| Updated: December 16, 2024Plus500 entered the US market in 2021, offering a broad range of futures contracts across all popular asset classes, including forex, commodities, stock indices, interest rates, and cryptocurrencies. The US-facing trading site runs on a robust proprietary platform compatible with most desktop and mobile devices. The brand further strengthens its solid reputation with a listing on the London Stock Exchange and a sponsorship of the Chicago Bulls. It is also a member of the National Futures Association (NFA).
The CFTC-approved broker facilitates low-cost trading with zero platform, routing, and inactivity fees. Deposits and withdrawals also come at no extra cost at Plus500 US. The broker has a low entry barrier to accommodate US traders of varying experience levels. Plus500 is a particularly attractive option for beginners, however, as it gives them access to a decent selection of free educational materials.
| Plus500 Overall Summary Table | |
|---|---|
| Launch Year in the US | 2021 |
| Minimum Deposit Requiremen | $100 |
| Tradable Instruments | Futures contracts on fiat currency pairs, cryptocurrencies, stock indices, metals, energies, agriculture, and interest rates |
Plus500 USA – Hits and Misses
The main advantages and disadvantages of trading with Plus500 include:
Key Pros
- Over 60 tradable futures across all asset classes
- Fully regulated in the United States
- No data, routing, platform, and inactivity fees
- A low barrier to entry ($100) and unlimited demo accounts
- A round-the-clock support service via online chat and email
- Availability of micro, mini, and standard futures contracts
- Free articles and educational videos on futures trading
- Low commissions for futures contracts without hidden fees
- Member of the NFA and CME
- Available in English and Spanish
Key Cons
- SIPC protection unavailable to futures traders
- No telephone line for customer support
- Uses a proprietary trading platform only
- Withdrawals may take up to 3 working days to process
- Automatically charges a $10 liquidation fee for failing to meet margin calls
Company Information and Regulatory Background
Launched in 2008 as the Plus500 Group, this broker reaches over 26 million customers and has regulated entities in multiple countries, including Australia, Cyprus, Dubai, the UK, Singapore, and Israel. The company trades publicly on the London Stock Exchange and is included in the FTSE 250 Index.
It entered the US market in 2021 after acquiring Cunningham Trading System (CTS), an advanced platform that facilitates options and futures trading. A year later, in 2022, Plus500 started offering futures trading to US customers via the TradeSniper platform that leverages advanced technology from CTS. The US entity is operated by the subsidiary Plus500US Financial Services LLC, which has registrations with the following regulatory bodies and organizations:
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), registered as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM).
- National Futures Association (NFA) with registration ID number 0001398.
Available Trading Platforms
One standout feature of Plus500 US is the absence of third-party platforms like MetaTrader and TradingView. The company relies on proprietary software developed in-house. No downloadable desktop platform is available for the time being. The Plus500 WebTrader is accessible via most web browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Safari.
The platform enables futures traders to conveniently create charts and watchlists and open, close, and monitor their positions. Different order types are available, including stop loss, market, and limit orders. Plus500US is compatible with desktop computers, tablets, and smartphones. Mobile traders have the option to download native apps from Google Play and the App Store.
- The Android app requires Android 8.0 or higher to run smoothly.
- The iOS app performs optimally on iOS 15.0 or higher.
Instruments Available for Trading
Traders at Plus500 US have access to a broad range of futures contracts grouped into 7 main categories – forex, cryptocurrencies, indices, metals, agriculture, energies, and interest rates. Standard, mini, and micro futures are available. These are tradable on variable margin, which changes day-to-day. Here is a brief breakdown of the tradable instruments at Plus500 US.
Forex
Plus500 US offers 15 futures contracts for forex, including 9 standard contracts for AUD, GBP, CAD, CHF, NZD, JPY, BRL, ZAR, and MXN. Micro contracts are available for 4 currency pairs – AUD/USD, GBP/USD, EUR/USD, and CAD/USD. CME-listed Euro FX futures are tradable via standard and e-mini contracts. The required intraday margin is subject to change and ranges from $40 to $500 at the time of publication.
Cryptocurrency
Plus500 offers micro futures contracts for the two most liquid cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum. Clients can additionally gain exposure to the crypto markets by trading Bitcoin Friday futures that settle on a weekly basis. The size of these weekly cash-settled contracts is equal to one-fiftieth of a single Bitcoin.
Interest Rates
The broker provides a choice from 10 standard and micro futures contracts for interest rates, including 10-year, 5-year, and 2-year treasury notes.
Equity Indices
Clients can trade standard, mini, and micro futures on popular US stock market indices like S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq 100. Additionally, Plus500 gives them exposure to the Nikkei index traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Metals
Precious metals trading is possible via 8 futures contracts for gold, copper, platinum, and silver.
Energies
Other hard commodities like energies are tradable via 10 futures contracts. Some of the options include Brent crude oil, West Texas Intermediate crude oil, heating oil, natural gas, and RBOB gasoline.
Agriculture
Soft commodities are also available at Plus500 US. Traders can enter into futures contracts for corn, soybeans, soybean meal, soybean oil, live cattle, lean hogs, feeder cattle, and wheat.
Intraday Margins* for Futures Contracts at Plus500 US
| Forex Futures | |
|---|---|
| EUR/USD (micro contracts) | $50 |
| British Pound (standard contracts) | $500 |
| Euro FX (standard contracts) | $300 |
| E-mini Euro FX | $150 |
| Commodity Futures | |
| Gold (standard contracts) | $500 ($50 for micro contracts) |
| Crude oil (standard contracts) | $800 ($400 for e-mini contracts) |
| Natural gas (standard contracts) | $1,000 ($100 for micro contracts) |
| Corn (standard contracts) | $250 |
| Wheat (standard contracts) | $250 |
| Live cattle (standard contracts) | $300 |
| Soybeans (standard contracts) | $910 |
| Cryptocurrency Futures | |
| Bitcoin (micro contracts) | $100 |
| Ethereum (micro contracts) | $20 |
| Bitcoin Friday (weekly contracts) | $25 |
| Stock Indices Futures | |
| S&P 500 (e-mini contracts) | $500 |
| Nasdaq 100 (micro e-mini contracts) | $100 |
| Nikkei (standard contracts) | $1,500 ($150 for micro contracts) |
| Interest Rates Futures | |
| 10-Year Yield (micro contracts) | $45 |
| Ultra US T-Bond (standard contracts) | $500 ($120 for micro contracts) |
| Ultra 10-Year T-Note (standard contracts) | $300 |
This is a sneak peek at the intraday margins for some of the most commonly traded futures contracts at Plus500 US. *The data was collected on December 5, 2024, and will change over time.
Fees and Other Trading Costs
Our research into Plus500 US showed the broker charges relatively competitive commissions, with little to no fees for account maintenance. When trading futures on this platform, customers incur flat commissions of $0.89 per side for standard contracts and $0.49 for micro contracts.
In essence, this means opening and closing a futures position will cost you a total of $1.78 for standard and $0.98 for micro contracts. The broker is a member of the NFA, a self-regulatory body that collects nominal assessment fees, invoiced to traders. Here are the other fees clients can anticipate.
- NFA assessment fees of $0.02 per futures contract per side ($0.04 round-turn)
- Liquidation fees of $10 for failing to maintain the minimum required margin
- $0 fees for inactivity, account opening, routing, and platform usage
Since futures trading takes place on centralized exchanges like the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange), traders incur additional exchange commissions beyond Plus500US’ control. The broker has a full membership in the CME Group.
Payment Methods at Plus500 US
US traders can fund their Plus500 accounts with several familiar and highly secure payment methods without incurring any deposit or withdrawal fees. The broker accepts deposits with debit cards (Visa and Mastercard), bank transfers, Google Pay, and Apple Pay, all of which are also available for withdrawals. Plus500 US does not support credit or prepaid cards for the time being.
The broker strives to return withdrawals to the same method customers used to deposit. Withdrawals usually take between 1 and 3 working days to process, with a minimum requirement of $100. The minimum amount traders can transfer to their live balance is $200 for bank transfers and $100 for the other accepted deposit methods.
Customer Support at Plus500 US
Plus500 US excels at providing timely and adequate customer support available around the clock, including on weekends. Two communication channels are currently available, email and live chat. The FAQ section provides detailed answers to common questions traders may have. We tested the support service over the span of several days, inquiring about different aspects of the broker’s operations and services.
In our experience, the support agents are quick to respond to queries via live chat, rarely taking more than a few seconds to get back to clients. The live chat staff behaved professionally and generally appeared knowledgeable. Customers can additionally fill in the contact form on the website to receive a response via email. Telephone support is unavailable for the time being. The broker provides assistance in English only, although the website is available in both English and Spanish.
Plus500 US maintains a presence on social media, allowing clients to stay abreast of important market developments, news, and announcements. You can follow the broker on Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, Telegram, and LinkedIn.
Educational Content at Plus500 US
Plus500 US strives to accommodate traders of varying experience levels by providing easy-to-digest educational content to get customers up to speed with the intricacies of the futures markets. The Plus500 Academy features highly informative articles covering a broad range of topics like fundamental and technical analysis, margin trading, and types of futures contracts.
A glossary of commonly used terms in futures trading is also available. Visual learners will benefit from a comprehensive selection of free educational videos categorized by asset class (forex, indices, cryptocurrencies, and so on). Some of the videos tackle different strategies applicable to futures trading, while others outline the main benefits of this derivative instrument.
The videos are free to watch and do not require signing into your live account. You can also find them on the Plus500 official YouTube channel.
Client Protections and Compensation Schemes at Plus500 US
Plus500 US does not provide negative balance protection and investor compensation in the event of insolvency since the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) does not cover futures contracts.
The broker relies on an automated liquidation mechanism to assist clients in meeting their margin requirements and reduce their risk of ending up with a negative balance. The company will never mishandle client funds as Plus500 US Financial Services LLC stores the money of its customers separately from its operational funds in segregated accounts.
Final Thoughts on Plus500 US
All in all, we consider Plus500 US a suitable option for futures traders of all experience levels, looking for market exposure in a regulated environment. The broker accommodates beginner and intermediate traders with a low entry barrier and a decent selection of learning materials. It charges competitive commissions for a healthy range of futures contracts, with no hidden fees.
The Plus500 WebTrader is intuitive, easy to use, and does not require installation. There are a few shortcomings here, such as the absence of telephone support and the lack of support for familiar third-party platforms like MT4 and MT5. With that said, the advantages of trading with this futures broker greatly outnumber the downsides.