Plus500 Review

Plus500 is one of Europe’s leading CFD trading platform that offers a range of financial products, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. You can trade many different cryptocurrencies, stocks, forex, commodities, options, ETFs, and indexes. Plus500 is one of the most reputable brokers in Bitcoin trading. The CFD broker has no trading commissions, competitive fixed and dynamic spreads, up to 1:30 leverage, offers price decline speculation and Bitcoin trading 24/7.

It’s not surprising that the trading platform has become popular in the Bitcoin market. In this review, you will learn everything about Plus500. We have tested the platform and will talk about the user experience, trading tools, trading instruments, fees and limits, margin trading and much more. At the end of the review, there are simple step-by-step instructions for how to open a Plus500 account and getting started.

Plus500 also offers a free and unlimited demo account! It’s great for anyone who wants to get started with Bitcoin trading. However, trading is risky and profitable trading takes time and experience. With a demo account, you can start experimenting with Bitcoin trading. Read more about different accounts at Plus500 below. If you’re a beginner, we recommend reading our cryptocurrency trading guide. It contains important advice and trading tips!

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

How does Plus500 work?

Plus500 provides CFD contracts in a number of financial markets. It was the first broker to start offering Bitcoin CFDs, creating a brand new market. CFD stands for “Contracts for Difference” and allows you to trade Bitcoin without using Bitcoin. As the name suggests, there is a contract between the trader and the exchange. It’s an agreement that simulates the price of the underlying asset, in this case, Bitcoin. But why should you trade Bitcoin CFDs instead of actual Bitcoins?

It was created to allow investors to speculate on the Bitcoin price without having to buy and own it. There is high demand for this on the financial market for several reasons. The Bitcoin market is still more or less unregulated, and you can’t trust many exchanges. It’s also common with scams and hacker attacks on Bitcoin exchanges. In addition, to safely buy Bitcoin you need some technical knowledge.

Plus500 is a regulated trading platform that offers many trading tools. Margin trading is one of the most important tools for a Bitcoin trader because you can leverage your positions (more about this below). The few exchanges that offer margin trading on the crypto market are not considered reliable.

CFDs are also flexible because traders can take place long and short positions, which is not offered at many exchanges. (A short position, is selling first and then buying later. The trader’s expectation is to buy it back at a lower price. The difference between the sale price and the buy price will then produce a profit.) But don’t forget that you risk your capital with trading. If you don’t need to use Bitcoin but want to speculate on the price, CFDs is an option.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Bitcoin CFD Trading

As you notice, there are many potential benefits of CFD contracts if you’re trading Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. However, it can not be used as a long-term investment. Bitcoin CFD trading is for individuals who want to speculate in the short term price.

Plus500 offers leverage trading up to 1:30 which varies between instruments and countries. In other words, if you have €100 in your account, you can trade for as much as €3,000. This allows traders to generate significantly more money in addition to their own capital. But it also means that you can lose more money. Plus500 has negative balance protection, but you risk your capital with margin trading.

The trading platform offers a generous leverage for cryptocurrencies. We recommend to start slowly but surely and learn from mistakes. Trading cryptocurrencies are more volatile than stocks because the market is new. For this reason, many traders from the stock market are entering crypto which increases the competition. CFD also has the advantage of low fees in relation to other methods in the crypto market.

Bitcoin CFD trading makes it possible to buy and sell 24/7. Plus500 is one of the leader in Bitcoin CFD trading. In this review, you will learn all pros and cons with the Plus500 trading platform

Experience with customer support

Plus500 offers customer service via email and 24/7 live chat. However, there is no telephone support available. The experience was good when we tested their live chat support. We got quick answers to all questions, and the staff was professional. On regular Bitcoin exchanges, there is usually long waiting times. Plus500 also lists common questions and answers on its website.

Plus500 open account

There are two different types of accounts on Plus500. The first is a demo account that is free and available for an indefinite period. The other is a live trading account with a minimum deposit of €100. For beginners, it may be a good idea to learn how the platform works with a demo account. However, real money is necessary to learn trading cryptocurrencies. Trading is psychology, and you will act differently when money is involved.

We recommend that beginners open a demo account or start with a small amount of money. Start with the minimum deposit amount and learn from your mistakes. It’s important to understand how your brain reacts in different situations. It will be quicker to get started with Bitcoin trading if you decide in advance your trading amount. At the end of the review, we have simple step-by-step instructions for opening an account and trade Bitcoin on Plus500.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Open Account at Plus500

86% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money

Plus500 Background

Plus500 was founded in 2008, around the time that Satoshi Nakamoto introduced Bitcoin. The company expanded its services and became the first broker to offer Bitcoin CFDs on the market in 2013. Plus500 has created a strong reputation in the CFD market.

It’s an Israeli company with high trust because Plus500 Ltd is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. Plus500 is protected by laws in Great Britain, Cyprus, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Israel. For this reason, the trading platform can offer investors a trusted way to trade Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

The CFD Broker is trusted, authorized and regulated by the FCA (British Financial Conduct Authority), CySEC (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission) and ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission). This means that your money on the Plus500 has an investor protection. Your protection depends on your country of residence because the company has different subsidiaries.

In Great Britain, you are a Plus500UK customer and protected by FCA (FRN 509909). If you live in another EEA country (EU + Norway), you are a customer of Plus500CY, the subsidiary in Cyprus. This means that the company is regulated by CySEC (License No. 250/14). For more information see the section “Client Money Protection” in the sidebar / top of page.

Bitcoin exchanges offer no investor protection, meaning that you lose your money if the company goes bankrupt. When choosing a CFD broker, it’s important to check that they offer investor protection.

Plus500 has a large and growing customer base around the world. At the exchange, customers can easily diversify their money in cryptocurrencies. With 10 years of experience, Plus500 has become one of the leading CFD trading platform on the market.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

The trading platform has an intuitive interface that’s easy to use. We notice that Plus500 has focused on creating a user-friendly platform. They also have a mobile platform with all features for iOS, Android, and Windows. Plus500 is available in three different versions and 32 languages. We’ll review all the details below.

Overall, the user experience is well thought out and good. You don’t need to sign any papers, everything is done digitally. We can recommend Plus500 to all active traders. At the end of the review, we will help you open an account.

Trading Platform

When you are logged in to the platform, there are four tabs; “Trade”, “Open Positions”, “Orders” and “Closed Positions”. There you will get information about available trading instruments, current positions, closed positions and order history. In the first tab, you can browse between different cryptocurrencies and trading instruments. There is also a charting tool, but you can only view one graph at a time on the screen.

The Plus500 platform is available in three different versions. These are as follows:

1. A downloadable version for your computer or laptop.
2. A web-based version that allows you to log in and trade on any computer.
3. An app that can be downloaded on iOS, Android and Windows. There is also an app for Apple Watch.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Mobile Platform

Their app has the simplest mobile platform we’ve tested. Plus500 has a platform that looks and works, in the same way, no matter what version you’re using. This makes it easy to switch between laptop and mobile without having to spend time learning a new interface. You can log in to the Plus500 app with TouchID or remain logged in.

Plus500 has several features such as an economic calendar, risk management tools and price alerts. It helps you keep track of important events on the market, minimize losses with stop loss settings, and get real-time price notifications via email, text messages or push notifications. In the next section, you will learn everything about their trading tools.

Bitcoin traders using the Plus500 CFD platform have access to a variety of trading tools and features. It includes technical chart tools for analyzing cryptocurrencies. Risk management tools such as guaranteed stop loss and price warnings. Transparent order information that shows the sentiment in the market. Below we go through all trading tools, how they work, what makes them good and what they lack.

Chart Tools

Technical analysis is the most important tool for all traders. Plus500 has a chart tool that works perfectly well, but there are better options. The trading screen har a user interface that is divided into three sections with a navigation menu on the left. The upper section of the trading screen displays available instruments including cryptocurrencies. The bottom section shows the chart tool, and to the right, you place your order.

The chart tool has all the basic features that traders can expect. You can choose between line chart and candlestick chart, there are different indicators, time intervals and more. However, you can’t save the graph and view multiple simultaneously on the screen. The most popular charting tool for technical analysis is undoubtedly TradingView. We recommend combining their chart tool software with Plus500.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Risk Management

Plus500 has multiple risk management tools that can lock in profits, minimize losses and create peace of mind for traders. You can automatically close your position at a higher price (Limit) or lower price (Stop Loss). This means that you can decide in advance your maximum possible loss. We strongly recommend all Bitcoin traders to use a stop loss to minimize the risk. Especially when you trade with leverage and cryptocurrencies that are volatile. The following tools are available:

• Close at Profit: You can determine a specific profit level where your position is automatically closed. This is called limit-order and is used to protect profits.
• Close at Loss: You can determine a specific loss level where your position is automatically closed. This is called stop loss and is used to limit losses.
• Guaranteed Stop: A guaranteed stop is an absolute loss limit regardless of “slippage” that may occur with a stop loss. A tool that is useful when the market is extra volatile.
• Trailing Stop: A trailing stop will automatically update when the price increases. This allows you to take advantages of price increases while also protecting your profit. A tool that is useful when the crypto market moves to your advantage.
• Price Notifications: It’s easy to keep up to date with price notifications. A great way to follow and keep track of the crypto market.

(Note: Prices above are illustrative as they change all the time)

Order Information

The order placement is transparent and displays all important information. An advantage of trading Bitcoin and cryptocurrency on Plus500 is their Traders’ Sentiments. It shows the percentage of long and short positions on the market. An indicator that can be used to determine trends in the crypto market.

More information displayed is Spread, the difference between buying and selling price. Premium Buy / Sell, a cost that is added or removed when a position is open overnight. Leverage together with Initial Margin and Maintenance Margin. The amount required to open the position and keep the position open.

Available Trading Instruments

Plus500 offers CFDs within cryptocurrencies, stocks, options, indices, commodities, ETFs and currencies. Below we have listed all the cryptocurrencies and other instruments available today.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Cryptocurrencies:

Stocks:

There is a huge range of stocks from 21 different countries. Even if you trade cryptocurrencies, you have the option to buy and sell stocks on the same platform.

Options:

Plus500 also has index and stock options, although the offer is smaller. For each index and stock, there are around ten different types of options.

Indices:

Commodities:

ETFs:

Plus500 has a large and wide range of ETFs in commodities and indices. There are around 80 different ETFs which we have chosen not to list here. Visit their website for more information.

Forex:

There is also a large variety of different currencies on Plus500. The trading platform has around 60 different currency pairs that include USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, RUB, SEK, NOK and many more. Visit their website for more information.

Plus500 was the first CFD broker to offer Bitcoin trading in 2013. The trading platform also offered Bitcoin margin trading, which is still unusual on the market. This means that you only need a fraction of the total value of your position, the rest is effectively lent to you. You are essentially borrowing money when using leverage.

Bitcoin is undeniably unique. No currency or commodity works in the same way. Bitcoin is the world’s first digital currency and has a predetermined inflation rate. For that reason, the Bitcoin price doesn’t move like other markets.

The crypto market generally has no correlation with the forex, bond, commodity and stock markets. In addition, cryptocurrencies are far more volatile than regular fiat currencies and securities. An independent and volatile market is popular for active traders.

As a Bitcoin trader, you want the price to fluctuate much because that creates opportunities to potentially make money. This is why many traders from the stock market have started to trade cryptocurrency. But don’t forget that you risk your capital with trading.

Bitcoin CFDs are also flexible because traders can take both long and short positions. Not many crypto exchanges offers long and short positions on Bitcoin.

If you want to buy or sell Bitcoin on Plus500, click on “Trade” in the left menu and select Bitcoin under “Crypto”. With Plus500, you can trade Bitcoin as a CFD instrument 24/7 (except for one hour on Sundays).

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Bitcoin Margin Trading

Plus500 offers margin trading with leverage up to 1:30 on its instruments. This means you can trade for €3,000 if you have €100 in your account. Bitcoin CFDs with leverage was introduced in April 2013.

Margin trading enables Bitcoin traders to generate significantly more money in addition to their own capital. But it also means that you can lose your money faster. However, you can never lose more than your money as Plus500 has negative balance protection.

The trading platform offers margin trading on all its cryptocurrencies; Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, and IOTA. High volatility, 24/7 availability, and cryptocurrency leverage is all important for traders. Plus500 Bitcoin CFDs opens the door to the crypto market for all private traders.

NOTE! Trading CFD instruments with leverage is high risk. Trading is to speculate on the price of cryptocurrencies and no long-term investment. Margin trading means that you risk your capital.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Plus500 Fees

There is no buy and sell fee when trading on Plus500. Instead, you pay the difference between the buying and selling price, also called “spread”. Since you’re trading crypto and other instruments with leverage, there is also a finance cost. But that only applies if you leave the position open overnight. In trading, positions are recommended for a few hours or at most a few days.

Plus500 is available in 50+ countries and in more than 30 different languages. The CFD broker focuses on Europe and is not available to customers in the US. The following are all fees on the trading platform:

• Withdrawal fee: Free up to five times a month. Minimum withdrawals are $100 for payment card and $50 for PayPal. If you want to withdraw less money or more than five times a month, the fee is $10. (Depending on which bank you use, a bank transfer may cost up to $6).
• Inactivity fee: After three months of inactivity, it costs $10 per quarter (every three months). If you still want your account available.
• Currency conversion fee: This varies and is up to 0.7%.
• Guaranteed stop order: If you choose this feature, please note that as it guarantees that your position (trade) closes at a specific requested rate (price), the trade is subject to a wider spread.

Please also note that Plus500 has a conversion currency fee.

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

Deposits and Withdrawals

It’s easy to deposit and withdraw money on Plus500 with debit/credit card, bank transfer, PayPal or Skrill. Payments are usually processed within one business day but depend on the method you choose. Withdrawals to electronic wallets like PayPal or Skrill can take longer.

Payment Methods

Plus500 is a well-established CFD trading platform with many years of experience. There are many advantages of trading cryptocurrencies on the Plus500. This is apparent if you have read everything until now. The CFD Broker offers a simple platform, competitive spreads, negative balance protection, 24/7 online support, no commissions and more! We have created a table comparison between Plus500 and regular Bitcoin exchanges.

Why choose Plus500 instead of a Bitcoin exchange?

Free Demo Trading Account!

There is a free demo account on Plus500 that allows you to test the trading platform. If you open a demo account, you get simulated money to trade with. Good for beginners who want to learn how the platform and its features work. New users can switch between the demo account and real-time trading.

You can use the demo account for as long as you want until you’re ready to trade with real money. However, real money is necessary to learn trading cryptocurrencies. Trading is psychology, and you will act differently when money is involved. We recommend beginners to test their demo account. Thereafter you should start trading with a small amount of money.

If you want to get started with Bitcoin trading, you should decide in advance how much money you are going to trade with. All Bitcoin traders make mistakes, and mistakes cost money. The important thing is that you learn from your mistakes and don’t stop trying. You need to invest money in yourself to learn Bitcoin trading. Focus on cutting your losses short and let your potential winners run.

When you want to make real money you need to make a deposit. The minimum deposit is only €100 euro, and then you can trade cryptocurrency for €20o (1:2). In the next section, we have simple step-by-step instructions to open a Plus500 account and get started!

Disclaimer: Availability subject to regulations.

1: Account Registration

Visit their website and press the button “Start Trading Now”. Then you can choose between demo mode and real money; we choose real money. All you need to fill in to register an account is e-mail and password. Then click on “Create account” and you will automatically log in!

2: Verify Your Account

Before you can deposit money and start trading, you need to verify your account. When you are logged in, click on “Funds” in the left menu. On that page you get to enter details and answer some knowledge questions. It includes personal information, relevant experience, knowledge of investing, financial information and the leverage effect you want. CFD brokers need to clearly inform their users about the risks involved. (Your account may require an additional review. In that case, a message will be sent when the process is completed.)

3: Deposit of Money

Once your account is verified, you can deposit money. Log in and click on “Funds” in the menu on the left and then select deposit. You can choose between card payment (Visa / MasterCard), PayPal, regular bank transfer, Skrill and direct bank transfer.

This is a short trading guide on how to use the platform and create an order. We will help you get started and make your first trade on Plus500. Follow our easy step-by-step instructions to trade Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies on Plus500!

1: Create Account

Above we helped you to register an account with Plus500. It only takes a few minutes. Visit their website and press the button “Start Trading Now”. Then you can choose between demo mode and real money; we choose real money. All you need to fill in to register an account is e-mail and password. Then click on “Create account” and you will automatically log in!

2: Deposit Money

The next step is to deposit money into your account. Log in and click on “Funds” in the menu on the left. If you haven’t verified your account, you first need to enter some information and knowledge questions. Then it’s easy to make a deposit. You can choose between card payment (Visa / MasterCard), PayPal, regular bank transfer, Skrill and direct bank transfer.

3: Platform Overview

When you have money in your account, it’s time to start trading cryptocurrencies! The CFD platform is easy to use even for beginners. Log in and click on “Trade” in the menu on the left. The trading screen has an interface divided into three sections with navigation to the left. The upper section of the trading screen displays available instruments including cryptocurrencies. The bottom section shows the chart tool, and to the right, you place your order.

The chart tool has all the basic features that traders can expect. You can choose between line chart and candlestick chart, there are different indicators, time intervals and more. For beginners, we recommend reading our cryptocurrency trading guide.

(Note: Prices above are illustrative as they change all the time)

4: Select Cryptocurrency

First, choose which instrument or cryptocurrency you want to trade and between a short/long position. If you think the price will go up click on “Buy“. If you think the price will go down click on “Sell.” In this example, we click on buy Bitcoin.

(Note: Prices above are illustrative as they change all the time)

5: Create an Order

The last step is to select the number of contracts and create your order. You can also choose different advanced settings. It includes leverage effect, close at profit, close at loss, guaranteed stop and more settings under “Advanced“. If you click on “Info“, you will find more information such as unit amount, fixed spread, premium buy and premium sell. When you’re ready to buy Bitcoin, click on Buy!

(Note: Prices above are illustrative as they change all the time)