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CFI in South Africa — review, licence and costs
Score (5 of 6 axes scored)
shown, not ranked: no cost
- Reviews25%85
- Safety20%100
- Payouts15%80
- Track record10%100
- Platforms10%85
Numbered by weight: axis 1 counts for most.
Key facts (5 facts)
- Onboarding entity
- CFI Financial (Pty) Ltd, local South African entity.
- Founded
- 1998
- Retail leverage
- 500ZA
- Currencies
- ZAR local-currency account available; USD.
- Swap-free account
- yes
Licence check
Open an account with CFIThe broker's own website. Not a partner link — we earn nothing from it.
Who actually onboards you
- Entity that onboards South Africa residents
- CFI Financial (Pty) Ltd, local South African entity.
- Local standing
- Locally regulated onshore by FSCA.
- Licence as the register states it
- FSCA authorised FSP No. 53711 (derivatives). Local onshore licence.
- Leverage for this entity
- Up to 1:500 advertised; FSCA imposes no hard retail cap. Exact ZA-entity default not verified at review.
- The firm behind it
- CFI Financial (Pty) Ltd is the group's FSCA-licensed SA arm of Credit Financier Invest (founded 1998, Beirut/Dubai).
- What we hold against it
- Group-level: 2022 CySEC €150k AML fine (Cyprus branch). No FSCA warning found at review.
Leverage by entity
The licence belongs to the firm; a leverage figure belongs to one entity. Only the entity that onboards South African residents enters the score.
Scale from 1:10 to 1:3000, logarithmic.
Client protection
- Local entity onboards youLocally regulated onshore by FSCA.
- Regulator warning on filenone found
— means the broker does not state it in any source we captured. It is not read as “no protection” and it is not scored.
Accounts
Account types the broker names for this country: Zero-commission (spread), Dynamic Trader (raw+commission), low/zero minimum. The figures below are the broker's own and do not differ by account in any source we captured.
Swap-free account terms
Terms read from the account page on 01.10.2026. The cap on open positions is not published.
Where CFI sits in the South Africa base(103 brokers)
Round-turn cost, USD (80 of 103 priced)
Median 7 USD · range 1-20 · 23 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Minimum deposit, USD (49 of 103 priced)
Median 50 USD · range 0-1000 · this broker 0 USD · 54 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Retail leverage (72 of 103 with a South Africa figure)
Median 1:500 · range 20-5000 · this broker 1:500 · 31 of 103 brokers do not publish it
Withdrawal time published (103 brokers)
Payouts
Identical for every row: Deposit, h 24 · Fee, USD 0 · Min, USD 50.
Deposit and withdrawal methods (5 methods · 2 local)
Local ZAR bank transfer/EFT, Visa/Mastercard, e-wallets.
- Local ZAR bank transferlocal
- EFTlocal
- Visa
- Mastercard
- E-wallets
- Account currency
- ZAR local-currency account available; USD.
- Fee declared
- 5 of 5 methods
- Withdrawal back to
- the funding method
Where it does not serve(4 countries)
From the client agreement, clause 2.3. A country missing from a translated page is not read as “served”.
Platforms and markets(4 platforms)
- MT4
- MT5
- cTrader
| Class | Count |
|---|---|
| MT4 | — |
| MT5 | — |
| cTrader | — |
| All instruments | 15000+ |
Identical for every row: Leverage 500 ZA.
Reviews(1 platform · 25% of the score)
| Snapshot | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| 02.10.2026 | 4.7 | 2,100 |
Share of reviewers in South Africa: — The platform does not publish it.
Pros and cons(6 for and 3 against, each tied to a figure on this page)
- Locally authorised, licence 53711, read on 09.07.2026
- Min deposit 0 USD, under the South Africa median 50
- Withdrawal in 24 h, one of 86 of 103 brokers here that publish a time
- Swap-free account available
- Safety 100 of 100, its strongest of 5 scored axes
- 3 platforms: MT4, MT5, cTrader
- Round-turn cost not priced: the pair of spread and commission is not published
- Payouts 80 of 100, its weakest of 5 scored axes
- Not scored on round-turn cost: the broker publishes no figure we could read
Alternatives in South Africa(6 of 103 scored in South Africa)
- Round turn, USD
- 6ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 25ZA
- Leverage
- 500ZA
- Rank in this country
- #6
- Round turn, USD
- 9ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 25ZA
- Leverage
- 1000ZA
- Rank in this country
- #1
- Round turn, USD
- 6ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 20ZA
- Leverage
- 30 group
- Rank in this country
- #2
- Round turn, USD
- 6ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 0 groupZA
- Leverage
- 2000ZA
- Rank in this country
- #3
- Round turn, USD
- 6ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 10ZA
- Leverage
- 5000ZA
- Rank in this country
- #5
- Round turn, USD
- 5ZA
- Min deposit, USD
- 10ZA
- Leverage
- 500ZA
- Rank in this country
- #17
"group" marks a figure the broker publishes for the group rather than for this country. It is shown because the broker states it, and it is not ranked, averaged or used to sort.
Methodology(6 axes · formula v1.0)
Score = 2 + 3 × weighted mean of six axes scored 0–100. Range 2.0–5.0. An axis without data drops out and the remaining weights are renormalised; it is never scored zero or estimated. Group-wide figures never enter a South Africa score. Full methodology
| Axis | Weight | What is measured | CFI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 25% | Rating, volume and recency on one public review platform | 85 |
| Round-turn cost | 20% | Round turn on 1 lot EURUSD: spread plus commission, against the country median | — |
| Safety | 20% | Local authorisation, the entity that onboards you, any regulator warning | 100 |
| Payouts | 15% | Published withdrawal time, fees and the methods available in the country | 80 |
| Track record | 10% | Years since the firm was founded, from its own filings | 100 |
| Platforms | 10% | Which trading platforms the broker confirms for this country | 85 |
FAQ
- Does CFI accept residents of South Africa?
- Yes. Locally regulated onshore by FSCA. Onboarding entity: CFI Financial (Pty) Ltd, local South African entity.
- Is CFI licensed to serve clients in South Africa?
- FSCA authorised FSP No. 53711 (derivatives). Local onshore licence. Checked on 09.07.2026.
- What leverage does CFI offer to retail clients in South Africa?
- Up to 1:500. Up to 1:500 advertised; FSCA imposes no hard retail cap.
- Which trading platforms does CFI support?
- MT4, MT5, cTrader. Instruments: FX, indices, commodities, shares, ETFs, crypto CFDs.
- How can I withdraw money from CFI in South Africa?
- Local ZAR bank transfer/EFT, Visa/Mastercard, e-wallets.
- What account types does CFI offer?
- Zero-commission (spread) and Dynamic Trader (raw+commission); low/zero minimum.
- Does CFI offer a swap-free (Islamic) account?
- Yes. CFI offers a swap-free (Islamic) account to South Africa residents.
Taxes for a South African resident(1 rule)
- SARS taxes residents on worldwide income.https://cfi.trade/za
Not tax advice. Check with SARS.