The LSE Directory / CFD and forex brokers
HFM (HF Markets) is a Cyprus-based online broker offering retail and professional clients trading access to forex and CFDs on stock indices, commodities, metals, energies, individual shares, bonds, ETFs and cryptocurrencies, all from a single account. Clients trade through MetaTrader 4, MetaTrader 5 or the firm's own HFM mobile app, choosing among Cent, Zero, Pro, Premium and the offshore InfinityX account tiers, with minimum deposits from $0 and, on its offshore entities, leverage of up to 1:2000. The firm differentiates less through any single flagship product than through the breadth of its regulated footprint: it runs parallel legal entities in the UK, Cyprus, Dubai, South Africa and offshore in Seychelles and St Vincent and the Grenadines, letting it onboard clients under whichever license fits their residency, from tightly leveraged EU and UK accounts to higher leverage offshore ones. It also runs two built in passive trading products aimed at clients who want exposure to someone else's strategy rather than executing their own trades: the HFcopy copy trading platform, where followers mirror a strategy provider from a $25 minimum deposit, and PAMM accounts for pooled, manager run funds. An independent review notes the broker's own business terms restrict scalping and arbitrage strategies, positioning it more toward MetaTrader first discretionary and copy traders than high frequency trading. HFM was founded in 2010 as HotForex, and the group was led by CEO George Koumantaris at the time of its rebrand. It changed its trading name from HotForex to HFM in May 2022 to reflect an offering that had grown beyond forex into a full multi-asset broker. It holds licenses from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (HF Markets (UK) Ltd, firm reference number 801701), the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (HF Markets (Europe) Ltd, licence 183/12, registered in Larnaca), the Dubai Financial Services Authority (HF Markets (DIFC) Ltd, licence F004885), South Africa's Financial Sector Conduct Authority (HF Markets SA (PTY) Ltd, licence 46632) and the Seychelles Financial Services Authority (HF Markets (Seychelles) Ltd, licence SD015). As of 2022 the group reported more than 2.5 million live trading accounts worldwide. In March 2026, HFM became an Official Global Partner of Arsenal Football Club under a multi-year sponsorship, giving it matchday branding at Emirates Stadium and access to the club's marketing platforms as part of a broader push to build brand visibility beyond its established base of clients in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
