Compliance

Forex Broker License for Sale: Buying a Licensed Firm

Can you buy a forex broker licence? What you actually buy, the regulator approval every deal needs, timelines, and what prop firms have done instead.

By PipValley Editorial
Published 12 Oct 2026
8 min read

Listings for "licensed forex broker for sale" appear every month, and prop founders look at them because a new licence can take more than a year. The shortcut is real, but it is not a purchase of a piece of paper. A licence belongs to a legal entity and is granted for the people who run and own it. Change those people and the regulator decides again.

This guide explains what you are really buying, the approval process in the UK and EU, what due diligence should cover, and what prop groups have actually done between 2024 and 2026. Every fact is dated and sourced, checked on 12 October 2026. For the alternative, applying from scratch, see our forex licence cost comparison.

Can you buy a forex licence?

Not as a standalone asset. What is for sale is the shares of a company that holds a licence, together with its history: its capital, its staff, its policies, its clients if it has any, and its regulatory record. Regulators treat a change of owner as a fresh test of fitness, which is why the deal is conditional on approval.

In the UK, the FCA says anyone proposing to acquire or increase control of an authorised firm "must notify us of proposed changes in control and obtain approval before they take place", and that "not doing so is a criminal offence, and means you may be liable to pay a fine". In the EU, MiFID II Article 12 gives the home regulator "a maximum of sixty working days" from its written acknowledgement of a complete notification to carry out the assessment.

We found no regulator statement endorsing a market in "ready-made licensed companies" as of 12 October 2026. What regulators do publish, often, are warnings about forged licences, so treat any seller who talks about transferring the licence itself rather than the company with suspicion.

How long does approval take?

The statutory clocks are similar in the UK and EU, but they only start when your file is complete, and they can stop while the regulator asks questions.

Change-of-control approval for licensed brokers (sources in this guide; checked 12 October 2026)
Regulator	What needs approval	Assessment clock	Source
FCA (UK)	Acquiring or increasing control; decreases are notified only	Up to 60 working days from a complete notification, plus any interruption period for information requests	FCA, Change in control (updated 30 Jun 2026)
EU regulators under MiFID II, e.g. CySEC	Proposed acquisition of a qualifying holding and increases above set thresholds	Maximum 60 working days from written acknowledgement of a complete notification; acknowledgement within 2 working days	MiFID II Article 12 (ESMA rulebook)
CySEC (Cyprus) detail	Written notice before reaching 10%, 20%, 30% or 50%; the acquirer is assessed like a founder	As above	Private Law wiki summary of Law 87(I)/2017 (secondary source)

What are you actually buying?

A licensed broker is a running cost before it is an asset. One CySEC-licensed firm advertised for sale by Salvus Funds in March 2025 listed capital of EUR 750,000, the top tier for dealing on own account, and an all-in cash burn of about EUR 10,000 a month; it published no asking price. That capital stays in the company after you buy it, and the monthly cost continues while you wait for approval.

The licence scope matters as much as the jurisdiction. A firm licensed for advice and portfolio management cannot deal on its own account against clients without a variation, so check the exact permissions against the business you want to run. Our forex broker licence guide explains how permissions map to capital.

Permissions: the exact activities and instruments the licence covers, and any restrictions.
Capital: how much is in the company now, and what you must inject to meet requirements after the deal.
People: which directors, compliance and money-laundering officers stay, because the regulator will look at them.
Record: complaints, regulator correspondence, fines, audits and any open investigations.
Clients and client money: whether there are live clients, how client money is held, and reconciliations.
Contracts: platform, liquidity, payment and banking agreements, and whether they survive a change of control.

What have prop firms done instead?

The largest deal went the formal route. FTMO completed its acquisition of OANDA after approval from five regulators, TradeInformer reported on 2 December 2025; OANDA holds licences in eight jurisdictions, and the price was not disclosed. Finance Magnates reported that FTMO secured a USD 250 million credit line from Czech banks to fund it, which shows the scale of a licensed-broker purchase.

Smaller groups mixed approaches. Finance Magnates reported in June 2026 that The5ers' founders entered Cyprus "by taking a minority stake in an existing brokerage", while setting up their Seychelles entity from scratch, which took over 18 months. Finotive's Mauritius licence, despite a TradeInformer headline that said "acquires", was a new grant from the FSC, not a company purchase. Finance Magnates also noted in December 2025 that many prop firms obtained offshore licences mainly to secure a MetaTrader licence.

For most founders running a simulated evaluation business, the honest answer is that you do not need a licensed company at all; see do prop firms need a licence and the forex launch page. If you do want a brokerage arm, compare buying with applying in Mauritius, Seychelles or Cyprus.

How do you run a purchase safely?

Treat it as two projects: the corporate deal and the regulatory approval. The deal documents should be conditional on approval, with the seller obliged to keep the firm compliant until completion.

Verify the licence on the regulator's own register, not on the seller's documents.
Hire a regulatory lawyer in the licensing jurisdiction before you sign heads of terms.
Prepare your change-of-control file early: source of funds, business plan, CVs and fitness declarations for every controller.
Keep the purchase price in escrow until the regulator approves.
Plan the website change: entity name, licence number, regulator link, risk warnings and legal documents all update on the day control changes.
Budget for the wait: salaries, office, audits and capital for the full approval period.

What changes on the website after a purchase?

Everything that names the entity. Regulators, banks and payment processors check that the website matches the register: the legal name, registered address, licence number and permissions, the risk warning in the regulator's format and the client agreement. If you run a prop brand alongside the broker, keep the two clearly separate so evaluation customers never think they are broker clients. Our prop firm website checklist covers the prop side; PipValley builds both from the $3,500 Signature tier, with care from $75 a month.

Questions

Is it faster to buy a licensed forex broker than to apply?

Often, but not always. A change-of-control approval runs on a clock of up to 60 working days in the UK and EU once your file is complete, against 12 to 16 months consultants estimate for a new CySEC licence. Information requests can stop the clock, and due diligence adds weeks before you file.

How much does a licensed forex broker cost to buy?

Sellers rarely publish prices. What you can see is the capital that must stay in the company, for example EUR 750,000 for a Cyprus firm dealing on own account, and running costs during approval. FTMO's purchase of OANDA did not disclose a price.

Can a forex licence be transferred to my company?

Generally no. Licences are granted to a specific entity and its controllers; what changes hands is ownership of that entity, with the regulator's prior approval. Be wary of anyone offering to move a licence into a new company.

Does a prop firm need to buy a licensed broker?

Not for a simulated evaluation model in most places, as of October 2026. Groups that buy brokers usually want a brokerage business, platform access or a regulated entity behind their brand. Ask a lawyer whether your model needs a licence before paying for one.

What happens if I take control without approval?

In the UK the FCA says acquiring control without approval is a criminal offence and may lead to a fine. EU regulators can also act against unapproved acquisitions. Make the share purchase conditional on approval.

Sources

Illustrative figures, not a forecast. Nothing on this site is legal, tax or financial advice. PipValley is a web design studio; we don’t sell challenges, run trading accounts or provide trading platforms. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we’ll fix it with the date.

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