Best Online Brokers in France in 2024

One of the best trading platforms in France is eToro, an international online broker with over 30 million users who trade stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrencies and CFDs on stocks, ETFs, commodities, Forex, indices and cryptocurrencies. It is known for its social trading feature, where you can copy the trades of other traders. There are thousands of verified traders on eToro, and you can pick the best trader based on past Return on Investment (ROI), risk profile, or other factors.

The eToro platform gives users access to over 3,000 financial instruments, including stocks and ETFs. Additionally, users can invest in ready-made investment portfolios (Smart Portfolios), a group of several assets or traders combined based on a theme or strategy.

Plus, eToro offers commission-free stock and ETF trading in France (other fees apply).

Opening an account and depositing is easy, and you can even try it out with virtual money (a demo account). On the downside, spreads can be high for some products. The only currency accepted (base currency) is the USD, meaning you’ll be charged currency conversion fees upon deposit and withdrawal when depositing in euros.

eToro is fully regulated and supervised by top-tier regulators such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in Australia. The subsidiary in Europe, formerly known as “eToro (Europe) Ltd,” is authorised and regulated by the Cyprus Securities Exchange Commission (CySEC).

If you want to learn more, check out our eToro Review.

Another exceptional trading platform in France is Interactive Brokers. Founded in 1978 and publicly listed in NASDAQ (ticker: IBKR), Interactive Brokers is a global online broker that surpassed major financial crises, showing resilience and a rigorous risk management process.

Interactive Brokers offers an advanced investment platform that includes a wide range of products (stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs, futures, bonds, and currencies) from +135 markets, solid trade execution (IB SmartRouting), and a set of technical and fundamental tools to help you in your investment decisions.

Beginners and intermediate investors have educational tools to explore, but the learning curve will be steep. Besides, customer service gives clear answers to your doubts, so there is no need to go back and forth.

On the downside, Interactive Brokers’ fee structure is quite complex, the registration process is lengthy (but fully online), and the broker doesn’t offer commission-free trading. However, when considering FX fees, narrower spreads, and the stock loan program, Interactive Brokers’ clients still get significant savings compared to most brokers.

Interactive Brokers also launched IBKR GlobalTrader, a modern mobile trading app to trade stocks, ETFs, and options, which is ideal for beginner investors. Some of the features of IBKR GlobalTrader include automatic currency conversions, fractional shares, and a demo account.

Want to know more about Interactive Brokers? Check our Interactive Brokers Review.

Founded in 2014, Scalable Capital is a German fintech that offers two services: Brokerage, where you can trade shares, ETFs, funds, crypto, and derivatives and invest via a savings plan by yourself, and a Wealth Service (Robo-advisor), where you get a personalized portfolio managed by Scalable Capital.

On the brokerage side, the range of available products is considerable: 7,500+ shares, 2,400+ ETFs, 3,000+ Funds, 70+ Crypto ETPs, and 375,000+ derivatives. It offers three pricing plans: “Free broker” for €0/month; “Prime Broker” for €2.99/month and “Prime Broker Flex” for €4.99. In all of them, you have free trading in a list of “PRIME ETFs”. Commission-free trading in shares is included in the “Prime Broker” plan.

Within the Wealth Service, you will only be presented with different portfolios/strategies using ETFs. First, you need to answer a short questionnaire to access your risk profile, and then an appropriate portfolio will be set for you. Up to €100,000, you are charged an annual management fee of 0.75%. You can pay the minimum annual fee of 0.49% if you deposit over €500,000.

Scalable Capital has regulatory permission from the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) to provide securities services, and it is also supervised by the German Federal Bank (Deutsche Bundesbank). As such, it is a member of the investor compensation scheme, which protects your cash (up to €100,000) and your assets (limited to 90%, up to a maximum of €20,000 per investor).

Launched in 1992, Saxo Bank is one of the most solid financial entities in the brokerage industry, with a proven track record of success. It lets you trade over 70,000 financial instruments through their trading platforms: SaxoTraderPRO (for PC) and SaxoTraderGO (on mobile).

The wide range of cash and margin trading products across global markets includes stocks, ETFs, bonds, mutual funds, cryptos, options, futures, CFDs, forex, and more! Saxo Bank presents its advanced research tools for “Buy and hold or trade on leverage”. 

The Saxo Bank account tiers are the following:

• Classic: A minimum €2,000 deposit is required (depending on the country of residency; for France, there is no minimum deposit requirement), giving you access to tight spreads and customer and technical support 24/5.
• Platinum: A minimum €200,000 deposit is required. In addition to Classic features, it also lowers trading prices by up to 30% and prioritizes local-language customer support.
• VIP: A minimum €1,000,000 deposit is required. Here, you will find the best prices, access to trading experts, and exclusive event invitations.

The pricing structure will vary according to your account tier. For instance, a US stock order will be 0.08% of the trade value, with a minimum of $1 in Classic. However, within the VIP tier, the same trade would be 0.03% of the trade value with the same minimum of $1. Plus, for accounts with stocks, ETFs/ETCs, or bond positions, a custody fee of up to 0.15% p.a. will apply.

The listed prices are approximate and will differ based on the resident country. For precise pricing details, refer to the platform’s trade tickets for a comprehensive overview.

Saxo Bank A/S is a fully licensed European bank under the supervision of the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA). Saxo Bank is a member of the Danish Guarantee Fund, which protects client cash deposits up to €100,000 and financial securities (stocks, ETFs,…) up to €20,000 per client.

Founded in 2013, DEGIRO is a low-cost brokerage firm that has become very popular due to its low rates! With over 2.8 million users, the innovative platform has become widely known for its “do-it-yourself” philosophy in the sense that you have everything at your disposal to start investing on your own. It offers a wide range of financial assets to trade, including stocks, ETFs, bonds, options, futures contracts, warrants, investment funds, and some leveraged products (not quite the same as CFDs. More info here).

For instance, you can trade some ETFs for a low cost (a €1.00 flat handling fee – external costs – still apply) with no minimum amount required. The web trading platform is basic, but it is efficient and straightforward to use. In a matter of minutes, you get used to it. The same applies to its mobile app. On the downside, there is an absence of significant fundamental research, a €1.00 commission for US stocks, a €2.50 connectivity fee applies, and pricing alerts are missing.

Regarding security, DEGIRO is the Dutch branch of flatexDEGIRO Bank AG (a German-regulated bank). In the unlikely event that the segregated assets cannot be returned to clients, DEGIRO falls under the German Investor Compensation Scheme, which compensates any losses from non-returned assets up to 90% (with a maximum of €20,000), so do bear this in mind if you are planning to invest much larger volumes. Furthermore, any money deposited on a DEGIRO Cash Account with flatexDEGIRO Bank AG will be guaranteed up to €100,000 under the German Deposit Guarantee Scheme.

Still any doubts? Go through our DEGIRO Review!

Founded in 2006, Trading 212 is a fintech based in London that aims to democratize the entire investment process through a simple mobile application. The company aims to do this by allowing anyone to invest in over 10,000 stocks and ETFs, Forex, commodities, CFDs, and cryptocurrencies. Over 15 million people have already downloaded the app.

In Trading 212, you will find commission-free stocks and ETFs trading, fractional shares, and even an automatic investment system (Robo-advisor). Opening an account is extremely quick and easy. On the downside, it shows limitations regarding available products, such as the lack of bonds and options. It charges a 0.15% currency conversion fee when buying assets in a currency different from your base account.

Within the app, you will notice two distinct sub-platforms: Trading 212 Invest, where you can trade a range of assets free of charge, and Trading 212 CFD, where you may trade leveraged financial products (CFDs).

On Trading 212 CFD, the currency conversion fee (FX fee) is higher (0.50%) than on Trading 212 Invest (0.15%).

The minimum deposit and withdrawal amounts are both €10. There are no deposit fees if you use bank transfer (other options include cards and Google/Apple Pay). For withdrawals, there is no fee, regardless of the method used.

In terms of safety, every Trading 212 is regulated by the following regulators: the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), and the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC).

If you want to learn more, check our Trading 212 Review.