Brokerchooser blog

Choose the best trading platform, we did the research for you. We tested in-depth 16 quality online brokers available for Europeans, evaluated fees, trading platforms, product portfolios, account opening, research and more. Our top five picks for the best trading platform for Europeans in 2018 are:

• Saxo Bank, the Danish investment bank
• Interactive Brokers, a discount broker from the US
• Strateo, a Swiss online broker
• DEGIRO, the Dutch discount broker
• tastyworks, a US discount option broker

Not sure which one to choose? For a personal broker recommendation, check out Brokerchooser's broker selection tool. You input your preferences and you get a personal recommendation fitting your needs.

Want to see more options? For comparing all the 16 brokers, visit our comparison page.

Did you know crypto exchanges are not the only way to get cryptos? They might not even be the best for you. They can be expensive and unsecure. In this article you will learn about crypto exchange alternatives and get introduced to established and regulated financial providers offering crypto investments.

At the end of the article you will know how to invest in Bitcoin, Bitcoin CFD, Bitcoin ETN or Bitcoin Futures.

How do we know this? We analyse financial institutions and help people to find the best stockbrokers. We understand brokerage and know the financial industry well. In the last months, readers asked us constantly how to invest in Bitcoins and cryptos. We looked into it, and compiled an easy to understand introduction.

As cryptos are extra risky, here is an extra risk warning. Only invest money in cryptos you are prepared to fully lose. Their price fluctuates like crazy. If my mom asked about Bitcoin, I would tell her not to touch it.

Still interested, ok, let’s get to it then. I reckon you want to buy Bitcoin from a cheap and secure source. Right? But what does this mean? Let’s break it down.

Buying Bitcoin means exchanging your Euro or Dollar to Bitcoin.

Cheap means depositing money to the exchange, doing the exchange and withdrawing your money doesn’t cost you a lot.

Secure is also important. When finance guys talk about security they mean:

• The service provider is not a fraud, because it is
  • regulated, meaning they proved their capability to set up the business and run it.
  • audited, checked by an independent auditor
  • transparent, providing financial data, ownership, etc. to the public
• The service provider can manage itself, because it has good
  • risk management (they are prepared to deliver when things go south)
  • operation (e.g. accessing the interface, giving orders, etc. work)
  • IT security from external attacks
• Investors are compensated by the state if the service providers defaults. This is the so called investor protection. Note, you will not get compensated if your investment price drops. You will get compensated if your broker was a fraud or it defaulted.

It turns out, crypto exchanges are bad at both being cheap and secure. So, what are the alternatives? There are three other ways how to invest in Bitcoins, not known by many

1. Going long in a Bitcoin CFDs, abbreviation for Contract for Differences
2. Investing in passive funds, namely ETNs covering Bitcoins
3. Going long on Bitcoin Futures

Let’s analyse them one by one. We will be fair with crypto exchanges and give them a run for their money. And to be fair, the alternatives are not perfect either. What should you do? As a step one, understand the differences. Here we go.

A few years ago, I switched almost entirely to the market of futures options. I used to trade a lot with stock options and ETF options, but today I rarely do that. Let's see why!

But before explaining why I like futures options, it is worth clarifying what futures trading means, as this topic is totally obscure even for many advanced traders.

I am pretty sure you already imagined several times to invest in the stock exchange, gain enough cash to travel the world and rest for your entire life.

Achieving this vision is not easy but you have to start somewhere, and buying shares online is one of the best ways for that. The good news is you can do this fully online. In this article I will explain jargon-free how to buy shares online. It is not as easy as watching TV series, but don’t worry it is not rocket science either.

There are a lot of misconceptions about online trading especially in depicting the real job of a pro trader. This time we will show what it takes to become a professional trader, what are the different paths you can experiment with.

CFDs are exciting financial instruments that can help you achieve your invesment objectives and give you an opportunity to test your investment skills in exotic markets. However, they don't come without risks. In the following CFD trading tips article we explain why guaranteed stop-loss orders are must-haves and why you should limit your leverage. We only recommend CFD trading to experienced investors, and if you're a rookie, it's an absolute must that you read our CFD trading tips.

CFD trading, in a nutshell is using contracts which you can invest in to make a bet whether a particular financial asset, like an equity or commodity, will increase or decrease in value – without actually investing in the financial asset. For example, when you want to bet on the increase of the oil price, you chose a CFD, which has its price change linked to the price change of a crude oil contract. When the price of the oil increases one percent, the price of the CFD will also increase one percent, so you will gain the price difference of the crude oil. Hence the name: Contract for Difference.

CFDs started out as a type of leveraged equity swap in the 1990s in London, primarily used by hedge funds. In the late 1990s CFDs appeared on the retail market as well, while the 2000s and 2010s saw the first exchange traded and centrally cleared CFDs – so things really picked up. The FCA estimated that the number of UK CFD brokers doubled between 2010-16 and UK clients held £3.5bn in their accounts in total. Of course, the picture is not completely rosy. Because of the risks inherent in these contracts, regulators are increasingly strict with CFD providers. The Australian Exchange closed its CFD exchange in 2014, while in some countries, such as the United States or Belgium, CFD trading is outright banned.

Ok, but some of you might ask, what on earth is a CFD trading? Don't worry, we will let you know.

2017 has seen a major shift in CFD broker regulations, placing emphasis on user security. We at Brokerchooser have long argued for prioritizing security over price when selecting the best CFD broker.

In our 2017 review, we unveil the best CFD brokers and also provide a CFD broker 101 for investors.