Best Prop Firms for Singapore Traders

Eligibility for Singapore traders

Each prop firm decides which countries it serves and publishes the countries it excludes in its terms. The firms listed above do not name Singapore on their restricted countries lists at present. Firms update these lists from time to time, so confirm that Singapore is accepted at checkout and in the current terms on the day you buy. The name and address on your account should match your NRIC or passport, because the identity checks before a funded account or first payout will test them.

Paying fees and receiving payouts

Challenge prices are often set in US dollars, so a card payment in Singapore dollars is converted at your bank's rate and may carry a foreign transaction fee. Some Singapore banks offer multicurrency accounts that can hold dollars, which can reduce conversion costs on both fees and payouts. Payouts reach Singapore traders by international bank transfer, through payment platforms such as Rise, or in stablecoins, depending on the firm. A stablecoin payout has to be sold on an exchange before it becomes Singapore dollars, and the MAS Financial Institutions Directory shows whether a platform is licensed. Prop firm payout methods compares the main routes.

How prop firm payouts are commonly taxed in Singapore

This is general information, not tax advice. IRAS says that profits from buying and selling shares or other financial instruments are generally viewed as personal investments and are not taxable, while business income, meaning income from carrying on a trade, business, profession or vocation, is added to your other income and taxed at individual rates. Prop firm payouts are paid by the firm under a contract rather than earned by selling your own investments, so they are commonly assessed as trade or other income rather than as investment gains, although the answer depends on the facts. IRAS also says overseas income received in Singapore is generally not taxable, although a payout for trading done from Singapore may not count as overseas income. Self employed individuals must file if their net profit is more than S$6,000, and online filing of Form B runs from 1 March to 18 April. Self employed individuals must keep records for at least five years, so start a log from your first purchase and check your position with IRAS or a tax adviser. Prop firm income and tax explains the general principles.

What MAS says

The Monetary Authority of Singapore publishes a Financial Institutions Directory of the firms it licenses and an Investor Alert List of persons who may have been wrongly perceived as being licensed or regulated by MAS. It notes that the alert list is not exhaustive and is based on what MAS knew at the time of publication. Many prop firms describe their evaluations as simulated trading and do not claim a MAS licence, so read what a firm says about its own status, check the directory if it claims a licence, and search the alert list before you pay. Prop firm regulation and are prop firms legit cover the wider checks.

Trading hours from Singapore

Singapore is eight hours ahead of GMT all year, with no daylight saving, so session times shift by an hour when the UK and the US change their clocks. The Tokyo stock market opens at 8am Singapore time, so the Asian session covers the Singapore working day. London opens at about 3pm in the northern summer and 4pm in winter, and US stock markets open at 9:30pm or 10:30pm. The London and New York overlap, usually the busiest period for major currency pairs and US indices, runs from about 8pm to midnight in summer and an hour later in winter. A daily reset at 5pm New York time falls at about 5am or 6am, so check which trading day an early morning trade counts towards.

What to check before you buy

• Singapore eligibility. Confirm that Singapore is accepted at checkout and in the current terms, not only in older reviews.
• MAS lists. Search the Investor Alert List for the firm, and check any licence it claims in the Financial Institutions Directory.
• Payout route. Find out which payout methods are open to Singapore residents, with their minimums, fees and timing.
• Daily reset time. Convert the daily loss reset to Singapore time for both halves of the year.
• Tax records. Keep a log of every fee and payout in Singapore dollars from your first purchase.

Each firm's profile lists its programmes and restricted countries, and the comparison table can be filtered by country. The prop firm directory covers every firm on the site, other best prop firm lists group firms by platform and rules, and how to choose a prop firm you can trust sets out the checks to make first.