OANDA Review: Reputable CFD Brokerage With Top-quality Research

With a proven track record of over 25 years under the OANDA Group's belt, during which it managed to garner regulatory approval around the globe – including in Singapore and other tier-1 jurisdictions – the OANDA Group is a trusted online CFD brokerage preferred by traders.

Rather than attempting to cover every market sector, OANDA sticks to a limited, but well-diversified, list of popular markets. Investors can access CFDs on over 70 FX pairs, and some 55+ commodities, metals, bonds and indices. 

This quality-over-quantity philosophy carries over into its top-notch market commentaries and educational materials, which consist of a mix of news headlines, in-house content and premium resources from leading think-tanks.

What is there to expect with OANDA? Read on to find out. 

Table of contents

• Pros & cons of OANDA
• Reasons to invest using OANDA
• Who should use OANDA?
• Pricing, charges and fees
• OANDA promotions
• How to set up an account
• Comparison: OANDA vs IG vs City Index vs Tiger Brokers vs IBKR vs TD Ameritrade

Overview of OANDA

Product summary:

What you can invest in: CFDs on multiple asset classes, such as FX, indices, commodities, metals, and bonds
Minimum balance required: $0
Deposit fees: 4.2% admin fee for PayPal, free for bank transfers, cheques and PayNow
Withdrawal fees: None for PayPal, cheque, and local Singaporean bank transfers, but international bank transfers incur fees
Withdrawal limits: None, however you must maintain sufficient balance to cover margin calls
Commission: spread-only pricing and commission + core spread pricing
Inactivity fee: S$10 per month after 12 months of continued account non-activity
Licensing status: holds a Capital Markets Services license under the Securities and Futures Act administered by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)

Here are the pros and cons of investing using OANDA.

The Strengths of OANDA

#1: Internationally recognised CFD broker with over 20 years history

OANDA prides itself upon the strength of its pedigree as an internationally recognised broker, with more than 20 years of history. 

This is buoyed by several factors, including regulatory approval in six tier-1 financial jurisdictions (including in Singapore, Japan, Canada, the UK and Australia), a policy of maintaining 25 years of historical rates and spreads, low fees, and a lack of user fund lock-ins. 

In short, it is a reputable brokerage that does not engage in questionable practices like hidden fees or high commission charges. 

#2: Good selection of trading instruments

While OANDA does not have as many trading instruments as some of its competitors, it nevertheless offers a diverse selection for traders.

Besides the over 70 FX pairs (which should cover the needs of most retail investors anyway) you can also choose from asset classes such as bonds, commodities, metals and indices. 

There are plenty of trades to make within OANDA's modest but varied selection.

#3: Financing costs calculated daily according to market conditions

Instead of a flat commission structure, OANDA offers financing costs that are calculated on a daily basis for most of its trades. 

While beginners may find this system a bit obtuse when trying to estimate trading costs, traders are able to avoid overpaying for financing costs; you’ll be charged as market conditions fluctuate day to day.

OANDA also allows investors to look up daily rates on its website, and also publishes a trailing average of its average spread across all timeframes for greater transparency. 

#4: High-quality market commentaries and learning resources

Another of OANDA's strengths lies in its high-quality market commentaries and educational materials that traders can utilise to improve their chances of success.

The brokerage provides a steady stream of business and investing headlines from respected news sources such as Reuters, CNBC, MarketWatch and more through the MetaTrader4 platform. This is supplemented by MarketPulse, a mini-site run by OANDA’s own in-house editorial team focussing on macroeconomic analyses which provides and overview of market outlook and events that may have an influence on the markets.

Lastly, OANDA also offers premium content encompassing macroeconomic insights, news and forecasts from leading research houses such as UBS, as well as paid access to Dow Jones Select.

#5: Refreshingly low non-trading fees 

For the most part, OANDA does away with non-trading fees, allowing investors to focus a greater portion of their investment budget on, well, investing. 

There are no fees for account opening, no minimum balance to maintain, and no withdrawal fees. There are also no fees for deposits via bank transfer, cheques and PayNow (although there’s a 6% fee for PayPal, 4.2% by OANDA, 1.8% by PayPal). 

As for inactivity fee, your account will be debited a maximum of $10 per month, which is among the lowest we’ve seen. However, your grace period is relatively shorter; if your account goes without trading activity for more than 12 months, the inactivity fee will apply.   

For whom is OANDA best suited?

OANDA’s trading focus is on CFDs, and maintains a tightly curated but varied list of instruments. As such experienced traders and long-time investors who have already found their preferred trading focus will find the best use out of OANDA. 

Still, newcomers and less-experienced traders can benefit from an OANDA account for the top-quality market commentaries and educational materials, although they may find the lack of a flat trading fees structure challenging in the beginning. 

What charges or fees should you look out for?

OANDA charges daily spreads and rates that are closely tagged to market conditions, so you’ll be sacrificing some visibility in fees in exchange for a reduced likelihood of overpaying for trading fees (as can happen with flat fees that remain the same even when market fees drop). Daily rates are available on the website for traders to look up, which offers a degree of clarity.

As for non-trading fees, there are virtually none to take note of, except for the 6% PayPal deposit fee, and the inactivity fee of S$10 per month.

What are the promotions available for OANDA?

How do you open and fund your OANDA account?

Opening an account with OANDA Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd

1. Fill up and submit the application form here.
2. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete and submit your application 
3. Once your application is approved, your account will be created and you can start trading.

Opening a demo account with OANDA

If you prefer to open a demo account instead to determine if OANDA is right for you, you can do so by clicking on this link.

Follow the on-screen prompts to open a demo account, which you can use for practice trades while exploring the platform further. 

Funding your OANDA account

OANDA offers several ways to fund your investment account, and with the expectation of PayPal, does not charge fees on your deposits. However, do take note of possible bank fees. 

You may fund your account using any of the following methods:

OANDA vs IG vs City Index vs Tiger Brokers vs IBKR vs TD Ameritrade

Read these next:
Interactive Brokers (IBKR) Review: Pros, Cons and Why They’re So Popular
Online Brokerage Comparison: IBKR vs Tiger Brokers vs TD Ameritrade
Investment Guide: SingSaver’s One-Stop Investment Shop
City Index Review: CFD & FX Online Brokerage With Wide Market Access
IG Review: Time-tested Online Brokerage For Forex & CFD Trading