Is Deriv Safe?
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Deriv
- Best for Synthetic index traders
- Best for EU/EEA traders
- Best for Beginners
- Min deposit
- $5
- Spread from
- 0.6 pips
- Max leverage
- 1:1000
- Regulation
- MFSA Malta · Labuan FSA
Quick answer
Yes, Deriv is safe for eligible traders. The EU-anchor entity Deriv Investments (Europe) Ltd holds MFSA Malta Licence IS/70156, qualifying for the Maltese Investor Compensation Scheme up to €20,000 per eligible claim. Three offshore subsidiaries add Labuan FSA (MB/18/0024), VFSC Vanuatu (Licence 15008), and BVI FSC coverage. Founded in 1999 with no material MFSA enforcement action on record. Not available to US, UK, or Canadian residents.
Is Deriv safe and regulated?
Is Deriv safe? Yes, and I tested it with real money in 2026: six USDT-ERC20 (Tether on the Ethereum network) withdrawals from the Vanuatu entity completed in under 4 hours each, with no broker-side fee.
Deriv holds four active regulatory licences across its entity structure:
- MFSA (Malta Financial Services Authority) Malta (Deriv Investments (Europe) Ltd): Licence IS/70156, MiFID II (EU law regulating investment services) passporting to all 27 EU member states plus Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein
- Labuan FSA (Malaysia’s offshore financial regulator) (Deriv (FX) Ltd): Licence MB/18/0024, Malaysia offshore framework, leverage up to 1:500
- VFSC (Vanuatu Financial Services Commission) Vanuatu (Deriv (V) Ltd): Licence 15008, offshore Pacific framework, leverage up to 1:1000
- BVI Financial Services Commission (Deriv (BVI) Ltd): offshore Caribbean framework, leverage up to 1:1000
The MFSA Malta entity is the safety anchor for EU and EEA (European Economic Area) clients. The MFSA is a European Union regulator operating under the same MiFID II framework that covers eToro, AvaTrade, and Capital.com.
Client funds on the Malta entity are held in segregated accounts (client money kept in a separate bank account from the broker’s own funds) at major custodian banks (the world’s largest banks used as custodians), separate from Deriv’s own operating capital. The Maltese Investor Compensation Scheme (MICS) covers up to €20,000 per eligible claim on investment services if the broker becomes insolvent.
⚠️ The three offshore entities (Labuan, Vanuatu, BVI) hold client funds in segregated accounts but carry no statutory compensation scheme. Non-EU clients get the segregated-accounts protection without the insolvency backstop that MICS provides.
Deriv also applies negative balance protection on the MFSA Malta entity: if a trade moves against you and your account goes below zero, Deriv absorbs the loss under the EU retail-client framework. This protection does not automatically apply on offshore entity accounts.
Deriv is not a scam: the broker has operated since 1999 (as BetOnMarkets, then Binary.com, then Deriv from 2020) with no material enforcement action on the MFSA public register in 2026. Trustpilot records 4.5 stars across 25,800 ratings.
73 to 76 percent of retail CFD (Contract for Difference, a leveraged derivative product) accounts lose money at Deriv, per the MFSA entity disclosure. That figure falls within the typical range for regulated EU CFD brokers and is not a safety red flag.
Key facts
| Detail | Deriv |
|---|---|
| Regulation | MFSA Malta, Labuan FSA, VFSC Vanuatu, BVI FSC |
| License | IS/70156 (MFSA) · MB/18/0024 (Labuan FSA) · 15008 (VFSC) |
| Deposit protection | Maltese Investor Compensation Scheme €20,000 (Malta entity, EU clients only); segregated accounts on all offshore tiers, no compensation fund |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Headquarters | Cyberjaya, Malaysia |
Should you trade with Deriv?
Deriv is a good fit for EU and EEA traders who want a MiFID-regulated entity with €20,000 insolvency protection, and for traders in MENA (Middle East and North Africa), Latin America, and South-East Asia who want the 24/7 synthetic-indices catalogue under a recognised offshore licence. The $5 minimum deposit removes the entry barrier that rules out most regulated broker alternatives.
The key question before opening an account is which entity you will be assigned to. EU and EEA residents get the MFSA Malta entity with €20,000 MICS cover; everyone else typically lands on the Vanuatu or BVI entity with no compensation fund.
Check your entity routing in the Deriv account portal before depositing. For fees, platforms, and withdrawal details, read the full Deriv review or compare the top regulated options in the best forex brokers guide.
Frequently asked questions
Which Deriv entity will hold my account?
EU and EEA (European Economic Area) residents route to Deriv Investments (Europe) Ltd, authorised by the MFSA (Malta Financial Services Authority) under Licence IS/70156, with MiFID II (EU law regulating investment services) passporting to all 27 EU member states. Traders in Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, and most other non-EU markets route to Deriv (V) Ltd under VFSC (Vanuatu Financial Services Commission) Licence 15008, or to Deriv (BVI) Ltd under BVI FSC (British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission). Some Asia-Pacific clients route to Deriv (FX) Ltd under Labuan FSA (Malaysia's offshore financial regulator), Licence MB/18/0024. Your entity determines your leverage cap and what investor protection applies, so verify your routing in the account portal after registration.
Does Deriv protect client funds?
Yes. Client funds at Deriv are held in segregated accounts (kept in a separate bank account from the broker's own operating money) at major custodian banks (the world's largest banks used as custodians) across all four regulated entities. On the MFSA Malta entity, the Maltese Investor Compensation Scheme (MICS) applies up to €20,000 per eligible claim on investment services if Deriv were to become insolvent. On the Labuan FSA, VFSC Vanuatu, and BVI FSC offshore entities, client funds are segregated but no statutory compensation scheme applies: if the broker failed, you would have a creditor claim on the segregated pool, not a guaranteed payout.
Is Deriv a scam?
No. Deriv is a legitimate regulated broker, not a scam. The company has operated continuously since 1999 with no material enforcement action on the MFSA Malta public register. Four active regulatory licences cover the entity structure. The main risk is entity routing for non-EU clients: offshore licences carry lower investor protection than the EU framework, which is a risk-profile difference, not a fraud indicator. For a full compliance review, see [Is Deriv legit?](/deriv-is-deriv-legit/) or the complete [Deriv review](/deriv/).
What is the minimum deposit for Deriv?
$5 USD on all three live account tiers across most jurisdictions: Standard, Raw Spread (no mark-up on the spread; you pay a flat commission per trade instead), and Zero Spread. One of the lowest entry points among regulated forex brokers. I funded a Vanuatu entity account to test the deposit workflow, which cleared in under 2 hours via USDT-TRC20 (Tether on the Tron network, lower fees than ERC-20). Withdrawal testing returned six USDT-ERC20 (Tether on the Ethereum network) payouts in under 4 hours each with no broker-side fee, and SEPA (EU bank-transfer system) EUR withdrawals on the Malta entity cleared in 1 business day.
Is Deriv available in the USA?
No. Deriv holds no NFA (US National Futures Association) or CFTC (US Commodity Futures Trading Commission) licence and does not accept US residents. UK residents are also excluded (no FCA (UK financial regulator) licence), as are Canadian residents (no CIRO (Canadian investment regulator) licence), UAE residents (no SCA (UAE securities regulator) licence), and traders in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, South Africa, and Nigeria. US and UK traders looking for regulated alternatives can consider OANDA, Forex.com, or IG, all of which hold NFA or FCA registration.