Base Markets Review 2026

Trust

How Base Markets Protects Your Account

I reviewed the website and Terms and Conditions agreement to find out what protections Base Markets offers its clients. Here is what I found:

• Client funds are held in separate accounts from company funds, but funds may be pooled together, and there is no stated compensation scheme or protection against bank insolvency.
• Base Markets does not provide negative balance protection under its agreement. The broker states that it may offer negative balance protection for retail clients, but this is discretionary, and clients remain liable for account deficits unless protection has been expressly confirmed in writing.

Stability and Transparency

I discovered that Base Markets was founded in 2025, so it is a very new broker with a limited operating history. Its LinkedIn page states it has 11-50 employees, reflecting a small brokerage firm. Legal documents are readily available on the website, but some details are unclear, for example, inactivity fees and rebates.

I also noticed that Base Markets does not disclose the number of retail clients that lose money trading CFDs with them, which is something required of brokers in the UK and EU.

Is Base Markets Safe to Trade With?

I rate Base Markets as a relatively unsafe broker, due to the following:

• Tier-3 offshore regulation
• Lacks negative balance protection
• No compensation scheme
• Only 1 year of experience

Fees

Base Markets Trading Fees

Base Markets Spreads

I tested the spreads at Base Markets during the London open and just after the New York open on 19 June 2026. At these times, the market is typically highly liquid with the tightest spreads.

Base Markets spreads were strongest in commodities and Bitcoin, where both accounts mostly beat industry averages. FX was worse than average, and indices were mixed in both accounts.

Base Zero Commissions

In addition to spreads, Base Markets charges commissions on instruments from all asset classes on its Base Zero account only. I assessed that its commissions are 33% better than the industry average.

Base Markets Swap Fees

In the table below, you can see the Swap Long (the cost/credit of holding a buy position overnight) and the Swap Short (the cost/credit of maintaining a sell position overnight) for one full-sized contract.

In forex, a full-sized contract is 100,000 units of the base currency (the first currency quoted in the pair), or 100 ounces in the case of gold. I recorded the data on 19 June 2026.

My tests showed that swap fees are very close to industry averages in EUR/USD and gold and better than average in GBP/JPY.

Base Markets Non-Trading Fees

According to the FAQ on the Base Markets website, the broker does not charge an inactivity fee. But the Client Agreement states that it reserves the right to change an inactivity fee.

Are Base Markets Fees Competitive?

To help you understand how much you’ll pay to trade each instrument, I calculated the cost of trade using the formula: spread rate x pip value + commission rate (swaps are not included).

Base Standard Account: I found that the Standard account offered competitive pricing in gold, crude oil, the Dow Jones 30, and Bitcoin, all of which came in better than our industry benchmarks. However, FX costs were higher. The Germany 40 was also high, but it looked like it may be a temporary anomaly.

Base Zero Account: This account delivered lower-than-average costs in almost every instrument. Pricing was especially strong in forex, gold, and Bitcoin. The Germany 40 was a weak point again. My main takeaway was that the Base Zero account offers much more competitive pricing than the Standard account.

Platforms and tools

MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Desktop Platform

The MetaTrader 5 desktop platform is a time-tested favorite that offers the features most traders need. The interface feels a bit outdated, but it has been reliable and efficient in my tests.

Watchlists allow you to easily track the live prices of your favorite instruments. Alerts are a handy feature that can free you from staring at the screen nonstop by notifying you when prices hit a predefined level. One-click trading and trading from the chart are key features for day traders and scalpers, as they provide the necessary speed for order entry.

Charts

MetaTrader 5 offers sophisticated charting with over 80 technical indicators and 40 drawing tools. Timeframes span from 1 minute to 1 month, so both short-term traders and longer-term swing traders or investors can perform analysis. Chart layouts can be customized to your preference, and the windows can be detached and moved to a second monitor.

Orders

MetaTrader 5 supports the full range of order types, including market, limit, stop-loss, and trailing stop-loss orders. You can set time-in-force conditions to pending orders, so that they will expire if they are not filled within a preset timeframe. The range of options gives traders flexibility and helps to accommodate scalping, day trading, swing trading, and automated trading.

MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Web

The MetaTrader 5 web platform offers a polished, browser-based trading experience that feels similar to TradingView. It combines an intuitive layout with smooth navigation. Its charting package is solid for a web-based platform, with 30 indicators, 24 drawing tools, 9 timeframes, and support for candlestick, line, and bar charts. One-click trading is available for speedy order entry. MT5 web supports all major order types, including market, limit, and stop loss orders.

MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Mobile App

I tested the MT5 mobile app offered by Base Markets using my iPhone 15 Pro Max (iOS). The app is user-friendly and has an uncluttered interface. And I felt that the design is more modern than the desktop.

The charting is feature-rich with candlestick, line, and bar chart options, over 50 indicators and drawing tools, and 9 timeframes ranging from 1 minute to 1 month. One-tap trading and trading from the chart are available for speedy order entry.

In terms of orders, you can use market, limit, and stop-loss orders. I found it easy to place trades, analyze charts, and browse watchlists from the app. But one drawback is that there is no cross-device synchronization, so your MT5 desktop settings, like watchlists and chart configurations, are not automatically synced with the app.

Base Markets Execution

Execution Model

Base Markets operates as a market maker, meaning that it acts as the direct counterparty to all client trades and is the sole execution venue. Orders are executed over-the-counter (OTC), using prices derived from liquidity providers. Execution quality is based on factors like price, costs, speed, and likelihood of execution. Clients may experience slippage, requotes, or widened spreads during volatile market conditions.

Base Markets Execution Speed

I tested the execution speed via the Base Zero demo account and recorded a better-than-average 22.5 milliseconds for EUR/USD.

Tradable instruments

What Can You Trade with Base Markets?

To better illustrate the range of instruments available at Base Markets, I compiled samples from various asset classes:

Customer support

Customer Support Channels

Base Markets Customer Support Test

Since the chat was not working, I asked my questions via email, focusing on platforms, account types, and tools like VPS. I got one response within 24 hours, but other inquiries went unanswered.

By phone, I reached a recorded menu, but was not able to reach a live operator on my first attempt. On a later try, I got an agent who was able to answer my questions relating to leverage. Based on this, I rate Base Markets’ support as mixed with room for improvement.

Deposit and withdrawal

How Do You Deposit Money with Base Markets

How Do You Withdraw Money from Base Markets

Processing times are quite fast, and there is a decent range of payment methods, but Base Markets could do better by adding popular digital wallets like Skrill and Neteller.

Note: I did not deposit or withdraw funds for this review. My assessment was based on the availability and range of payment methods, fee transparency, and payment times as listed on the Base Markets website.

Account types and terms

How to Open an Account with Base Markets

To open an account with Base Markets, you must complete the following steps:

1. Enter your name, date of birth, country of residence, phone number, email and set up a password.
2. Complete the verification process, which includes providing your address, nationality, employment, income, trading experience, source of funds, and source of wealth.

Base Market Account Types

The Base Standard account offers an all-inclusive spread model, which may appeal to beginners in its simplicity. The Base Zero account provides raw spreads from 0.0 pips with a $2 per lot per side commission, making it better suited to active traders, scalpers, day traders, and algorithmic traders looking for the lowest trading costs. Both accounts offer the same leverage and base currencies (the currency in which your account is denominated).

Demo Account

Base Markets offers MetaTrader 5 demo accounts. You can test out each account type (Base Standard and Base Raw) via demo, choose your maximum leverage (1:1 to 1:500), set your base currency (USD, EUR, GBP, AED, AUD), and select your initial balance (1000 to 100,000).

Islamic Account

The agent I spoke to said that Base Markets does not offer Islamic accounts.

What Leverage Does Base Markets Offer?

The maximum leverage at Base Markets is 1:500. This means that with $1,000, you can control positions of up to $500,000 in the market. This is a relatively high level of leverage. For comparison, in the UK and EU, retail CFD traders are restricted to leverage of up to 1:30.

Leverage is often described as a ‘double-edged sword’ as it can hurt you as much as it helps you. Traders should keep in mind that it can amplify both their profits and losses.

Base Markets Restricted Countries

Base Markets does not take clients from the following countries:

Afghanistan, Aland Islands, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Angola, Anguilla, Antarctica, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Canada, Canary Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Faroe Islands, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Guam, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Iran, Iraq, Kiribati, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mayotte, Micronesia, Montserrat, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Northern Mariana slands, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Puerto Rico, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Martin, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Ukraine, United States of America, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Virgin Islands, US, Wallis and Futuna, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Research

Education

The bottom line

Base Markets is a newcomer in the industry, launched in 2025 and regulated by the Mauritius FSC. It gives access to 78 CFD instruments across forex, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies through the MetaTrader 5 platform. Leverage of up to 1:500 is available, and traders can choose between the spreads-only Base Standard account and the Base Zero account that features raw spreads plus commissions.

I found the Base Zero account to be the strongest part of the offering. Its commissions of $4 round-turn on forex and gold are better than the industry average, and trading costs in some markets compare favorably with competitors. Bitcoin trading costs were notably low. Swap fees were generally in line with our industry benchmarks or better.

The main drawbacks are the limited oversight of its offshore regulator (FSC Mauritius), a lack of negative balance protection, and a small range of tradable instruments. Research and educational materials are lacking, and customer support was not responsive during my tests.

However, Base Markets supports many payment methods, including bank wire transfers, Visa/Mastercard, and crypto, and doesn’t charge any fees on deposits and withdrawals. The inclusion of AED as a base currency and Arabic-language support may appeal to traders in the UAE. I rate Base Markets as best suited to active traders comfortable with MetaTrader 5 who are primarily focused on low-cost trading.