Summary
Recommended for investors appreciating personal advisory services and other benefits offered by a large banking group
BGL BNP Paribas is a Luxembourgish investment bank providing online trading and investments. BNP is privately owned, established in 1919, and headquartered in Luxembourg city.
BGL BNP Paribas is considered safe because it is regulated by the top-tier Luxembourg regulator, it has a banking license, and the investor protection amount is high.
BGL BNP Paribas pros and cons
BGL BNP Paribas gives you access to a ~20 stock markets which is a good coverage. It also offers a high investor protection, €100,000.
It has very high fees. The account opening is not user-friendly and it has also a high €50,000 minimum account balance, The research tools are limited.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Good stock market coverage | • High fees |
| • High investor protection | • Complicated account opening |
| • Limited research tools |
| 🗺️ Country of regulation | Luxembourg |
| 💰 Trading fees class | High |
| 💰 Inactivity fee charged | Yes |
| 💰 Withdrawal fee amount | $1 |
| 💰 Minimum deposit | $55,000 |
| 🕖 Time to open an account | >3 days |
| 💳 Deposit with credit/debit card | Not available |
| 👛 Depositing with electronic wallet | Not available |
| 💱 Number of base currencies supported | 4 |
| 🎮 Demo account provided | No |
| 🛍️ Products offered | Stock, ETF, Fund, Bond, Options |
Author of this review
BGL BNP Paribas review
Fees
BGL BNP Paribas has high trading and non-trading fees. As a plus, it has a transparent fee structure.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Transparent fee structure | • High trading fees |
| • High non-trading fees |
| Assets | Fee level | Fee terms |
|---|---|---|
| US stock | High | 1.00-1.50% depending on the invested amount with min €74 |
| EURUSD | - | Not available |
| Mutual fund | Average | 0.5% of trade value, min €13 |
| Inactivity fee | Low | €117 per half month after 18 months of inactivity |
How we ranked fees
We ranked BGL BNP Paribas's fee levels as low, average or high based on how they compare to those of all reviewed brokers.
To get things rolling, let's go over some lingo related to broker fees. What you need to keep an eye on are trading fees, and non-trading fees.
- Trading fees occur when you trade. These can be commissions, spreads, financing rates and conversion fees.
- Non-trading fees include charges not directly related to trading, like withdrawal fees or inactivity fees.
In the sections below, you will find the most relevant fees of BGL BNP Paribas for each asset class. For example, in the case of stock investing the most important fees are commissions.
We also compared BGL BNP Paribas's fees with those of two similar brokers we selected, Saxo Bank and Internaxx. This selection is based on objective factors such as products offered, client profile, fee structure, etc. See a more detailed rundown of BGL BNP Paribas alternatives.
To have a clear overview of BGL BNP Paribas, let's start with the trading fees.
BGL BNP Paribas trading fees
BGL BNP Paribas trading fees are high.
Stock fees and ETF fees
BGL BNP Paribas stock and ETF fees for a typical trade are very high compared to other stockbrokers.
| BGL BNP Paribas | Saxo Bank | Internaxx | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US stock | $81.4 | $10.0 | $18.4 |
| UK stock | $81.4 | $9.6 | $18.4 |
| German stock | $81.4 | $11.0 | $29.4 |
Bond fees
BGL BNP Paribas has about the same high bond fees as Saxo Bank.
| BGL BNP Paribas | Saxo Bank | Internaxx | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EU government bond | $82.5 | $88.0 | - |
Non-trading fees
BGL BNP Paribas has high non-trading fees.
€117 per half month after 18 months of inactivity
| BGL BNP Paribas | Saxo Bank | Internaxx | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account fee | Yes | No | No |
| Inactivity fee | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Deposit fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Withdrawal fee | $1 | $0 | $0 |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Account opening
BGL BNP Paribas account opening needs improvement. On the bright side, you can choose from accounts giving you access to banking products as well. However, opening an account is not a piece of cake. It takes very long, even it can be two weeks. It is not user-friendly and not fully digital.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Multicurrency account with access to banking products (card, insurance, term deposits) | • Slow |
| • Not fully digital | |
| • Minimum deposit is higher than $500 |
Can you open an account?
BGL BNP Paribas review
Deposit and withdrawal
You can use only bank transfer for ingoing and outgoing payments. As a plus, BGL BNP Paribas deposit is free of charge. However, it is not user-friendly.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • No deposit fee | • Not user-friendly |
| • Only bank transfer |
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BGL BNP Paribas review
Web trading platform
The web trading platform offers a safe two-step login. It has also good search function and you can set order confirmation. But, it is not user-friendly and customizable. There is no clear fee report either.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Two-step (safer) login | • Not user-friendly |
| • Good search function | • No clear fee report available |
| • Order confirmation | • Limited customizability (for charts, workspace) |
| Trading platform | Score | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Web | 2.5 stars | Yes |
| Mobile | 3.0 stars | Yes |
| Desktop | - | No |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Mobile trading platform
BGL BNP Paribas mobile trading platform offers two-step login and has a good search function. However, it has limited order types, there are no price alerts and the user-friendliness can be improved.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Two-step (safer) login | • Not user-friendly |
| • Good search function | • Limited order types |
| • No price alerts |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Desktop trading platform
BGL BNP Paribas review
Markets and products
BGL BNP Paribas gives you access to ~20 stock markets which is a good coverage. It also offers a wide range of mutual funds. Furthermore, you can trade with European bonds and options. On the flip side, there is no FX or CFDs.
| BGL BNP Paribas | Saxo Bank | Internaxx | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ETF | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Forex | No | Yes | Yes |
| Fund | No | No | Yes |
| Bond | Yes | Yes | No |
| Options | No | Yes | Yes |
| Futures | No | Yes | Yes |
| CFD | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Crypto | No | Yes | Yes |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Research
You can read analysis and use a good interactive charting. However, there are limited research tools and the available fundamental data is very basic.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Good interactive chart | • No/limited set of analytic tools |
| • Trading ideas | • Basic fundamental data missing for most stocks |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Customer service
BGL BNP Paribas customer service needs improvement. There is no live chat and they give irrelevant answers. Furthermore, we have not received answers for our emails.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • English, French and German customer support | • No live chat |
| • Irrelevant answers | |
| • Not reliable email support |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Education
BGL BNP Paribas does not provide education tools or a demo account.
BGL BNP Paribas review
Safety
BGL BNP Paribas is regulated by the top-tier CSSF, the Luxembourgish financial regulator. It has a banking license and provides a €100,000 account protection. It is not listed on any stock exchange.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| • Majority of clients belong to a top-tier financial authority | • Not listed on stock exchange |
| • High level of investor protection | • Financial information is not publicly available |
| • Banking background |
BGL BNP Paribas review
Bottom line
BGL BNP Paribas has a good stock market coverage. It also offers a high investor protection amount which is a great sign for its security.
On the other hand, it has very high fees. The account opening is complicated and there is a €50,000 minimum required balance. Lastly, the research tools are limited.
Choose BGL BNP Paribas if you are an investor with higher amounts to invest and you want a broker from a top-tier financial jurisdiction.