Is Exness regulated?
Our Exness evidence log contains 5 regulatory records, with all 5 findings confirmed against regulator-authored sources (last read 2026-09-23). Records can include historical corrections and limited-scope authorisations; they are not a count of current trading licences. That includes tier-1 oversight from FCA. Regulation is entity-specific: your protections depend on which Exness legal entity onboards you, not on the brand.
Last updated September 2026·Licence statuses reflect our most recent read of each register; regulators update registers daily — verify current terms with the broker before you deposit.·How we score
Licence records and findings from the registers
Verified means we read the stated finding in a regulator-authored source. Where no number is published, only the entity is confirmed. Historical records do not establish current authorisation.
| Legal entity | Regulator | Licence | Our check | Register |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exness KE Limited | CMA Kenya · Tier 2 | 162 | Verified on register checked 2026-08-22 | Source |
| Exness (UK) Ltd | FCA United Kingdom · Tier 1 | 730729 | Verified on register checked 2026-09-09 | Source |
| Exness (Cy) Ltd | CySEC Cyprus · Tier 2 | 178/12 | Verified on register checked 2026-09-19 | Source |
| Exness ZA (Pty) Ltd | FSCA South Africa · Tier 2 | 51024 | Verified on register checked 2026-09-23 | Source |
| Exness (SC) Ltd | FSA Seychelles · Offshore | no number published by this register | Entity verified checked 2026-09-23 | Source |
Notes from our checks
- CMA 162: Read first-hand on the CMA Kenya licensees register 2026-08-22: licence No. 162 held by Exness KE Limited.
- FCA 730729: FCA-authorised; does not onboard UK retail. Re-read 2026-09-09 direct from the FCA Register API (Firm/730729): 'Exness (UK) Ltd', status 'Authorised'.
- CySEC 178/12: Re-read 2026-09-19: Exness (Cy) Ltd, licence 178/12, registration 293057, approved domain www.exness.eu. This register entry does not establish retail onboarding; the company explicitly excludes retail clients.
- FSCA 51024: Read first-hand on 23 September 2026 in the FSCA FSP search and Details / Products Approved views: EXNESS ZA (PTY) LTD, 51024, status Authorized, authorisation date 11 December 2020. Category I includes intermediary services in derivative instruments. This FSP entry is not proof of separate OTC derivatives-provider approval or of the entity being the trading counterparty.
- FSA : Entity-only confirmation: Exness (SC) Ltd and its broker website were read first-hand in the Seychelles FSA capital-markets directory on 23 September 2026. The directory publishes no SD number. SD025 remains broker-disclosed and has not been independently number-verified; it is not presented as a verified licence number.
Which Exness entity would onboard you?
The brand is not the counterparty. The legal entity on your client agreement sets your regulator, compensation cover, leverage cap and terms.
| Legal entity | Regulator | Typically onboards | Compensation | Leverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exness KE Limited Kenya | CMA (Kenya) (Tier 2) | KE | None identified | See terms |
| Exness (Cy) Ltd Cyprus (EU/EEA) | CySEC (Tier 2) | Institutional / corporate clients only — not a retail route | Not applicable — no retail trading account | Not applicable — no retail trading account |
| Exness ZA (Pty) Ltd South Africa | FSCA (Tier 2) | ZA | None identified | See terms |
| Exness (UK) Ltd United Kingdom | FCA (Tier 1) | Verify at signup | None identified | See terms |
| Exness (SC) Ltd Seychelles | FSA Seychelles (Offshore) | Most other countries (rest-of-world default) | No compensation scheme. · No negative-balance protection | Very high leverage available; weaker investor protection. |
Resolve the likely entity for your country with the entity checker, then confirm the entity named on your client agreement before you deposit.
Worked verification · Edited
Worked example: a genuine Exness licence is not a retail route
A retail customer sees Exness’s Cyprus licence. Does it establish that their account would have Cyprus retail protections?
Verify the company and domain
CySEC lists Exness (Cy) Ltd with licence 178/12 and company registration 293057. Its approved domain is www.exness.eu. That establishes which legal company the entry concerns, not who it accepts as a customer.
Read who the company serves
The company’s legal-documents page states that it does not serve retail clients or individual investors. Its Client Categorization Policy, version 7 October 2024, sections 1 and 2.1, excludes retail clients and describes professional clients and eligible counterparties.
Stop before borrowing another entity’s protections
Our retail entity checker excludes this Cyprus company. Do not apply its licence or a generic EU compensation figure to a different Exness contract. A separate company’s country eligibility, service permissions and terms must be checked independently.
What this establishes: The Cyprus licence can be genuine while being irrelevant to a retail onboarding route. This example establishes that exclusion; it does not prove that an alternative Exness entity can legally accept a particular resident.
We inspected public documents, not an account application. Register-listed countries do not override the company’s client restrictions. Do not change your declared residence or client category to bypass them.
Sources and check dates
- CySEC: Exness (Cy) Ltd · Read
Licence 178/12, company registration 293057 and approved domain.
- Exness (Cy) Ltd legal documents · Read
Institutional/corporate audience and explicit retail-client exclusion.
- Exness Client Categorization Policy · Read
Version 7 October 2024; sections 1 and 2.1, PDF pages 2–3.
What the licences actually give you
Three protections worth checking by name. Any of them can be missing even when a broker is licensed somewhere.
| Compensation scheme | ICF up to €20,000 (CySEC clients) |
| Segregated client fundsSegregated fundsClient money held in bank accounts kept separate from the broker's own funds, so it isn't used to run the business and is easier to return if the firm fails. | Yes, per the broker's disclosures |
| Negative-balance protectionNegative-balance protectionA safeguard that stops your account going below zero, so you can't end up owing the broker more than you deposited. Mandatory for retail clients in some regions. | Yes, for retail clients where the regulator requires it |
| UK entity (retail) | 30:1 |
| EU entity (retail) | 30:1 |
| Australian entity (retail) | 30:1 |
| South African entity | 2000:1 |
| International / offshore entity | Unlimited |
Verify these licences in five minutes
Never take a licence claim from a broker page, or from us, without reading the register.
- 1. Note the exact legal entity and licence number from the table above, or from the client agreement you would sign.
- 2.Open the regulator's own register from the links below, never from a link the broker hands you, and search that number.
- 3. Match the entity name and number exactly, check the status is active or authorised, and look for a clone-firm warning naming the brand.
Exness regulation: common questions
Is Exness regulated?
Our Exness evidence log contains 5 regulatory records, with all 5 findings confirmed against regulator-authored sources (last read 2026-09-23). Records can include historical corrections and limited-scope authorisations; they are not a count of current trading licences. That includes tier-1 oversight from FCA. Regulation is entity-specific: your protections depend on which Exness legal entity onboards you, not on the brand.
Is Exness regulated by the FCA?
Yes. Exness (UK) Ltd holds FCA reference 730729. Our check: verified on the register, last read 2026-09-09. Only clients onboarded by that UK entity get FCA protections such as FSCS cover; other Exness entities do not carry them.
Is Exness regulated by CySEC?
Exness (Cy) Ltd is recorded with CySEC licence 178/12 (Cyprus, tier-2). Our check: verified on the register, last read 2026-09-19.
Is Exness regulated by FSCA?
Exness ZA (Pty) Ltd is recorded with FSCA licence 51024 (South Africa, tier-2). Our check: verified on the register, last read 2026-09-23.
Is Exness regulated by CMA?
Exness KE Limited is recorded with CMA licence 162 (Kenya, tier-2). Our check: verified on the register, last read 2026-08-22.
Is Exness regulated by FSA?
Yes. Exness (SC) Ltd is listed by the FSA (Seychelles, offshore); no licence number was independently confirmed in this record, so the entity is what we verify. Our check: verified on the register, last read 2026-09-23.
Which Exness entity would I be onboarded by?
Our map lists 5 Exness legal entities (Kenya, Cyprus (EU/EEA), South Africa, United Kingdom and Seychelles). A listing does not establish retail account availability: consultation or introduction entities and institutional-only firms are not retail trading-account routes. Which company applies depends on your country and client agreement. Use the entity checker for the likely match, then confirm it before depositing.
Does Exness have investor compensation?
ICF up to €20,000 (CySEC clients). Compensation schemes pay out only if the firm itself fails and cannot return client money; they never cover trading losses, and they apply only to clients of the specific licensed entity, not to every Exness client worldwide.
Has the FCA published a warning naming Exness?
Not in the warnings we hold (FCA clone-firm and unauthorised-firm warnings from mid-2026 onwards, refreshed weekly). Absence is not clearance: search the FCA warning list for the brand and any name a caller gives you.
Has Exness been fined or warned by a regulator?
We hold no sourced regulator action for Exness as of 2026-09-23. Absence from our log is not a clean bill: check the enforcement and warning pages of each regulator named above before depositing.
Next step
The full research file on Exness covers real costs and withdrawal friction alongside this regulation evidence, or compare it with alternatives available in your country.
Related
Informational research only, not financial advice. Regulatory status changes; verify directly on the official registers before depositing. Being licensed is not the same as being suitable for you, and no licence protects against trading losses.