spelling. |
| Name matches but domain or contact differs | Possible clone firm or misleading intermediary. | Stop and contact the genuine firm using regulator-listed details. |
What is a final pre-deposit checklist?
- Have I written down the exact legal entity, trading name and licence number?
- Did I search the regulator’s website directly rather than trust a supplied link?
- Does the record show current authorisation, not merely registration?
- Do the permissions cover the precise products, leverage and service I will use?
- Is my country or state included in the firm’s permitted customer coverage?
- Do the register’s domain, address, telephone and email match the platform and app?
- Did I check warning, enforcement, disciplinary and clone-firm information?
- Do I know which legal entity holds my money and securities?
- Have I verified complaint procedures and compensation eligibility separately?
- Did I repeat the search immediately before funding, after any recent corporate change?
If any answer is no, pause. A legitimate platform should be able to explain its legal entity and permissions without pressuring you to deposit first.
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How often should I recheck a platform?
Recheck before opening the account, before a large deposit and after notices about a merger, new website, new app or change of terms. Regulators update registers and warnings, and a firm can move customers to another subsidiary. Keep a dated copy of the register result and the agreement that applied when you deposited.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a platform be licensed in one country but illegal for me to use?
Yes. A licence generally applies to a specific legal entity, service and customer jurisdiction. An offshore company may be authorised at home but lack permission to solicit or provide services to residents of your country; verify the local or cross-border entry.
Does a regulator’s warning-list search prove a broker is safe if nothing appears?
No. Warning lists are useful for known unauthorised firms and clones, but they are not complete or instantaneous. Treat the register, permission scope, identity match and independent contact verification as separate checks.
What if the platform refuses to tell me which company holds my money?
Do not fund the account. The client agreement and regulatory disclosures should identify the entity responsible for execution, custody and complaints; ask the regulator whether the platform is authorised for those functions.
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Are app-store ratings evidence that a trading platform is regulated?
No. Ratings and download counts do not establish legal status, permissions or compensation rights. Verify the app publisher and website against the regulator’s official record, then confirm the legal entity in the account agreement.
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