Forex market of Sweden: general information

Sweden is one of the richest and most economically developed countries in Europe and the European Union, demonstrating stable growth in production, trade, exports, and imports, an increase in GDP, and social benefits over the years. The secret of success lies in a competitive, diversified economy that combines manufacturing, high technology, and innovation. Among the countries that are part of the European Union, Sweden’s debt obligations are the lowest. Inflation is insignificant, and the banking system is especially strong.

The so-called economic miracle in Sweden in the 1970s and beyond was based on a rich resource base—ore, hydropower resources (rivers and lakes), forests; revolutionary inventions – steam turbines, telephones, gas beacons; attraction of foreign investors to create large corporations and concerns, including Ikea, Electrolux, Ericsson, Hasselblad and many others; opening other markets due to the narrowness of the Swedish internal market and export orientation and development of science-intensive industries.

In detail, the gross domestic product of the state in 2022 increased by 2.4% compared to 2021 and amounted to 551.03 billion USD. The level of Sweden’s GDP is supported by private companies, which provide 80% of the turnover. Looking at sectors, agriculture makes up less than 2% of total GDP, 50% is the service, 18% falls on the industrial sector, 12% – on trade and transport. 

In terms of finance, the Swedish banking system is dominated by a few large commercial banks. The issuing bank is the Central Bank of Sweden, and the national currency is the Swedish króna. 

The country is actively developing new industries and digital technologies, which allows the population to master new financial instruments and dive into different markets. One of these last mentioned is Forex, which has gained popularity among the Swedes due to its accessibility and countless opportunities for earning. 

Forex market and regulations in Sweden

Sweden’s market-oriented economy, national wealth, well-educated workforce, and as already mentioned love of innovation have made Sweden an attractive destination for both traders and international Forex brokers. The high standard of living has led to a thriving Foreign exchange market, in which more and more Swedes want to participate. As a result, many international brokerage firms are eager to capture a portion of the local market.

Although there are few active marketplaces in the industry, there are few brokers from Sweden under Finansinspektionen (FI) or Swedish FSA regulation. However, most of the Forex companies present in the country are actually based in other jurisdictions with even stricter financial regulations like FCA (the UK) or CySEC (Europe). In our article, we review brokers controlled by both local and international authorities, but the main thing that unites them is reliability, proven by millions of clients, and safe trading conditions.

If you are just a beginning trader and are looking for a guide, a better strategy, or an opportunity to make passive income, then Copy Trading is what you should try. It is one of the easiest ways to take advantage of the expertise of other traders, making a profit by simply automatically copying professionals. 

The most popular trading instruments in Sweden

As one of the most developed and high-tech countries in the world, Forex trading in Sweden has always been very popular and remains so. Since the krone is a popular currency to trade, and also because of the wealth of the country, Sweden is also a widespread market for brokers from all over the world. In turn, the government of Sweden provides an opportunity for international brokers to legally conduct their activities and accept clients, providing a huge selection of financial instruments. 

Currency pairs trading in Sweden

Now, like the last one hundred and fifty years, the national currency of Sweden is the Swedish krona, denoted SEK. As many mistakenly believe, Sweden is not part of the Eurozone, although it is part of the European Union. 

The most actively traded currency pairs involving the SEK are EUR/SEK, or euro against the krone, and USD/SEK, which is one of the most highly volatile exotic instruments in the Forex market and even more exotic combinations include SEK/DJF, SEK/AFN, SEK/SRD, SEK/BMD, etc.

In addition, traders can trade popular currency pairs such as EUR/USD, EUR/GBP, and EUR/JPY. Traders have access to dozens of major and minor combinations.

XM Group offers over 50 currency pairs that include Majors, Minors, and Exotics to choose from. In addition to currency pairs, the broker allows you to trade more than 1000 trading instruments including CFDs, commodities, indices, precious metals, energies, and stocks. The broker offers four types of accounts with negative balance protection, good leverage, and tight spreads: Micro, Standard, XM Ultra Low, and Shares. Besides, there is a special one – a demo account where traders can practice their skills and knowledge.

With XM Group, you can trade from anywhere as you get instant access to global markets with the new XM all-in-one mobile app. In addition, the broker provides a VPS service, with which the user receives his own separate IP address and constantly functioning 24/7 support. All it takes is to download the app and jump in with deals.

Commodities trading in Sweden

As already mentioned, Sweden is rich in natural resources. This allows the Swedes to export a lot of goods abroad. Among Sweden’s top 5 commodity exports are refined petroleum, sawn wood, iron ore, flat-rolled steel, and refined copper. If you keep up with price fluctuations and are looking for a way to make money on commodity trading, the Forex market will be a great solution for you. There is an option to trade commodities, including those not related to physical supplies: now you can choose any asset without the need to deliver or receive it on the Forex market. And brokers provide great opportunities and favorable conditions for deals, all you have to do is to open an account and start trading.

HF Markets is a reliable broker that offers some of the best possible conditions for commodity trading. In particular, HF markets provide low transaction costs and flexible leverage on Forex Gold trading. You can find more information about this trading instrument in our article.

The broker officially works and accepts clients from Sweden, as it is regulated by such bodies as CySEC (Europe), FCA (UK), FSCA (South Africa), DIFC (Dubai) and SFSA (Seychelles).

For your convenience, you can use the mobile app in conjunction with the HF MT4/MT5 desktop and web platforms. This will allow you as a trader to keep abreast of global financial events and will make your trading convenient and accessible from anywhere.

Another nice part to mention both for new and experienced traders is that HF markets created an HFcopy – Copy Trading feature where anyone can join as a follower or as a pro trading strategy provider.

Stocks trading in Sweden

The Stockholm Stock Exchange, officially called Nasdaq Stockholm, is the main stock exchange in Sweden. It was founded in 1863 and acquired by the OM Futures Exchange in 1998, which merged with the Helsinki Stock Exchange in 2003 to form OMX. OMX was subsequently acquired by Nasdaq in 2008. It lists 310 companies with a market capitalization of $1.3 trillion. The exchange also lists bonds and derivatives. Companies whose shares can be purchased by traders include technology services, electronic technology, consumer goods, healthcare, manufacturing, finance and many others.

For traders who want to buy and sell stocks in Sweden, there are two options: buy stocks directly or through a broker. Buying stocks through a broker is the preferred option for traders who want their funds to be managed by experts. For your convenience, we’ve listed only trusted brokers, with convenient platforms, 24/7 support, and minimal commissions.

NAGA Markets is one of the top-rated brokers that provides access to different asset classes for trading: stocks, forex, ETFs, futures, commodities, and metals. Several options for trading platforms are offered: MetaTrader of both versions (4 and 5), and the author’s platform NAGA Webtrader. All platforms support mobile versions. 

NAGA is not just a perfect trading platform, it is also a social investing network where clients of all experience levels can trade, share, and copy investments on over 950+ trading instruments. The broker has very competitive trading conditions including tight spreads, low commissions, rapid trade execution speeds, and a variety of flexible account funding options.

NAGA aims to make trading simple and accessible for everyone. To make investment services available to clients in different jurisdictions, NAGA complies with multiple authoritative regulations around the world, such as FCA, CySEC, MiFID II, and MiFIR.

Indices trading in Sweden

Indices trading is gaining more and more popularity and the reason lies in diversification. The buyer of the index immediately acquires parts of the shares of tens and hundreds of enterprises. This provides traders with the opportunity to get as much profit as possible with maximum risk diversification because there is no need to give preference to one company or currency. In addition, stock index rates are smoother, unlike other trading instruments, but still volatile. 

In Sweden, the leading stock index of the Stockholm Stock Exchange (Stockholmsbörsens, Nasdaq Stockholm – OMX) is the OMX Stockholm 30 Index (OMXS30). Based on the name, the 30 largest companies in the country participate in the quotes, many of which are well known in the world – these are Volvo Group, Ericsson, Electrolux, Nordea, Tele2, and H&M. In addition to OMXS30, Swedish traders also have access to brokerage companies that provide their clients with the opportunity to conduct full-fledged trading in the Forex market with various global and national indices.

Plus500 provides a whole list of indices to choose from. Besides, the broker has a wide range of CFD instruments, including currency pairs, commodities, stocks, and more, that you can trade on state-of-the-art trading platforms. Users can choose a web-based platform. But the Plus500 trading platforms are not only available in a web browser. Clients who want to trade from their smartphones or other mobile devices can use the mobile app. The Plus500 platform is available on Android, iOS and Windows.

The broker is widely known and recognized all over the world. Users’ trust is fully justified since it holds the license of the FCA, as well as of many international regulators, including CySEC, ASIC, and MAS.

If you are still new to CFD trading and are worried about possible losses, Plus500 has a demo account for you. This is one of the Plus500 account types that can help you take your trading skills to the next level before opening a real Plus500 account.

CFD trading in Sweden

In addition to the standard instruments, traders can also try their hands in Swedish stocks using one of the most popular and easiest ways to do so – contracts for difference (CFDs). When trading CFDs, you are not actually buying the underlying asset itself, but instead dealing with the buying and selling prices of a given financial instrument in order to profit from the price difference.

There are about 380 companies available for traders in Sweden. The list of Swedish public companies is quite extensive and is led by Volvo AB with over $41.948 billion in revenue, telecommunications company Ericsson AB with $24.267 billion and multinational fast fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz AB, better known as H&M, with $22.577 in revenue last year. 

In terms of regulation, CFD trading in Sweden is legal and can be traded in a variety of instruments depending on the broker. 

OANDA is a leading provider of Contracts for Difference, delivering trading facilities on shares, commodities, Cryptocurrencies, ETFs, options, and indices, alongside innovative trading technologies. The broker gives access to two types of trading platforms: fxTrode (Oanda’s personal development) and MetaTrader 4. Both of these platforms are available in three types: desktop, mobile and Web.

OANDA has  a reliable regulatory base being licensed by organizations such as FCA, IIROC, MAS and ASIC. The broker provides 3 trading accounts: Standard, Premium and Demo account. The Standard account has no minimum deposit limits, all transactions are brought to the market, and traders are pleased with low spreads without any additional commissions for opening positions. The second account is suitable for traders with large deposits. And on the Demo account, clients can practice their strategies.

Cryptocurrency trading in Sweden

In Sweden, Сryptocurrencies are considered as transactions with assets (property) and can be accepted as means of payment in retail stores. There are some Bitcoin ATMs operating in the country, also you can exchange Cryptocurrencies.

As for regulation, no laws have been passed that directly relate to Cryptocurrencies and activities related to them. At the same time, Swedish legislation in the field of economics and finance may apply to companies that work with Cryptos, depending on the nature of their activities. For example, if a service for the sale and purchase of Cryptocurrencies falls into the category of financial services, the operator is required to register with the Financial Supervision Authority, keep records of their operations, and regularly provide information about them to the Office.

In Sweden, the sale of Cryptocurrencies is also exempt from VAT, but is subject to capital gains tax – when calculating the taxable amount, only profits are taken into account, and losses are deducted.

The popularity of Cryptocurrencies in Sweden is also explained by the fact that there are lots of companies involved in the mining of Crypto and platforms for trading. Many private companies use blockchain to solve their own issues. In particular, Volvo is using DLT technology to track cobalt in lithium batteries in electric vehicles.

All in all, Sweden, as a high-tech country without any restrictions from the government, is a favorable place to buy and sell Сryptos. If you want to try your hand at this financial instrument, then international brokers operating in Sweden will be the best option for you as they are licensed by top regulators and will provide you with a safe and secure environment.

eToro offers traders from Sweden various Сryptocurrencies including BTC, ETH, LTC and many others, and has in its arsenal many financial instruments such as currency pairs,commodities, CFDs and stock indices. 

In terms of regulatory oversight, eToro is licensed by the FCA, ASIC and CySEC. In over 15 years that the eToro broker has been on the market, it has managed to establish itself in the online trading community as one of the most respected brokers in the industry.

The broker is the perfect choice for passive traders and for those who do not want to check the market 24/7. The platform allows you to trade independently or copy trades of other participants with the Copy Trading tool. But the thing is that, with eToro, CopyTrader is not about just downloading the app and copying the gains of top performers. Rather, it immerses you into a community of like-minded people who exchange their experiences and tactics. 

To have access to deals anywhere and at any time, the broker has a mobile app that is supported by iOS and Android operating systems, combining the possibilities of digital technologies, social communication and trading.

AvaTrade gives you the opportunity to trade one of the most popular Cryptocurrencies 24 hours a day, having the ability to open long or short positions. It has such a range of Crypto as Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ripple, Dash, Litecoin, Bitcoin Gold, and EOS. In addition to Crypto, 1250 instruments are available to clients: stocks, securities, indices, commodities, currency pairs and CFDs.

The broker is widely recognized around the world and has established itself as a reliable broker with several regulatory licenses, including ASIC, FSA, Abu Dhabi and British Virgin Islands regulators.

AvaTrade has several platforms, both automated and manual. The broker offers its own solution, several third party Copy trading platforms including ZuluTrade, DupliTrade as well as MetaTrader 4 (MT4) (and in some places MT5). In addition to web platforms with AvaTrade, you can also use a mobile app.

Top Forex brokers in Sweden

A broker choice for a trader is one of the key factors for successful trading, since the safety of funds and the timely conclusion of transactions largely depend on the reliability of this partner. Sweden has quite a few different brokers to choose from. In order to make the most correct choice of a broker for trading in the financial market, you need to analyze all the criteria: rating, service rates, set of services. A good broker will have a license of the highest category, convenient platforms, reasonable commissions, a wide range of financial instruments, as well as demo accounts for their clients.

Considering all the criteria, we have prepared for you a list of brokers offering the best conditions and security in Sweden:

OANDA in Sweden

OANDA is a well-known broker for traders all over the world. The broker offers trading in over 100 instruments including currency pairs, Cryptos, indices, commodities, bonds, and metals. There are 9 base currencies available in the company: EUR, GBP, CHF, USD, CAD, AUD, JPY, HKD, and SGD.

OANDA is one of the most trusted forex brokers. It has licenses to operate in several countries, in addition, it is a member of the following regulators: IIROC, FCA, and ASIC.

Globally, OANDA offers three account types: demo, Standard, and Advanced Trader, which makes the broker a fine fit for both new and seasoned trades. Besides, the broker invites traders to test their professionalism in practice by using a demo account with an unlimited amount of virtual funds on the balance and with an unlimited period of their use.

Plus500 in Sweden

Plus500 is one of the popular brokers in Sweden. The company provides a huge number of CFDs for trading, including currency pairs, indices, commodities, Cryptocurrencies, stocks, options, and ETFs. 

On an unlimited virtual account, traders can work out new strategies, and try unfamiliar instruments. This option is perfect for beginners who want to gain experience. Professional traders can also benefit from this by using the demo to practice new strategies.

The company has been able to build a reputation as a reliable broker that is worthy of the trust of its clients. It is controlled by ASIC, FCA, CySEC, MAS, and other global reputable global regulators.

Plus500 provides its customers with a web terminal for PCs and laptops, as well as a convenient mobile app for Android and iOS to stay up to date 24/7.

NAGA Markets in Sweden

NAGA Markets is a fully licensed and regulated broker with over 950 trading instruments and assets. Its clients can trade commodities, Crypto assets, and Forex, and make deals on the markets of futures, precious metals, ETFs, and indices. There is also available CFD trading.

Brokers provide users with trading with minimal risk, even if they are new to trading. NAGA has made this possible with a special automatic Copying feature. NAGA AutoCopy is an innovative tool that allows you to automatically follow the top traders on the platform and learn from their experiences.

eToro in Sweden

eToro is one of the most well-known and fast-growing brokerage firms with over 20 million investors worldwide. The reliability of the broker is based on the fact that eToro is licensed by reputable regulators such as the FCA, ASIC, and CySEC.

The broker provides some of the most attractive market conditions: low Forex fees, minimum deposits, and trading and non-trading fees. Also, it has a very convenient CopyTrader feature, which is perfect for beginners, since you can follow professional traders’ strategies.

XM Group in Sweden

XM Group is one of the leading brokers providing the opportunity for online Forex trading. This broker has many of the latest tools you need to trade currency pairs, CFDs, Commodities, Derivatives, Indices, Precious Metals, Energies, and Cryptocurrencies.

Clients can choose the most profitable trading account on unique terms with negative balance protection, good leverage, and tight spreads: Micro, Standard, XM Ultra Low, and Shares.

The popular terminals MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 are used for trading. Each platform’s web version is available on Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Android. The broker also offers a convenient mobile app where you can trade on international markets with a single login on a demo or live account. In the app, users of the MT5 platform can manage their trading accounts and trade all the instruments offered by XM, as well as use the VPS service, with which the user receives his own separate IP address and constantly functioning 24/7 support.

HF markets in Sweden

HF Markets is regulated by CySEC and has permission from other regulators to conduct financial and investment activities in 14 countries including Sweden. The broker offers for trading currency pairs, precious metals, indices, stocks, Cryptocurrencies, and CFDs. Traders can choose a trading account with the conditions they need: micro, premium, zero, fixed, VIP, and auto.

The broker provides its users with a fairly wide range of various trading platforms. You have the option to choose MT4, MetaTrader 4 Web Terminal, or dedicated mobile trading apps for Apple and iOS devices. As a result, you will be able to work and open deals anytime, anywhere.

For novice traders, the HF broker offers a lot of educational materials that can be studied on its website and open a demo account provided for trading virtual money using real currency quotes. Another important tool to mention is the CopyTrading function, which makes it possible to copy the trades of several traders at the same time.

AvaTrade in Sweden

AvaTrade provides a wide range of trading instruments: 55 currency pairs, stocks, CFDs on commodities, metals (gold, silver, platinum, copper), indices, ETFs, bonds, and cryptocurrencies.

With a broker, you can open a Standard Account with tight spreads, the absence of commissions, and high leverage. For beginners, a Demo account is also available with virtual money to work out your strategies.

The activity of the broker is subject to regulation by the Irish Central Bank, where an accounting document was issued. In addition, Avatrade has a fairly high reputation and permission to operate in many countries, including all countries of the European Union; the British Virgin Islands; Australia; South Africa; Japan. The company’s website is available to users in 21 languages, including Swedish.

AvaTrade also offers a practical and easy-to-use mobile app for iOS or Android. You can download it, then log in and view your account details, realizing a wide range of deals.

By registering and verifying an account with several top brokers in Sweden, you can not only compare different trading platforms to find the most suitable one, but also choose the most convenient conditions for various financial instruments. Moreover, you can also trade on your own with some brokers while using the Copy Trading feature with others. It will inspire you to keep trading and improve your chances of earning some passive income.