Broker Check

How to Verify a Broker's Licence Yourself

The tool above checks brokers in our directory. If yours isn't listed, these are the four steps we run ourselves before approving any firm.

1. 1

   Ask for the licence number and the regulator's name

   Any licensed firm publishes its licence number and regulator on its own website, usually in the footer. The absence of that information is an answer in itself.

2. 2

   Search the public register using the legal entity name

   Every regulator maintains a searchable public register. Search the legal entity name rather than the brand — many platforms trade under a name that differs from the licensed company.

3. 3

   Confirm the licence covers the service you'll use

   A licence is not automatically comprehensive. A firm may be licensed to advise without being licensed to execute trades or hold client money.

4. 4

   Check which entity actually receives your deposit

   The most commonly skipped step. The licence may sit with an entity in one country while deposits are requested for a different entity elsewhere. The entity holding your money is the one that must be licensed.

UAE Financial Regulators: Who Regulates Whom

No single authority regulates every licensed trading company in the UAE. The Securities and Commodities Authority covers the federal level, while the financial free zones have their own independent regulators — so "licensed in the UAE" on its own tells you very little. What matters is which authority issued the licence, and what that licence covers. These are the five you'll encounter:

• Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) — now the Capital Market Authority (CMA)

  The UAE's federal capital markets regulator, established in 2000. It oversees securities offerings, investment funds, financial services firms and virtual asset activity at federal level. It has been renamed the Capital Market Authority, and its old domain sca.gov.ae now redirects to uaecma.gov.ae — which is why a great deal of published material still refers to it as the SCA.

• Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA)

  The independent regulator of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). A DFSA licence covers firms operating inside the DIFC only — it is not a licence to operate everywhere in Dubai, which is a distinction worth checking before you deposit.

• Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) — Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA)

  Abu Dhabi Global Market is a financial free zone on Al Maryah Island with its own legal framework and regulator, the FSRA. As with the DIFC, an ADGM licence covers firms inside the zone, and the FSRA maintains its own public register of authorised firms.

• Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE)

  Licenses and supervises banks, exchange houses and payment service providers. It is not generally the regulator for trading brokers, so a broker citing the Central Bank as its authority is worth a second look.

• Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA)

  Dubai's dedicated regulator for virtual assets and cryptocurrency activity, operating across the emirate outside the DIFC. Crypto platforms serving Dubai clients generally need VARA authorisation.

How to Spot a Scam Trading Company: Eight Warning Signs

Many people search for a list of scam trading company names. The honest answer is that any fixed list goes stale fast — fraudulent firms change names and domains constantly, and new ones appear every month. Checking the firm in front of you is far more reliable. One sign alone isn't a verdict, but two or three together is reason enough to stop before depositing.

• ! Promises of guaranteed profits or "risk-free" trading. No licensed regulator permits that language.
• ! Pressure to deposit quickly, or an offer that expires within hours.
• ! A licence number you cannot find in the public register of the regulator named.
• ! An offshore licence only, with no regulation in the market being targeted.
• ! Withdrawals that stall, or new fees that appear only once you ask for your money.
• ! Requests to transfer funds to a personal account rather than a company account.
• ! Contact and recommendations through Telegram or WhatsApp groups with no named legal entity.
• ! No legal company name or registered address anywhere on the website.

How to Report a Scam Trading Company in the UAE

If you've been defrauded, speed matters. Every day of delay reduces the chance of tracing the money.

1. 1 Gather evidence first: account statements, correspondence, screenshots, and the details of every transfer you made.
2. 2 File a complaint with the regulator the firm claims to be licensed by. If it turns out to be unlicensed, that itself is important to your report.
3. 3 Tell your bank immediately to attempt a stop or recall on the transfer, and file a police report through the cybercrime channels in your emirate.

Brokers We Have Reviewed

These brokers have been through our methodology covering licensing, fees, platforms and execution quality. The regulators listed come from each broker's own disclosure — we recommend verifying them yourself in the public register.