Favourable market conditions have seen CFD traders inSingapore emerge from several years of ‘hibernation’ – and the diversity ofproducts they are trading points to a sustainable return to growth.Market Growth and ConfidenceAccording to Investment Trends’ 2025 Singapore LeverageTrading Report, Singapore's leverage trading market posted its first growth inactive participants since 2021.Lorenzo Vignati, associate research director at InvestmentTrends, refers to a market that has come through significant macroeconomicshifts with its core base intact, which is significant because sustainedconfidence enables traders to stay active, adapt their strategies, and continuecontributing to market liquidity and momentum.Return of Experienced TradersPhil Waters, managing director for Asia Pacific and emergingmarkets for OANDA, observes that traders who stepped back during quieterperiods have returned as volatility and macro themes picked up again anddescribes Singapore as a market where, when conditions present an opportunity,experienced traders re-engage quickly.“What we are seeing is a more mature cycle, less hype andmore informed participation,” he adds.Structural Improvements Support GrowthLast year’s growth was driven by a combination of marketconditions and structural improvements in the trading experience, with improvedaccess to educational resources and trading technology—particularly AI-poweredtools—giving traders greater confidence in identifying and managingopportunities, suggests Yaki Razmovich, managing director, eToro Singapore andAsia.“In parallel, platforms have enhanced the user experience,becoming more intuitive and mobile-friendly and enabling users to start withsmaller investment amounts, which has lowered barriers to entry,” he explains.Popular Products and Market SophisticationWhile brokers agree on the factors that have contributed toincreased CFD trading volumes, their views on the most popular products reveala sophisticated market where no one type of trader dominates.“Generally, US single-stock direct market access CFDs (DMACFDs) dominate interest in Singapore,” suggests Ademola Olopade, group head ofprime brokerage and investment banking and CEO of Mauritius, CGS InternationalSecurities. “Large-cap US equities—particularly in technology, AI-linked names,and high-liquidity blue chips—see the highest engagement across all agegroups.”But Olopade also refers to increased participation in cryptoand hard commodities such as gold and silver, as well as market indices, notingthat earnings cycles and macro announcements often drive concentrated activityin these names.“Then there is consistent interest in commodities duringmacro-driven volatility, although US equities remain the anchor product,” hecontinues. “The client profile in Singapore does not exhibit extreme retailspeculation, and capital allocation tends to be more measured, with tradersbeing more attentive to margin discipline. The most active client segmentscomprise experienced retail traders with mid-sized accounts.”Balanced Expansion Across Client SegmentsA combination of previously inactive clients returning tothe market and demand from new participants, particularly through institutionaland professional channels, has created balanced expansion, according to AndreasWigström, managing director, LMAX Global.“FX, major global indices, commodities, and equity CFDsremain the most popular products in Singapore, reflecting demand for liquidity,transparency, and global market access,” he says. “The most active participantstend to be experienced retail traders and institutional-style clients, oftentrading around macro events and short-term opportunities.”Wigström also refers to strong underlying interest indigital assets, which is increasingly influencing demand for regulatedcrypto-related leveraged products.Asset Classes and Trading BehaviourWhile observing that FX remains foundational in Singapore,Waters also notes strong engagement in major indices and commodities as tradersposition around global macro themes, and says stocks have also progressivelygained traction, which is one of the reasons his firm recently addedinternational share CFDs to its offering.“The typical active client here is informed andself-directed,” he says. “They understand leverage, they compare platformscarefully, and they tend to trade across asset classes rather than sticking tojust one. They also commonly use guaranteed stop-loss orders, which is thetrait of a smarter trader.”In 2026 so far, commodities rank first in terms of thenumber of Singapore-based users who have opened CFD positions, notes Razmovich,due to huge price movements in precious metals like gold and silver.Robson Lee, assistant honorary secretary of the SecuritiesInvestors Association, adds demand for improved platform consolidation to thelist of growth factors and says inexperienced traders tend to gravitate towardsmajor indices, FX pairs, and large-cap stocks, as such instruments tend todisplay more predictable behaviour and have tighter spreads.Increasing Role of AI in TradingThree in four of the traders surveyed by Investment Trendsare either using or plan to use AI for charting, signal generation, andperformance analysis, an indication that such tools have moved fromexperimental features to core infrastructure for many retail participants.Access to AI-driven tools has become increasingly importantfor Singapore CFD traders, suggests Wigström. “Many traders are already usingAI, or actively planning to, as part of their daily workflow to improve speed,consistency, and decision-making. The strongest demand is for tools that areembedded seamlessly into the platform and genuinely enhance outcomes ratherthan add complexity.”CFD traders’ AI demands focus more on decision intelligencerather than AI tools per se, notes Olopade, who adds that these traders are notseeking automated, algorithm-driven systems that generate buy or sell signals,but rather tools that improve decision-making and clarity, such as enhancedcharting, behavioural insights, and risk attribution.“In Singapore, traders prefer tools that augment judgementrather than replace it,” he continues. “We see the strongest demand lying inpost-trade analytics, such as understanding drawdowns, sizing of positions, andcapital concentration risks. AI is valued not for shortcuts but for deepermarket understanding.”This theme is taken up by Waters, who agrees that tradersdon’t want ‘AI for the sake of AI,’ but instead are looking for tools thatgenuinely improve decision-making.“Whether that is to learn, for trading signals, orperformance analytics, the expectation now is that platforms should help themsee opportunities more clearly and manage risk more effectively,” he says. “Thekey is integration—traders don’t want to use different systems. They want thesecapabilities built into the platforms they already use, whether that isTradingView, MT4, or increasingly MT5.”This article was written by Paul Golden at www.financemagnates.com.