Skilling is an online broker offering Contracts for Difference (CFDs) for stocks, indices, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.
The company also acts as a forex broker and provides three web and two mobile platforms for traders.
This review covers Skilling’s range of trading products, account types, fees, and previews of Skilling’s in-house platform along with MetaTrader 4 and cTrader. We’ll also let you know if Skilling operates in .
Skilling Quick Summary
![]() | Overview |
|---|---|
| ✒️ Overview | Online broker offering forex and hundreds of CFDs based in Cyprus and Seychelles. |
| ⭐ Our Overall Rating | |
| 🏆 Broker Trust Rating | 75/100 |
| 🏁 Founded | 2016 |
| 🛍️ Product | CFDs, Forex |
| 📉 Markets | Indices, Shares, Commodities, Cryptocurrencies, Forex (See all markets) |
| 🗺️ Countries Served | 100+ |
| 💳 Minimum Deposit | €100 (See all payment methods) |
| 💰 Fees | Commission charged per million in trading volume, swap charges (See all fees) |
| 🛡️ Regulator(s) | Cyprus Securities & Exchange Commission (CySec), Financial Services Authority (FSA), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) - (See regulatory review) |
| 📞 Customer Support |
|
| 🎮 Demo Account | Yes (. free with no expiry.) |
Data last reviewed:
Skilling Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Five mobile and web platforms to choose from, including MT4 and cTrader | Unclear as to how long Skilling can operate in the UK under the FCA's Temporary Permissions Regime |
| Hundreds of stock CFDs | Limited product list (CFDs only) |
| Mobile analytics and indicators matching the web platform | High minimum deposits for premium accounts at $5,000. |
| Transparent spread (pip) and leverage information online. |
Data last reviewed:
Where Does Skilling Operate?
Skilling is regulated by three government bodies (see more details about Skilling’s oversight). It accepts traders from over 180 countries.
See all countries and provinces Skilling serves.
| A to G | G to P | P to Z |
|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | Germany | Palau |
| Åland Islands | Ghana | Palestine |
| Albania | Gibraltar | Panama |
| Algeria | Greece | Papua New Guinea |
| Andorra | Greenland | Paraguay |
| Angola | Grenada | Peru |
| Anguilla | Guadeloupe | Philippines |
| Antarctica | Guatemala | Pitcairn Islands |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Guernsey | Poland |
| Argentina | Guyana | Portugal |
| Armenia | Haiti | Qatar |
| Aruba | Honduras | Republic of the Congo |
| Austria | Hong Kong | Romania |
| Azerbaijan | Hungary | Russia |
| Bahamas | Iceland | Rwanda |
| Bahrain | India | Saint Barthélemy |
| Bangladesh | Indonesia | Saint Kitts and Nevis |
| Barbados | Iran | Saint Lucia |
| Belarus | Iraq | Saint Martin |
| Belgium | Ireland | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Belize | Isle of Man | San Marino |
| Benin | Italy | Saudi Arabia |
| Bermuda | Jamaica | Senegal |
| Bhutan | Jersey | Serbia |
| Bolivia | Jordan | Seychelles |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Kazakhstan | Sierra Leone |
| Botswana | Kenya | Singapore |
| Brazil | Kiribati | Slovakia |
| British Virgin Islands | Kosovo | Slovenia |
| Brunei | Kuwait | Solomon Islands |
| Bulgaria | Kyrgyzstan | South Africa |
| Burkina Faso | Laos | South Georgia |
| Cambodia | Latvia | South Korea |
| Cameroon | Lesotho | Spain |
| Cape Verde | Liberia | Sri Lanka |
| Cayman Islands | Liechtenstein | Suriname |
| Chad | Lithuania | Swaziland |
| Chile | Luxembourg | Sweden |
| China | Macedonia | Switzerland |
| Christmas Island | Madagascar | Syria |
| Cocos (Keeling) Islands | Malawi | São Tomé and Príncipe |
| Colombia | Malaysia | Taiwan |
| Comoros | Maldives | Tajikistan |
| Cook Islands | Malta | Tanzania |
| Costa Rica | Marshall Islands | Thailand |
| Croatia | Mauritania | Togo |
| Cuba | Mauritius | Tokelau |
| Cyprus | Mayotte | Tonga |
| Czech Republic | Mexico | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Denmark | Micronesia | Turkey |
| Djibouti | Moldova | Turkmenistan |
| Dominican Republic | Monaco | Turks and Caicos Islands |
| Ecuador | Mongolia | Uganda |
| Egypt | Montenegro | Ukraine |
| El Salvador | Montserrat | United Arab Emirates |
| Equatorial Guinea | Morocco | United Kingdom |
| Estonia | Mozambique | Uruguay |
| Ethiopia | Myanmar | Uzbekistan |
| Falkland Islands | Namibia | Vanuatu |
| Faroe Island | Nepal | Venezuela |
| Fiji | Netherlands | Vietnam |
| Finland | New Caledonia | Western Sahara |
| France | Nicaragua | Yemen |
| French Polynesia | Nigeria | Zambia |
| Gabon | No (rway) | Zimbabwe |
| Gambia | Oman | |
| Georgia | Pakistan |
Data last reviewed:
Restricted Countries
Residents of countries not mentioned above cannot register with Skilling, including the United States, Australia, and Japan. See which brokers are available in .
Products & Markets
| Feature | Available |
|---|---|
| API Trading | Yes |
| Copy Trading | Yes |
| Educational Resources | Yes |
| Islamic Account | Yes |
| Feature | Available |
|---|---|
| Negative Balance Protection | Yes |
| Research Tools | Yes |
| Segregated Client Funds | No |
| Social Trading | Yes |
There are two trading product categories on the Skilling platform: Contracts for Difference (CFDs) and forex pairs. We also include minimum spread, leverage, and margin requirements, though brokers like Skilling can change these based on market conditions.
IMPORTANT: CFDs are not available in the USA.
Skilling.com uses dynamic leverage tiers. This means that as a client’s trading volume increases, the maximum leverage for the traded asset class decreases.
For example:
Stock CFD traders with trading volumes up to €100,000 get a maximum leverage of 10:1, which drops to 5:1 when trading volumes are between €100,000 and €300,000.
Visit Skilling’s website to see the tiers for each asset class.
CFD Trading With Skilling
Skilling’s CFDs are contracts between the broker and the trader where the trader bets on a value change over a given time frame without owning the product. This is called a derivative instrument.
Skilling offers CFDs on shares, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and indices.

Stock CFDs With Skilling
Skilling offers CFD contracts on 700+ international stocks. The maximum leverage on stocks is 10:1, with a margin requirement of 10%.
See examples of some of Skilling’s stock CFDs.]
- A to C: Activision Blizzard, Adidas AG, Adobe Systems, ADP, BASF SE, Bausch Health, Bayer AG, Baywa, BB Biotech AG-Reg, Bechtle AG, Cigna Corp, Cisco Systems, Citigroup, CME Group, CNP Assurances SA
- D to F: Deutsche-Bank, Deutz AG, Devon Energy, Dexcom, Electronic Arts, Elekta, Eli Lilly, Elior Group, Elringklinger AG, Enagas, Facebook, Fastenal, Faurecia, FCC SA, Fedex Corp, Ferrari NV
- G to I: Gamestop, GAP Inc, Garmin, Gea Group, Gecina SA, H&M, Hamburger Hafen, Hannover Rueck, Hapag Lloyd AG, Harley-Davidson, IBM, Icade SA, Iliad SA, Illumina Inc, Incyte Corp
- J to L: JPMorgan Chase, Juniper Networks, Juventus FC, K&S AG, Kellog Co, Kering, Kinder Morgan Inc, Kinnevik AB, Lloyds Bank ADR, Lockheed Martin, Loomis AB, LPKF Laser, Lufthansa
- M to O: Manchester United, Marathon Petroleum, Marriott Intl, Mastech, Mastercard, Navistar, NCC AB, NCR Corp, Neopost SA, NetEase, Netflix, Office Depot, Oracle, Orkla, Orpea
- P to R: Palantir Tech, Palo Alto Networks, Pan Am Silver, Paragon AG, Patrizia Immobilien, Qiagen NV, Qualcomm Inc, Remy Cointreau, Renault, Repsol SA, Rexel SA, Rheinmetall VZ
- S to U: Shake Shack Inc, Shopify Inc., Siemens, Synopsys, Sysco Corp, TAG Immobilien AG, Taiwan Semiconductor, Talanx AG, Tapestry Inc, Tesla Motors Inc., Uber Inc, Ubiquiti, Ubisoft, Under Armour
- V to Z: Vale SA, Valeo, VanEck Gold Miners, Veolia, Verizon, VF Corp, Wal-Mart, Walt Disney, Wells Fargo, Western Digital, Whirlpool, Xerox Corp, Yelp Inc, Zendesk, Zoom, Zynga
Spreads on stock CFDs are variable. To see up-to-date minimum and average spreads, visit
Skilling’s Index CFDs have the following maximum leverage and margin requirements: Data last reviewed: The above minimum spreads are for Skilling Premium traders. For up-to-date standard spreads, visit Skilling’s website. All crypto CFDs on Skilling are traded against the US dollar. Traders should note that crypto CFDs speculate only on price movement — you do not own the cryptocurrency. The maximum leverage on crypto CFDs is 5:1 with a margin requirement of 20%. Please Note: Availability subject to regulations. Cryptocurrency CFDs are not available to UK retail traders. Here are all cryptos offered by Skilling: Spreads on cryptocurrencies change more frequently than other CFD assets, so see Skilling’s website for up-to-date information. Here are all 70+ forex pairs available to trade with Skilling with the following maximum leverage and margin requirements: ☞ Major pairs are made up of any combination of these currencies: US Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen, Pound Sterling, Canadian Dollar, or Swiss Franc. ☞ Minor pairs: All other currency pairs offered on Skilling are categorized as minor or exotic. Data last reviewed: For up-to-date minimum and average spreads, visit Skilling’s website.Index CFD Trading With Skilling
See a list of Skilling’s index CFDs.
Indices Symbols Min. Spread
Australia 200 AUS200 5
China A50 CHINA50 9
Germany 30 DE30 4
DOWJONES 30 DJ30 16
EU Stocks 50 EUSTX50 29
France 40 FRA40 13
Hong Kong 50 HK50 8
Italy 40 ITA40 15
Japan 225 JAP225 5
NASDAQ 100 NASDAQ 11
Netherlands 25 NED25 50
No (rway 25) OBX25 1.2
Sweden 30 OMX30 0.8
Spain 35 SPA35 6
S&P 500 SPX500 4
Singapore Index STI30 5
Switzerland 20 SUI20 36
UK 100 UK100 7

Crypto CFDs With Skilling
Forex Trading With Skilling
See all of Skilling’s forex pairs.
A to E E to N N to Z
AUD/CAD EUR/NZD NZD/USD
AUD/CHF EUR/PLN SGD/JPY
AUD/JPY EUR/RUB TRY/JPY
AUD/NOK EUR/SEK USD/CAD
AUD/NZD EUR/SGD USD/CHF
AUD/PLN EUR/TRY USD/CNH
AUD/SGD EUR/USD USD/CZK
AUD/USD EUR/ZAR USD/DKK
CAD/CHF GBP/AUD USD/HKD
CAD/JPY GBP/CAD USD/HUF
CAD/NOK GBP/CHF USD/ILS
CHF/JPY GBP/DKK USD/JPY
CHF/NOK GBP/JPY USD/MXN
CHF/PLN GBP/NOK USD/NOK
EUR/AUD GBP/NZD USD/PLN
EUR/CAD GBP/SEK USD/RON
EUR/CHF GBP/SGD USD/RUB
EUR/CZK GBP/USD USD/SEK
EUR/DKK GBP/ZAR USD/SGD
EUR/GBP No (k/dkk) USD/THB
EUR/HKD No (k/jpy) USD/TRY
EUR/HUF No (k/sek) USD/ZAR
EUR/JPY NZD/CAD ZAR/JPY
EUR/MXN NZD/CHF
EUR/NOK NZD/JPY
Account Types
| Feature | Retail | Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum Leverage | 30:1 (major forex), 20:1 (indices), 10:1 (commodities), 2:1 (crypto) | Up to 500:1 |
| Negative Balance Protection | Yes (mandatory under ESMA rules) | Not guaranteed |
| Eligibility | Open to all clients | Must meet 2 of 3: relevant work experience, portfolio over €500,000, or 10+ leveraged trades per quarter in the past year |
| Compensation Schemes | Investor Compensation Fund up to EUR 20,000 | May not apply |
ESMA regulations apply to brokers operating under EU/EEA licenses. Account features may differ by jurisdiction.
Traders can choose from the following Skilling account types: Standard, Premium, and MT4 (MetaTrader 4). You can choose from USD, EUR, NOK, SEK, or GBP as the base currencies for your account. Skilling also offers a demo account that is free to use with no expiry date.
Standard and Premium accountholders can trade with the Skilling Trader and cTrader. You must have a Skilling MT4 account to access MT4 its platform.
All three account types offer:
- Maximum retail leverage of 30:1
- Maximum professional leverage of 200:1
- Micro lot trading
- Access to all forex pairs and commodity CFDs
- Stop-out level of 50%
- Scalping
- Negative balance protection
Here’s a comparison of how each account type differs and their corresponding minimum deposit requirements:

Corporate and Institutional Accounts
Skilling offers retail accounts, as well as corporate accounts for those firms that qualify. Institutional accounts must register for one of the three account types (Standard, Premium, or MT4), and be eligible for professional status.
How To Verify Your Skilling Account
When registering, traders must provide the following information:
- Full name
- Country of residence and residential address
- Nationality
- Birth Date
- Email Address
- Mobile number
- Account currency (USD, EUR, NOK, SEK, or GBP)
You’ll also need to verify your ID by uploading the following documents:
- Passport or ID card
- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Social insurance number or tax identification number
Deposits & Withdrawals
Skilling has minimum requirements for both deposits and withdrawals:
- Minimum Deposit: €100 (or currency equivalent)
- Minimum Withdrawal: €50 (or currency equivalent)
Skilling doesn’t charge deposit or withdrawal fees. Deposits and withdrawals can be made via both web and mobile.
The available payment methods with the corresponding processing times are:
| Payment Method | Processing Time |
|---|---|
| Debit/credit card (Visa or MasterCard) | 2 to 7 working days |
| Wire Transfer | Instant to 7 working days |
| fasaPay | Within 1 working day |
| WebMoney | Within 1 working day |
| PayR | Within 1 working day |
| PayTrust | Within 1 working day |
| Pagsmile | Within 1 working day |
| Directa24 | Within 1 working day |
| NganLuong | Within 1 working day |
| UnionPay | Within 48 hours |
| Skrill | Within 1 working day |
| Neteller | Within 1 working day |
Data last reviewed:
Skilling Commissions & Fees
| Fee Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | €100 EUR |
Fees may vary by account type and region. Always check the broker's fee schedule before trading.
Skilling calls itself a zero-commission, zero-fees broker, which applies to Standard and MT4 accounts. However, the broker does charge commissions on Premium Accounts.
Additionally, there are a number of charges to be aware of:
Swap Charges
Swap charges, also known as rollover costs, are fees that traders pay them when positions remain open at the end of a trading day. Skilling charges swap charges every weekday except Wednesday.
The end of each trading day is at 22:00 GMT, which is when swap or rollover charges for open positions are calculated from. Swap charge formulas differ for particular asset classes. Crypto swap charges are a percentage of the “price,” which Skilling doesn’t define. (Our best guess is that it refers to the trade price.)
Rollover fees can be positive or negative, depending on how the market moves in response to your open trade.
Swap Charges On Forex & Spot Metal CFDs
The fee for forex pairs is calculated based on the difference in interest rate between the two currencies’ Tomorrow Next Deposit Rates (TNDR). The markup charged by Skilling is based on whether your position is long or short.
The formula for forex swaps is:
Swap = (Pip Value * Swap Rate * Number of Nights) / 10
- Pip Value = 10 for all Forex pairs except JPY, HUF, and THB pairs, where the pip value is 1000. RUB and CZK pairs have a pip value of 100
- Number of nights = the total amount of nights the position is kept open.
Swap Charges On Indices
Index swap charges are calculated based on interbank rates for the particular index, plus Skilling’s markup on the position.
The formulas for index swaps are:
Swap Long = (Units * Price) * (Markup + Libor) / 365
Swap Short = (Units * Price) * (Markup – Libor) / 365
- Units: total number of units traded
- Price: price of the index
- Libor: 1-month Libor rate of the quoted currency
- Markup: 3.5% (Buy) and 3% (Sell)
Similarly to indices, share CFD swap charges are calculated based on interbank rates for the underlying currency and Skilling’s markups.
The formulas for share swaps are:
Swap Long = (Units * Price) * (Markup + Libor) / 365
Swap Short = (Units * Price) * (Markup – Libor) / 365
- Units: total number of units traded
- Price: share price
- Libor: 1-month Libor rate of the quoted currency
- Markup: 4% (Buy) and 3% (Sell)
Traders must pay a commission for Premium Accounts for every $1 million (USD) traded. If the accountholder’s base currency is in any other currency than USD, there’s also a charge for the currency conversion to USD.
The commission formula for Skilling Premium traders is:
Commission = Trade size in base currency * (USD conversion rate * $x per USD million traded) * Account currency exchange rate
This table shows the amount charged per $1 million traded on Premium accounts based on the asset category:
Data last reviewed:

Platforms
| Platform | Available On | Description |
|---|---|---|
| cTrader | Web Desktop iOS Android | ECN trading with level II pricing, advanced order types, and cAlgo for automation. |
| MetaTrader 4 | Web Desktop iOS Android | Industry standard for forex. Expert advisors, custom indicators, and algorithmic trading. |
| Skilling Trader | Web iOS Android | Broker's own trading platform with integrated tools and account management. |
There are three web platforms available for Skilling traders, each with a corresponding mobile app:
- Skilling Trader
- cTrader
- MetaTrader 4 (MT4).
In the below platform review, we’ll cover all these platform options with their similarities and differences.
Traders should note that the Standard and Premium accountholders can trade via Skilling Trader and cTrader, but MT4 accountholders can only use the MT4 platforms on desktop and mobile.

This screenshot is for illustrative purposes only. For current market prices, please refer directly to the provider’s website.
Skilling Trader
Skilling’s bespoke trading app is a fully responsive platform that’s also accessible via your mobile browser. The main dashboard presents four tabs:
- Trading platform: Takes you to the asset browsing and analytics screen.
- Trade assistant: A step-by-step guide to trading on Skilling Trader.
- Skilling academy: A set of multiple lessons on trading and live markets.
- Latest news: Basic market sentiment via industry-related online news outlets.
On the trading platform, you can browse assets with a live view of the 24-hour price change, net price change, and daily high. Assets are split into categories. You can create a favorites watchlist by clicking on the star (★) icon next to an instrument.
Skilling Trader’s charting tool will look familiar if you’ve used other brokers. There are a range of available technical indicators, both basic and advanced. You can customize the time-frame of the pricing chart down to the minute.
Making Trades
When you use the trade ticket to buy or sell an instrument, you can customize it by choosing the type of purchase (like market price or custom limit price), preferred leverage, stop limit, and take-profit limit. The trade ticket also shows you the up-to-date spread, cash requirement based on the leverage and trade amount, and the fee to open the trade.
You can manage your trades at the bottom of the screen where there are three separate tabs: orders, positions, and history. The Orders tab shows your unfulfilled orders, which usually happen when you create a limit order (market price orders are filled instantly). Positions shows your open contracts in effect, while History shows a summary of your past trading activity.

This screenshot is for illustrative purposes only. For current market prices, please refer directly to the provider’s website.
Skilling cTrader
cTrader is a third-party software used by many online CFD brokers. Its basic functionalities match up to Skilling Trader, except that it doesn’t provide market sentiment and learning material.
Advanced Analytics
Traders who want advanced analytics tools, multiple charts, in-depth order management, and to focus on the market data may prefer cTrader.
With cTrader, you can have multiple charts open for different assets simultaneously. Tickers can be viewed in minute increments up to 10-minutes all the way up to monthly. The range of technical indicators is vast compared to Skilling Trader, and the trade management offers an equity chart, advanced trade statistics, transaction history, and a trading journal.
Advanced Trade Protection
You can also use the ‘Advanced Trade Protection‘ setting to create up to four tiers of take-profit limits for automatic execution, based on spread and volume. For stop-loss, you can create a standard stop-loss or a trigger when the instrument gains a set amount of pips.

This screenshot is for illustrative purposes only. For current market prices, please refer directly to the provider’s website.
Skilling With MetaTrader 4
MetaTrader 4 (MT4) has been a trader favorite since the software was released in 2005. Traders who have used MT4 before can skip this section, since it’s no different when used with Skilling.
For those new to the platform, here’s an overview:
- MT4only allows nine time-frames for viewing price charts, as opposed to cTrader’s 20+.
- You can create custom trade indicators by writing scripts and integrating them into MT4. You can also get additional scripts online.
- You can automate your trades.
MT4 features 30 stock technical indicators, built-in market sentiment (unlike cTrader), and three different chart styles: bar, Japanese candlestick, and broken line.
Remember, you need to register for a Skilling MT4 account to use this platform.

This screenshot is for illustrative purposes only. For current market prices, please refer directly to the provider’s website. Please note, this is an example – not a recommendation.
Mobile Platforms
The Skilling mobile app is available to download from the iOS App Store and Google Play Store.
Traders can access all of Skilling Trader’s features on the mobile app, including:
- Chart analytics with technical indicators and customizable time-frames
- Trade tickets with settings like trade type, amount, leverage, stop-loss, take-profit, and projected cash requirements
- Order, position, and trade history management
- A portfolio summary of present balances and historical account status, including profit-loss analytics for past trading days
You can deposit and withdraw funds from the mobile account via the account menu.
Skilling Customer Support
Skilling customer support is available via:
- Phone on +44 208 080 6555 or +357 22 276710 (Monday to Friday, between 08:00 and 17:00 CET)
- Live Chat (Monday to Friday, between 08:00 and 22:00 CET)
- Email on [email protected] (promised response time is within 24-hours)
You can also find dozens of articles at the Skilling Help Desk, including funding information, legal terms, general trading guides, and FAQs about live markets.
Trust & Regulation
| Regulator | Country | License | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial Services Authority (Seychelles) | - | Top Tier | |
| Financial Conduct Authority | United Kingdom | - | Top Tier |
| Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | 357/18 | Established | |
| Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | 357/18 | Established | |
| Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | 357/18 | Established | |
| Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | 357/18 | Established | |
| Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission | 357/18 | Established |
| Protection | Status |
|---|---|
| Negative Balance Protection | ✓ Yes (retail clients) |
| Segregated Client Funds | ✗ No |
| Compensation Schemes | ✓ Investor Compensation Fund up to EUR 20,000 |
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | 🇨🇾 Nicosia, Cyprus |
| Founded | 2016 (10 years) |
Trust Indicators
Skilling Ltd falls under the European Passporting Rights to operate in the European Economic Area. It is governed by three regulatory agencies:
- The company is registered in Cyprus under the following address: 62 Athalassas Avenue, Strovolos, CY-2012 Nicosia, Cyprus. Skilling’s Cypriot company is licensed by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) under license no. 357/18.
- Skilling (Seychelles) Ltd is registered in the Seychelles under the following address: Suite 3, Global Village, Jivan’s Complex, Mont Fleuri, Mahe, Seychelles. This subsidiary is authorized by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) under license no. SD042.
- Skilling Ltd operates in the UK under the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Temporary Permissions Regime under the FCA reference no. 810951.
Skilling Company Background
Skilling was founded in 2016 by Henrik Persson Ekdahl, Andre Lavold, and Mikael Riese Harstad. The company’s headquarters are in Nicosia, Cyprus.
The Cyprus entity was officially incorporated in 2017 with the CySec license approved in 2018. In 2019, Skilling launched in Sweden, Norway, the UK, Germany, and other EEA member countries later in the year. The Seychelles entity acquired its FSA license in 2020.
The present executive team consists of seven members with Michael Kamerman acting as Group CEO. Kamerman worked his way up to become FXCM’s Managing Director within 9 years of starting as a Sales Associate at the company.
Verdict
Skilling is a Cyprus and Seychelles-based CFD and forex broker offering 700+ stock CFDs, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies across multiple platforms including MT4 and cTrader, regulated by CySEC, FSA, and FCA.
Top advantages:
- Five mobile and web platforms to choose from, including MT4 and cTrader
- Hundreds of stock CFDs
- Mobile analytics and indicators matching the web platform
FAQs
Here are some answers to common questions about Skilling.
What is an STP broker?
A Straight Through Processing (STP) broker processes orders via liquidity providers like banks and hedge funds who provide the bid/ask spreads. STP brokers like Skilling are a third-party market maker between the liquidity provider and the trader. Like Skilling, STP brokers provide direct market access to the cheapest bid-ask spreads from their pool of liquidity providers.
What is an ECN broker?
As opposed to an STP broker, an Electronic Communications Network (ECN) broker acts as the single liquidity source and sets the bid-ask spread. Still, ECN brokers work with other liquidity providers like banks and hedge funds to fulfill market orders they’re unable to fill themselves. Some brokers have a hybrid STP-ECN model, but the ECN model is technically a hybrid itself.
Is Skilling legit?
Skilling is regulated by the Cyprus Securities & Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission in Cyprus (CySEC), and the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the Seychelles. The company is also licensed under the Temporary Permissions Regime of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to operate in the UK. See this additional review of Skilling’s license number and company info.
What is the difference between buying stocks and trading with Skilling?
Instead of real stocks, Skilling offers Contracts for Difference (CFDs), meaning that traders purchase a contract to bet on the price of an instrument without owning it. CFDs are a form of derivative trading. Skilling offers CFDs on hundreds of stocks. That said, Skilling also offers forex trading on more than 50 forex pairs. Traders who want to trade real stocks can refer to this review of real stock brokers.
Update history
This page was revised 17 times between March 2021 and April 2026.
Restructured page navigation by removing table of contents, renaming four section headings for consistency, and reorganizing content blocks with standardized broker template sections.
Added alert box recommending three alternative brokers and linking to CFD broker guide.
Added alert box suggesting alternative brokers (Plus500, eToro, EasyMarkets) with link to full CFD broker guide in Forex Trading section.
Added personalized country availability link to help readers find brokers in their location.
Added dynamic link to help users find brokers available in their country within Restricted Countries section.
Clarified fee structure by distinguishing commission charges on Premium Accounts and adding introductory sentence about additional charges.
Added introductory sentence to fees section and clarified that Premium Accounts incur commissions rather than general fees.
Expanded ECN acronym to full term for clarity and corrected three instances of "account holders" to "accountholders" for consistency.
Expanded ECN acronym definition for clarity, refined phrasing in platform sections, and improved toggle text in geographic coverage area.
Added product details including CFD trading information for stocks, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies, plus forex pairs, account types, and registration requirements.
Added product details across multiple sections including trading instruments (700+ stocks, 6 commodities, 70+ forex pairs), account types with leverage tiers, and regulatory information.
Added broker details including pros/cons table, restricted countries section, leverage tiers, stock examples, spread information, account types, fee structure with premium commission rates, swap charges, trading platforms, and risk warnings throughout.
Added product details including leverage tiers, spread information across asset classes, account types, fee structure with premium commission rates, swap charge calculations, and platform feature breakdowns.
Added overview of Skilling's trading platforms, account types, fees, and features with detailed sections on Skilling Trader, cTrader, and MT4 capabilities.
Added introductory section and detailed platform reviews covering Skilling Trader, cTrader, and MetaTrader 4 with features, pros/cons, and account information.
Added regulatory information, country acceptance details, trading products overview with leverage tiers explanation, and detailed stock CFD listings.
Added regulatory details, trading product categories, leverage structure explanations, and 700+ stock CFD examples with spread information.
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