Fidelity International Review 2025

Is Fidelity International regulated?

Yes, it is regulated by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Is Fidelity International safe?

To be certain that a brokerage is safe, we highly advise that you check two facts:

• how you are protected if something goes wrong
• the background of the broker.

How you are protected

This is important because the investor protectionamount differs from regulator to regulator.However, this is not an issue in this case, as all customers are covered by Fidelity, under the legal entity FIL Investments International. This means that being regulated by the FCA, there is investor protection for an amount of £85,000.

Our brokerage experts put together a comprehensive guide on the safety profile of Fidelity International.

Background

Fidelity International was established in 1980. The longer track record a broker has, the more proof we have that it has successfully survived previous financial crises.
You may have some trouble if you are looking for detailed financial information about the company, as it is not listed on a stock exchange. No detailed annual reports are published; all we could find was a country-by-country group report, with only minimal financial data, and it was located on another Fidelity website. The Fidelity UK group companies are owned by FIL Holdings (UK) Limited, which in turn is owned by FIL Limited, based in Bermuda.
Being regulated by a top-tier authority and having a long track record are good signs for Fidelity International's safety.

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Account base currencies

At Fidelity International, the only available base currency is GBP.

If you have a personal bank account in a currency other than GBP, then you will be charged a conversion fee.

A convenient way to save on currency conversion fees is by opening a multi-currency bank account at a digital bank. These usually offer bank accounts in several currencies with great currency exchange rates, as well as free or cheap international bank transfers. Opening an account only takes a few minutes on your phone.

Deposit fees and options

Fidelity International charges no deposit fees.

You can add money to your account for one-off investments via a debit card, bank transfer, or by cheque. No electronic wallets are available.
Another option is to create a regular savings plan (RSP) — in this case, you need to add bank account details and the payments will be transferred from that account at regular intervals (e.g. a certain day every month) via direct debit.

Here's all you need to know about minimum deposit requirements and depositing money at Fidelity International.

A bank transfer can take several business days, while payment with a credit/debit card is instant. You can only deposit money from accounts that are in your name.

Fidelity International withdrawal fees and options

Fidelity International charges no withdrawal fees. You can only withdraw money to a bank account you have added to your Fidelity International account.

Read our guide containing all key info on available withdrawal methods and related fees at Fidelity International.

You can only withdraw money to accounts in your name.

How long does it take to withdraw money from Fidelity International? We tested the bank transfer withdrawal and it took 2 business days.

How do you withdraw money from Fidelity International?

• There are several options to start with:
  • after logging in, either click on the 'Manage investments' drop-down menu at the top, or
  • from your Account Summary, select your appropriate account, i.e. Cash Management Accountor Investment Account and then
• Click on 'Move or withdraw cash' (there is a button at the top in the Cash Management Account, but for the Investment Account you have to scroll down to 'Cash', and click on the 'Manage' button to see the options
• Enter the amount you wish to withdraw
• Add or select the bank account the money should be transferred to
• Click 'Confirm'

Can you open an account?

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Read our separate article on how to get your account started with Fidelity International.

What is the minimum deposit at Fidelity International?

The required Fidelity International minimum deposit is $1,360.

That is for an Investment Account, an Individual Savings Account (ISA), and Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) accounts.
There is also an option to create a regular savings plan (RSP) instead of starting with a lump-sum investment — in this case, you can forgo the large £1,000 initial deposit and need to add just £25 per month to your account. You can also choose a different frequency for your investments: either £150 per quarter, £300 every six months, or £600 for an annual RSP.

Account types

Fidelity International has different account types you can choose from:

How to open your account

Only UK residents can open an account, for whom the account opening process is usually simple. The whole thing takes about 10 minutes and only the most basic information is required. If they manage to verify your details electronically you won't even need to provide proof of ID or proof of address.
Things start to get complicated if electronic verification fails. Why would your verification fail? This can happen for a number of reasons, for example, if you have recently moved, either within or to the UK. For a definite answer, you will need to contact Fidelity International. In early 2021, the company added an online upload option for some documents, but none that relate to the account opening process; however, they plan to extend this service to cover other forms.
If your verification fails, then you will need to fill out a confirmation of identity form and post documents verifying your identity and your address. All in all, you will need to send the following:

• filled-in application form
• if you have a UK photocard driving license or valid UK passport, you can send a photocopy of one of these to confirm your identity. These do not have to be independently certified.
• if you do not have any UK ID documents, you can send a photocopy of your national ID card or EU Identity Card. These must be indepentently certified by a third person.
• to confirm your address, you need to send one of the following documents: UK driving licence (an old-style paper version); (non-UK) photocard driving license; national ID card (with address on the card); a statement issued in the past three months by a UK regulated financial services firm; a council tax bill for the current year; a utility bill issued in the last three months; a mortgage statement; a current tenancy agreement or rent book; a government-issued document about tax or entitlements; or a letter from a commanding officer confirming your residential address if you or your partner is a member of the armed forces.

Look and feel

The mobile trading platform is the same as the web platform.
It is well-designed and user-friendly. You can set two-step authentication and can log in using biometric authentication. On the other hand, the order types are limited and you can't set price alert.

Login and security

Fidelity International provides a safer, two-step login for its mobile platform.

You can log in using biometric authentication, which is a convenient feature.

Search functions

The search functions are good.

Placing orders

You can use the following order types on the mobile trading platform:

• Market
• Limit

There is a single order time limit you can use: Day.

Alerts and notifications

You cannot set alerts and notifications on the Fidelity International mobile platform.

Our analysts personally tested Fidelity International's mobile trading platform; read the Fidelity International mobile app review for a detailed verdict on its performance and features.

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Fidelity International's web trading platform is available in English.

Look and feel

The Fidelity International web trading platform is user-friendly: it is well-designed and can be easily navigated. However, it cannot be customized to fit the needs of different clients.

Login and security

Fidelity International provides a safer, two-step login.

When logging in for the first time from a new computer or browser, a security code will be sent to the email address you registered with.

Search functions

The search functions are good.

You can search by typing in an asset name or ticker, and a relevant list will appear during the search.
You can filter results by asset by clicking on available tabs, to show only mutual funds and investment trusts, or exchange-traded products (stocks and ETFs).

Placing orders

You can use the following order types:

• Market
• Limit

If you are unfamiliar with some of these terms or want to learn more, read our overview of order types.

There is a single order time limit you can use: Day.

Alerts and notifications

You cannot set price alerts and notifications on the Fidelity International web trading platform.

Portfolio and fee reports

Fidelity International has clear fee reports.

These reports can be found in the 'Transactions & Reports' menu at the top. You can also see an overview of your investment performance on the 'Summary' dashboard, including gain/loss and annualised return. Perfromance reports are also downloadable in several formats.
The fees you paid are also visible in the 'Account summary' section, in the 'Book cost' column for each asset. This however only shows the assets you currently hold in your portfolio.

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Its selection of exchange-traded investments, such as stocks and ETFs, is quite limited as it only offers products that are traded on the London Stock Exchange and are denominated in GBP.
You cannot invest in bonds, and forex, CFDs and cryptos are not available either. There is no options or futures trading at Fidelity International.

This selection falls behind competing brokers. Both AJ Bell Youinvest and Hargreaves Lansdown offer more stock markets to trade on.

Stocks and ETFs

Fidelity International gives you access only to UK, US, and European stocks.
Accordingly, the range of stocks and ETFs available is quite limited, comparing poorly to similar UK competitors.

Funds

Fidelity International's selection of mutual funds is quite extensive.

This selection is average compared to competing brokers.

A wide selection of more than 3,000 funds are available from around 180 providers. In addition to Fidelity International's own funds, many funds managed by major providers like BlackRock and Vanguard are accessible through Fidelity International.

Interest earned on uninvested cash

As of the time of the review, Fidelity International provides the following interest rates on uninvested cash:

• 3.1% for GBP

Investment Trusts

Fidelity International also offers the possibility to invest in Investment Trusts, which are basically funds registered as public limited companies. These can invest in other companies and are traded on a stock exchange themselves. There is a selection of around 180 Investment Trusts offered by various providers that Fidelity International clients can choose from.

We recommend Fidelity International for beginners and long-term investors focusing on the UK market.

Below you can find links to all aspects of Fidelity International in this comprehensive collection.

Lower fees, lower costs?

We detailed this in our Fidelity International fees article.

What about the minimum deposit?

Our ultimate guide to the Fidelity International minimum deposit is updated regularly.

How to start your Fidelity International account?

Look no further than our evaluation of the Fidelity International account opening.

How's their trading app?

Here's our expert view after checking the Fidelity International trading app.

Is the quality of customer service satisfactory?

All you need to know about the Fidelity International customer service.

Legit or scam?

Is Fidelity International legit features all the key aspects you need to look at to see if a broker is safe and legit.

Free or premium? Or both?

A glance at actual costs and whether Fidelity International is really free.

Is this broker good for beginners?

We checked it in Is Fidelity International good for beginners.

Should you buy your silver bullets on Fidelity International?

Research for silver bugs in the Silver buy on Fidelity International guide

I want to trade options, are they available at Fidelity International?

We explored the topic in Can you trade options on Fidelity International?

What is the minimum account balance at Fidelity International?

Check out the current account balance requirements at Fidelity International in our What is the minimum account balance at Fidelity International article.

Looking for commission and fees data for Fidelity International?

We collected them in Fidelity International commission and fees.

How do you withdraw money from Fidelity International?

We tested it and collected the options and costs in How to withdraw money on Fidelity International.