Based in Mahe, Seychelles, PU Prime is a broker that offers a variety of account types, competitive low spreads, and swift order execution. It enables trading in a broad spectrum of CFDs, including currency pairs, commodities, indices, shares, ETFs, bonds, futures, and cryptocurrencies. Clients have access to both the comprehensive MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms, along with PU Prime’s own mobile and copy trading apps. However, my research indicates that PU Prime operates under limited regulatory oversight and offers high leverage up to 1:1000, which calls for cautious consideration by potential clients.
Pros | Cons |
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As an offshore broker, PU Prime provides exceptionally high leverage, reaching up to 1:1000 for Pro Account users. Active traders benefit from raw spreads starting at 0.0 pips, facilitating cost-effective trading. Additionally, the proprietary PU Social app enables users to explore and effortlessly replicate the strategies of master traders.
With low trading costs and robust platforms, PU Prime can accommodate experienced traders and those using automated strategies. Beginners can benefit from helpful educational materials, reliable support via live chat, and a Cent account with just a $20 minimum deposit.
We performed tests with a Standard account using the MetaTrader 5 desktop/web platforms and the MetaTrader 5 mobile app. We opened accounts with the Pacific Union (Seychelles) Limited entity of PU Prime, regulated by the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA). Some features and services may vary depending on where you reside.
☑️ Regulations | FSA (Seychelles), FSCA (South Africa) |
🗺 Supported Languages | Korean, English, French, Indonesian, Portuguese, Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Vietnamese |
💰 Products | Currencies, Stocks, ETFs, Crypto, Bonds, Indices, Commodities |
💵 Min Deposit | $50 |
💹 Max Leverage | 1:1000 (FSA), 1:500 (FSCA) |
🖥 Trading Desk Type | STP |
📊 Trading Platforms | MT5, Proprietary, MT4 |
💳 Deposit Options | FasaPay, Wire Transfer, Skrill, Neteller, Visa, Mastercard |
💳 Withdrawal Options | Wire Transfer, Neteller, FasaPay, Skrill, Visa, Mastercard |
🤴 Demo Account | Yes |
🗓 Foundation Year | 2015 |
🌎 Headquarters Country | Seychelles |
PU Prime has a substantial operating history of over eight years. Regulatory oversight is limited as PU Prime is based offshore in Seychelles. PU Prime has a second entity, regulated by the South Africa FSCA. According to the broker, client funds are held in segregated accounts with AA-rated banks, and clients have negative balance protection.
This section will cover how PU Prime is regulated and how this impacts you as a trader. We rate regulators on a scale of 1 to 3, with 1 reflecting the highest level of trust.
Different regulators provide different levels of protection. The table below lists the protections and benefits offered by the Pacific Union (Seychelles) Limited entity of PU Prime.
Entity | Pacific Union (Seychelles) Limited | PU Prime (PTY) Ltd |
Country/Region | Seychelles/Global | South Africa |
Regulation | Seychelles FSA | South Africa FSCA |
Segregated Funds | Yes | Yes |
Negative Balance Protection | Yes | Yes |
Compensation Scheme | No | No |
Maximum Leverage | 1:500 (Standard Account) 1:1000 (Pro Account) | 1:500 |
Regulatory requirements are subject to change. We gathered the data listed above in August 2023.
PU Prime is regulated by the Seychelles FSA, which provides minimal oversight. Although PU Prime has a second entity regulated by the South Africa FSCA, it appears that all clients are directed to the offshore entity. PU Prime claims that client funds are held in segregated accounts at AA-rated banks and that clients have negative balance protection. However, there is no compensation scheme in the event of PU Prime going bankrupt.
In our tests for the Trust category, we also cover factors relating to stability and financial strength. Here, we focus on how long the broker has been in business, the company’s size, and its transparency.
PU Prime’s Seychelles entity is listed in the website’s footer, including its license number. There is no reference to the South African entity on the website.
Spreads and swap fees are clearly detailed in the Trading Costs section of the website. Prospective clients can review the Client Services Agreement on the Legal Documentation page. The About Us page covers brokerage services but provides little insight into the background of the company.
In summary, I judged that there is room for improvement in the category of trust in light of the following factors:
On the positive side:
PU Prime offers average spreads via the Standard, Pro, and Cent account types. Competitive spreads and commissions are available with the Prime and ECN accounts. These low costs can be critical for achieving profitability, particularly for active, short-term traders. Swap fees and inactivity fees are average for the industry.
I tested the spreads at PU Prime with a Standard account across different asset classes using the MetaTrader 5 platforms at 8:00 a.m. GMT and 4:00 p.m. GMT on 17 August 2023. I measured the spreads at two different times of day to allow for a greater perspective: 8:00 a.m GMT is the London open when there is high liquidity in the forex market and tighter spreads in currency pairs. 4:00 p.m. GMT is during the New York trading session.
Instrument | Spread AM | Spread PM |
EUR/USD | 1.7 Pips | 1.6 Pips |
GBP/JPY | 2.4 Pips | 2.1 Pips |
Gold | 24 Cents | 20 Cents |
Light Crude Oil | 4.5 Cents | 4.7 Cents |
Apple | N/A | 15 Cents |
Tesla | N/A | 22 Cents |
Dow 30 | 3.3 Pips | 3 Pips |
Dax 40 | 1.5 Pips | 1.5 Pips |
Swap fees (the cost of holding a position overnight) were average at PU Prime.
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. A full-sized contract is 100,000 units of the base currency (the first currency quoted in the pair). I recorded the data on 17 August 2023.
Instrument | Swap Long | Swap Short |
EUR/USD | Charge of $7.52 | Credit of $3.02 |
GBP/JPY | Credit of $19.76 | Charge of $34.98 |
PU Prime does not charge any account maintenance fees or inactivity fees.
The spreads I recorded in the Standard Account were mixed, but most competitive in CFDs on shares and commodities such as gold. Meanwhile, the ECN Account offers lower trading costs with spreads starting at 0.0 and commissions of $1 per side/lot.
PU Prime offers the full suite of MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 platforms, the PU Prime mobile app, and the PU Social copy trading app. MetaTrader provides robust charting and a wide range of order types and can cater to algorithmic traders. The PU Prime app is intuitive and beginner-friendly.
PU Prime offers MetaTrader 5 (MT5) for desktops, which includes advanced functions such as copy trading and automated trading. In the hands-on testing process, I used the MT5 platform.
MetaTrader 5 is available in 52 languages, from Arabic to Vietnamese. The platform provides popular features such as:
MetaTrader also delivers when it comes to the range of available order types. The platform offers the following order types:
Charting features are robust. MetaTrader 5 offers:
MetaTrader is also popular due to its copy trading and automated trading features.
The MetaTrader 5 is one of the most feature-rich and popular trading platforms for the desktop. However, it may present a steep learning curve for beginners.
The MetaTrader 5 Web Platform (Web Trader) is a slightly stripped-down version of the desktop platform. It allows you to trade without any additional software, only an internet connection is required. The Web Platform allows users to trade directly from any browser and operating system.
Popular features include:
Copy trading and automated trading are also only available on the MT5 desktop platform.
PU Prime offers the MetaTrader 5 mobile app for mobile trading, which is available for Android and iOS. The app offers popular features such as alerts, 1-click trading, and trading from the chart.
The MetaTrader 5 mobile app also provides many order types, including pending and stop orders. However, trailing stop-loss orders are only available from the desktop. To change the language of the MT5 app, you must change the language for your entire phone. As with the desktop and web platforms, the interface is not highly intuitive, but the MT5 app offers an above-average range of features.
The PU Prime app is intuitive and well-designed, enabling traders to easily open, close and manage positions while on the move. Customizable watchlists allow users to track their favorite instruments. Mobile traders can benefit from advanced charting with technical indicators, global news, price alerts, and trade signals. Account funding and customer support are also available via the app.
The PU Social app enables users to access the investment strategies of thousands of experienced traders. Their results can be replicated anytime using the auto-copy function.
Flexible copying parameters enable traders to manage risk according to their preferences. Traders can also sign up to be signal providers and earn commissions by sharing their trading strategies.
PU Prime excels in the scope of available CFD instruments. As well as offering many assets within forex, metals, energies, indices, shares, and cryptocurrencies, the broker provides less commonly found CFDs, such as bonds, ETFs, futures, and soft commodities like soybeans.
CFDs (Contracts for Differences) are financial derivative products that allow traders to speculate in various markets without owning the underlying assets. I found the range of tradable instruments at PU Prime to be better than average. Here are the major categories of tradable assets available:
Note Card: Keep in mind that when trading CFDs, you are speculating on the price of an asset without actually taking ownership of the underlying asset.
In the tables below, you can see a selection highlighting the variety of CFD instruments available at PU Prime:
Forex Major | Forex Minor |
EUR/USD | GBP/USD | USD/JPY | GBP/JPY | EUR/NZD | AUD/CHF |
Forex Exotic | Metals |
USD/THB | EUR/HUF | USD/COP | Gold | Silver | Copper |
Energies | Softs |
WTI Crude Oil | Natural Gas | Gasoline | Soybeans | Cotton | Coffee |
Shares | Indices |
Nvidia | Burberry | Volkswagen | France 40 | Nasdaq 100 | China 50 |
ETFs | Cryptocurrencies |
SPDR Gold | ARK Innovation | Global X Blockchain | Ripple | EOS | Ethereum |
PU Prime provides customer support via email, live chat, and phone. Overall, I experienced good customer support, and the live chat support was reliable during office hours. I rate the level of support as about average for the industry.
I tested PU Prime’s agents with dozens of questions, covering themes such as fees, regulations, platforms, and account types. Responses were generally fast: same day for email and within a minute or two via live chat or phone.
Via chat, a chatbot first tries to answer your inquiries but quickly passes you on to a live agent. I received good support when I was able to reach a human being. However, I was not able to reach an operator via live chat during the weekend.
Customer Support Languages |
English | Arabic | Italian | French | Spanish | Portuguese | Vietnamese | Indonesian | Korean |
With seven funding and withdrawal methods, including bank wire, credit cards, and digital wallets, PU Prime makes it easy to fund and withdraw money from your account. Processing times for deposits and withdrawals are about average. Withdrawals via bank wire and credit card are free, but there are charges for withdrawals via digital wallet.
In the tables below, I break down the fees and processing times for each deposit and withdrawal method.
Deposit Method | Fees | Processing Time |
Bank Transfer | Free | 2-5 business days |
Visa | Free | Instant |
Mastercard | Free | Instant |
Neteller | Free | Instant |
Skrill | Free | Instant |
JCB | Free | Within 30 Minutes |
FasaPay | Free | Instant |
Withdrawal Method | Fees | Processing Time |
Bank Transfer | Free | 2-5 business days |
Visa | Free | Within 24 Hours |
Mastercard | Free | Within 24 Hours |
Neteller | 2% | Within 24 Hours |
Skrill | 1% | Within 24 Hours |
JCB | Free | 1-3 Business days |
FasaPay | 0.5% | Instant |
Opening an account at PU Prime is fast and straightforward. The process is fully digital, and I completed the application via the broker’s website within 10 minutes. PU Prime offers five main trading account types: Standard, Prime, Pro, ECN, and Cent. Each account has unique features suitable for different trader profiles.
To open an individual account at PU Prime, prospective clients must provide the following information:
The table below compares the five available account types side by side. In my opinion, the Standard and Cent accounts are most suitable for beginners and casual traders, while the Prime, Pro, and ECN accounts cater more to advanced and professional traders.
Feature | Standard | Prime | Pro | ECN | Cent |
Minimum Deposit | $50 | $1,000 | $50 | $10,000 | $20 |
Spreads | From 1.3 pips | From 0.0 pips | From 1.3 pips | From 0.0 pips | From 1.3 pips |
Commission | No | $3.5 per side/lot | No | $1 per side/lot | No |
Leverage | Up to 1:500 | Up to 1:500 | Up to 1:1000 | Up to 1:500 | Up to 1:500 |
Min. Trade Size | 0.01 lots | 0.01 lots | 0.01 lots | 0.01 lots | 0.01 lots |
Conditions Apply To | All Products | Forex, Spot Metals, Crude Oil | Forex, Indices, Spot Metals, Commodities | Forex, Spot Metals, Crude Oil | All Products |
Base Currencies | USD, GBP, CAD, AUD, EUR, SGD, NZD, HKD, JPY | USD, GBP, CAD, AUD, EUR, SGD, NZD, HKD, JPY | USD, GBP, CAD, AUD, EUR, SGD, NZD, HKD, JPY | USD, GBP, CAD, AUD, EUR, SGD, NZD, HKD, JPY | USD |
Platforms | MT4/MT5, WebTrader, Mobile App | MT4/MT5, WebTrader, Mobile App | MT4/MT5, WebTrader, Mobile App | MT4/MT5, WebTrader, Mobile App | MT4/MT5, WebTrader, Mobile App |
Available as Islamic Account | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
PU Prime offers demo accounts for MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. Demo accounts are especially important for beginners as they allow them to practice their strategies and get comfortable with the trading platform without risking real money.
The demo account features live quotes and simulates live market conditions in assets such as forex and CFDs on commodities, indices, and stocks. Once users are up to speed on a demo account, they can easily switch to a live version.
PU Prime offers swap-free trading through Standard, Prime, and Cent account types. These accounts can be converted into Islamic accounts, adhering to the principles of Sharia law.
One of the reasons that traders are attracted to the forex and CFD markets is the high degree of available leverage. Leverage is the use of borrowed funds to increase the size of your trading positions beyond what would be possible using only the cash in your account.
The maximum leverage available at PU Prime is 1:1000 (with the Pro account type). This means that with an account of $1,000, you can control up to $1,000,000 worth of positions in the market. Leverage is often described as a ‘double-edged sword’ as it can hurt you as much as it helps you. Traders must remember that it can amplify both their profits and their losses.
PU Prime uses the straight-through transaction model (STP). Straight-through processing describes the method of routing orders straight through a broker’s servers to liquidity providers without any dealing desk intervention.
PU Prime takes clients from the majority of countries globally. However, clients are not accepted from the United States, Singapore, and Australia.
PU Prime earned a high score in the research category with a combination of helpful in-house research and the popular third-party Autochartist. Materials are accessible to both beginners and advanced traders and contain actionable trading ideas. I rate the research offering at PU Prime as better than average for the industry.
PU Prime prepares daily market analysis reports that help orient traders for the day, covering major fundamental themes and focusing on individual markets and technical price levels to watch. From my estimation, the regularly published reports are in-depth and insightful. Also, the broker’s team publishes the weekly outlook report which previews the major upcoming economic releases with a commentary on market expectations.
In addition to in-house research, PU Prime provides its clients with content from Autochartist – a powerful pattern recognition tool that simplifies technical analysis by identifying trading opportunities based on key support and resistance levels. Traders can access Autochartist for free within the client portal.
PU Prime offers high-quality educational materials in the form of articles, video tutorials, and ebooks, but lost points for its lack of courses. Both beginners and advanced traders can benefit from the available resources.
Within the trading knowledge section, PU Prime provides a series of helpful articles covering the basics of trading – from how to identify trends to risk management and trading psychology. Articles are comprehensive and will help new traders build a foundation to work from.
The video tutorials section covers forex basics, chart types, technical and fundamental analysis. Practical topics like how to trade news releases and an explanation of key candlesticks are covered in easy-to-understand clips by PU Prime’s market analysts.
The PU Prime YouTube channel also has a selection of educational videos in a beginner-friendly animated format, including important trading basics – like lot sizes, the use of leverage, and the meaning of to go “long” and “short”.
As an offshore broker, PU Prime offers a fast and easy sign-up process and leverage as high as 1:1000 with the Pro Account type. Based in Seychelles, regulatory oversight is light, which led to a relatively low trust score in my review. PU Prime has a second entity regulated by the South Africa FSCA, but it appears to be inactive.
The variety of account types caters to a wide range of traders, and competitive spreads starting at 0.0 pips are available with the Prime and ECN account types. These low costs, combined with the powerful MetaTrader platform, make an attractive setup for active, experienced traders.
Tradable instruments are another area of strength at PU Prime, and I noted that clients can access a better-than-average variety of stocks, commodities, bonds, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies. PU Prime also distinguishes itself by offering a user-friendly mobile app and copy trading app – both developed in-house.
Headquarters Country | Seychelles |
Foundation Year | 2015 |
Regulations | FSA (Seychelles), FSCA (South Africa) |
Publicly Traded | No |
Number Of Employees | 201 |
Trading Desk Type | STP |
Trading Platforms | MT5, Proprietary, MT4 |
Restricted Countries | Austria, United States, Singapore |
Supported Languages | Korean, English, French, Indonesian, Portuguese, Arabic, Italian, Spanish, Vietnamese |
Min Deposit | $50 |
Max Leverage | 1:1000 (FSA), 1:500 (FSCA) |
Deposit Options | FasaPay, Wire Transfer, Skrill, Neteller, Visa, Mastercard |
Withdrawal Options | Wire Transfer, Neteller, FasaPay, Skrill, Visa, Mastercard |
Time to Withdrawal | 3 |
Time to Open an Account | 8 |
Crypto | NMAE, Bitcoin, Cardano, Dogecoin, NEO, Litecoin, Ripple, Ethereum, Polkadot |
Products | Currencies, Stocks, ETFs, Crypto, Bonds, Indices, Commodities |
Demo Account | Yes |
OCO Orders | No |
Offers Hedging | Yes |
Automated Trading | Yes |
API Trading | No |
Guaranteed Stop Loss | No |
Guaranteed Limit Orders | No |
Guaranteed Fills / Liquidity | No |
Economic calendar | Yes |
Trading From Chart | Yes |
One-Click Trading | Yes |
Expert Advisor | Yes |
Social Trading | Yes |
Autochartist | Yes |
Trading Signals | Yes |
Platform Languages | Korean, English, French, Indonesian, Portuguese, Arabic, Italian, Vietnamese |
24 Hours Support | Yes |
Support During Weekends | No |
Live Chat | Yes |
Daily Market Commentary | Yes |
News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes |
Webinars | Yes |
Deposit Fee | No |
Withdrawal Fee | No |
Inactivity Fee | No |
Dan Blystone began his career in the trading industry in 1998 on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Later Dan gained insight into the forex industry during his time as a Series 3 licenced futures and forex broker. He also traded at a couple of different prop trading firms in Chicago. Dan is well-equipped to recommend the best forex brokers due to his extensive experience and understanding of the brokerage industry.
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