Plus500 Islamic account

No, Islamic or swap-free accounts are not available at Plus500.

My key findings in a nutshell

My key findings in a nutshell

Tamás Gyuriczki

Trading Titan | Investment • Stock Market • Market Analysis

As a financial expert with BrokerChooser, I play an integral role in the analyst team by actively reviewing many of the 100+ brokers that are listed on our site. I personally open accounts with real money, execute trades, test customer services. My hope is that my first-hand experience with these brokers, incorporated in our reviews, helps users find the most suitable broker for their needs.

Learn about our methodology

Tamás Gyuriczki

Trading Titan | CFD • Options Trading • Market Analysis

I've thoroughly tested Plus500 services with our analyst team by opening a real-money account and these are my most important findings:

• Islamic or swap-free accounts ensure halal trading as there is no interest paid or received.
• Brokers do not charge overnight/swap fees on leveraged positions for Islamic accounts.
• Islamic account holders are typically offered wider spreads and charged additional costs.
• Islamic accounts are mostly available at CFD and FX brokers.
• Some brokers may limit the number of assets available to Islamic account holders.
• Islamic accounts may only be available to residents of certain countries.

Looking for the best forex brokers that offer Islamic accounts? Search no further, our brokerage experts put together a list of the best forex brokers in the world with Islamic accounts. If you are more into CFD trading, take a look at our top list of the best CFD brokers with Islamic accounts. Our experts analyzed hundreds of data points and checked the services and safety of each broker by opening a live account.

Data updated on November 27, 2023

An Islamic brokerage account, also known as a Sharia-compliant brokerage account or swap-free account, is a type of financial account that adheres to the principles of Islamic finance.

Islamic finance operates based on the principles of Islamic law, or Sharia, which prohibits certain activities such as earning or paying interest (riba) and engaging in speculative or uncertain transactions (gharar).

Key features of an Islamic brokerage account

Although the exact terms and conditions of an Islamic or swap-free account tend to vary from broker to broker, some features are constant. We list the most important ones below:

1. Prohibition of interest: Islamic brokerage accounts avoid interest-based transactions. Instead of earning or paying interest, the account may employ alternative structures.
2. Exclusion of prohibited (haram) investments: investments in industries such as alcohol, gambling, pork, or weapons, which are considered non-compliant with Islamic principles, are typically avoided.
3. Transparency and accountability: Islamic brokerage accounts aim to provide transparency in their investment activities, ensuring that investors have a clear understanding of how their funds are being managed.

Investors seeking to open an Islamic brokerage account should carefully review the terms, conditions, and investment options offered by different providers to ensure they align with their personal beliefs and requirements.

Special restrictions for Islamic accounts

Note that some brokers may limit the types of assets that Islamic account holders can trade. Cryptocurrencies, for example, are not always availabe to trade for such account holders.

Some service providers do not allow clients to hold any other account type at the same time with Islamic trading accounts. If an investor has an existing account, it will be closed before the swap-free account can be opened.

Another important limitation to bear in mind is that brokers may offer Islamic accounts only in certain countries.

Investors who trade forex and CFDs, use leverage. This is the practice of borrowing money from their brokers to increase their own buying power.

With a standard account, investors are charged or credited swap or interest on leveraged positions that they keep open at the end of each trading day. These costs are known as overnight fees or swap fees.

Islamic accounts for forex and CFD traders do not charge or pay overnight or swap fees.

Instead, Islamic account holders are typically offered wider spreads on the instruments they trade than on a standard trading account and are often charged an administration fee. The exact details and the fee structure may vary from broker to broker.

At some brokers, the first few days of an open leveraged trade do not incur additional costs, but after a set number of days the administration fee is applied each day the trade remains open, until the trade is closed. This may include weekends.

In forex trading, the administration fee is charged either per lot traded or as a lump sum regardless of the position size. At most brokers, the admin fee varies by instrument.

Most brokers allow day trading, scalping and hedging for Islamic account holders.