Trading212 or BitMEX – which is better for UK traders 2025? Compare Trading212 and BitMEX in this detailed breakdown of their platforms, features and fees.
Trading 212 is a European and UK-regulated CFD broker that also offers stock investing and ISAs. It’s best known for its commission-free trading model and beginner-friendly app, which has helped it attract 2.5 million users and £3.5 billion in client assets.
BitMEX is a crypto exchange and derivatives trading platform, launched in 2014. The firm offers a fiat–crypto onramp, spot trading, and crypto derivatives including perpetual contracts, traditional futures and quanto futures. BitMEX offers amongst the largest market liquidity of any cryptocurrency exchange.
Pros
One of the standout features of Trading 212 is its commission-free trading, meaning you can buy and sell stocks, ETFs, and other financial instruments without incurring traditional brokerage fees
Trading 212 has an intuitive and user-friendly platform that is especially accessible for beginners, with a straightforward layout and a reasonable range of tools for analysis
The platform offers a good suite of instruments, including stocks, indices, ETFs, currencies, commodities, and CFDs. This variety can help you to create a diversified investment portfolio
A sleek mobile app lets you trade on the go. It’s well-designed and offers features similar to the web platform, making it convenient if you prefer mobile trading
Up to 5.2% interest on uninvested cash is available, appealing to hands-off investors
The Guilds social trading service allows traders to participate in competitions and earn rewards, including a weekly prize pool worth 4,000 USDT at the time of writing
BitMEX continues to deliver a considerable amount of market information for free, as well as trading guides and community channels on Discord, Telegram and more
The broker offers high levels of security, using a combination of hot and cold wallets and cryptography key management
The native token, BMEX, can be staked with up to 15% trading fee discounts, among other exclusive privileges
Comprehensive customizability is available within the platform, with movable widgets and order book filters
Traders have the opportunity to connect with investors using the intuitive inbuilt chat feature
The exclusive crypto platform makes it more streamlined than other multi-asset terminals
Traders can earn interest if they HODL Tether and Bitcoin
The broker offers 2 API systems for seasoned traders
Cons
Experienced traders who rely on sophisticated technical analysis tools will find Trading 212’s charting features to be somewhat basic, especially compared to alternatives like IG
While Trading 212 offers leveraged trading through CFDs, there are restrictions on leverage for certain instruments. If you want high leverage for your strategies, you will find these limitations constraining
There’s no copy trading, a significant drawback given Trading 212's client base is largely beginners and brokers like eToro offer this feature
There is no support for algorithmic or automated trading, nor third-party apps like MetaTrader 4, which will deter advanced traders. IC Markets ticks these boxes
BitMEX is an offshore firm and is not regulated by any reputable authority, though this is common among crypto brokers
BitMEX is geared towards more active traders, with fewer tools and features aimed at newbies
The broker was involved in a legal dispute with US regulators which resulted in fines
Withdrawals are only carried out at a specified time of day
Trading212 have positioned themselves at the front of the mobile trading movement. Their platform is based on a ‘mobile-first’ model, so they prioritize this type of trader. The app offers 1800+ instruments, zero commissions and a free practise account. Download the app risk free and try it out.
iOS App Rating
3.2
Android App Rating
3.2
Margin Trading
Yes
Yes
MetaTrader 4
No
No
MetaTrader 5
No
No
cTrader
No
No
AlgoTrader
No
Yes
OmniTrader
No
No
TradingView
No
Yes
Autochartist
No
No
eSignal
No
No
Trading Central
No
No
STP Account
Yes
No
ECN Account
No
No
DMA Account
No
No
MAM Account
No
No
PAMM Account
No
No
LAMM Account
No
No
Demat Account
No
No
AI / Machine Learning
No
No
Robo Advisor
No
No
Negative Balance Protection
Yes
No
Market Maker
Yes
Yes
P2P Trading
No
Yes
Spot Trading
No
Yes
Auto Trading
AutoInvest Portfolio
BitMEX Market Maker, BotVS, and via API
Copy Trading
No
No
Social Trading
Yes
Yes
VPS Hosting
No
No
Tournaments
No
No
Demo Competitions
No
No
Ethical Investing
Yes
No
Custodial Account
No
No
Guaranteed Stop Loss
No
No
Islamic Account
No
No
Account Currencies
USD
EUR
GBP
CAD
SEK
NOK
DKK
CHF
PLN
CZK
HUF
Commodities
Gold
Silver
Gasoline
Oil
Copper
Palladium
Coffee
Cotton
Platinum
Corn
Sugar
Cocoa
Livestock
Wheat
Soybeans
Natural Gas
Lead
Lean Hogs
CFD
Engage in leveraged CFD trading across a wide array of instruments, encompassing forex, stocks, commodities, and indices. Yet while the selection of asset classes is satisfactory, the charting software and floating spreads for short-term traders fall behind that of competitors.
Leverage
1:30
FTSE Spread
2.5
GBPUSD Spread<
0.00028
Oil Spread
0.4
Stocks Spread
0.2% Var
Forex
Trade over 180 major, minor, and exotic forex pairs on the Trading 212 platform, featuring floating spreads and leverage up to 1:30. It’s important to note, though, that the forex broker has a history of adjusting margin requirements without providing adequate notice. As a result, CMC Markets is a better pick for forex traders with more currency pairs and a cleaner record.
Assets
180+
GBPUSD Spread
0.00028
EURUSD Spread
0.00015
EURGBP Spread
0.00044
Currency Indices
USD
Cryptocurrency
BitMEX continues to offer a highly competitive crypto trading environment, with cheap $1 contracts and leverage up to 1:100. The broker’s proprietary platform offers cutting-edge trading features, including a customizable order book, a depth chart and dozens of technical indicators.
