Plus 500 was founded in 2008 and its headquarters listed in the data are in Haifa, Israel. It is a group listed on the London Stock Exchange, according to available information, and operates through local entities in more than one regulatory jurisdiction. Its licenses include the UK FCA, CySEC of Cyprus, ASIC of Australia, DFSA, and SCA in the UAE, and FSCA.
From the numbers available for Plus500: FCA license for the entity Plus500UK Ltd number 509909, CySEC license for Plus500CY Ltd number 250/14, ASIC license number AFSL 417727. In the UAE, there is SCA license for Plus500Gulf Securities L.L.C number 20200000232, and a DFSA license for Plus500AE Ltd number F005651. Having a locally licensed SCA entity is important for eligible traders in the UAE, but it does not automatically mean every Arab client will contract with the same entity.
Exness was also founded in 2008, with its headquarters listed as Limassol, Cyprus. Its licenses include authorities such as the FSA in Seychelles, CySEC, FCA, FSC, FSCA, and CMA. Among the disclosed figures: Exness (SC) Ltd is licensed by the FSA in Seychelles with number SD025, Exness (Cy) Ltd with CySEC number 178/12, Exness (UK) Ltd with the FCA number 730729, Exness ZA with FSCA number FSP 51024, and Exness KE with CMA in Kenya number 162.
However, the crucial comparison point here is that Exness discloses that its FCA and CySEC entities do not presently provide services to retail clients. Therefore, one should not assume that having a UK or Cypriot license is the protection an Arab client will receive. The same principle applies to Plus 500: the brand name alone is not enough; the legal entity name in the client agreement must be read before funding.
The licensing rating in the data is 6/10 for Plus 500 and 7/10 for Exness. The difference is not a final legal judgment, but reflects Exness’s relative edge in this rating. In both cases, licensing does not eliminate risks of leverage, execution, or potential isolated operational disputes.