bitcastleFX Review: Licences, Costs and the Fine Print

bitcastleFX bonuses and promotions

Bonuses as published on each broker's official pages. Terms change by country and over time, so check the broker's site before you sign up. N/A means no published information was found. checked 2026-11-04.

See the full bonus comparison →

bitcastleFX key facts

Can you open an account from outside Japan?

Probably not, and bitcastleFX doesn’t say you can. Everything about the FX service points at Japan:

• The FX pages exist only in Japanese. The English bitcastle site is a crypto exchange; its link to MetaTrader 5 goes to a Japanese-language FX page, and the English FX address returns “page not found”.
• Accounts are held in Japanese yen, with a ¥500 minimum deposit.
• The ¥15,000 sign-up bonus requires Japanese nationality.

The FX risk warning lists countries whose residents bitcastleFX won’t serve: the United States, Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, Congo, Cuba, Egypt, Guinea, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Belarus, Libya, North Korea, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zimbabwe, China, South Sudan, Myanmar, Russia, and Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk. Not being on that list isn’t the same as being accepted. If you live outside Japan and are considering bitcastleFX, get written confirmation from its support that your country is accepted before depositing anything.

Note the odd split: bitcastle’s crypto exchange says it doesn’t serve Japan (among others), while its FX service doesn’t exclude Japan and markets itself to Japanese traders. Japan’s regulator has responded to that (see below).

Verdict

Might suit: Japanese-speaking traders who want yen accounts, very high leverage (up to 3,000:1) and large deposit bonuses, and who accept that no licence protects their money.

Not for:

• International readers who can’t confirm in writing that they’re accepted
• Anyone who wants a named regulator and licence number
• Traders who withdraw small amounts often (¥2,500 per withdrawal)
• Bonus users who want to withdraw part of their profit and keep the bonus (any withdrawal request deletes all bonus credit)

Company and licence

A company registration is not a forex licence. bitcastleFX’s Japanese help centre describes it as a “regulated broker” and says client funds are kept in segregated accounts at established banks, but it names no regulator and no licence number, so we can’t verify either statement. See broker licences explained.

Regulator warning. Japan’s Financial Services Agency publishes a list of firms that solicit Japanese residents without registration. Its list of unregistered firms (updated 23 October 2026) includes bitcastle LLC, service name “bitcastleFX”, warned in April 2025 for soliciting over-the-counter derivatives trading online. The entry notes that part of its address matches other warned firms. Background: Japan’s FSA warning list explained.

Accounts and costs

bitcastleFX’s Japanese account page lists three accounts. Figures below are as reported by its Japanese site on 31 October 2026:

• Most bonus campaigns apply only to the Standard account. Emperor trades tighter spreads but is excluded from the main deposit bonuses.
• The AI investment account trades automatically: you can’t place your own trades or run EAs on it, and depositing counts as agreeing to the AI’s decisions.
• Leverage falls as equity grows: on Standard, 500:1 above ¥2.5 million and 200:1 above ¥4.5 million. Crypto CFDs are fixed at 50:1.
• Platforms are MT4 and MT5; scalping and EAs are allowed on the trading accounts.

bitcastleFX publishes “from” spreads only, not averages, so a like-for-like cost comparison isn’t possible. See spread basics and leverage explained.

Its help centre also contains two different leverage statements (one article says Japanese nationals get up to 1000:1, another puts Emperor at 3,000:1). Check what the sign-up screen offers you.

Funding and withdrawals

According to the Japanese help centre:

• Deposits: bank transfer (Japanese banks), STICPAY, card payments (via PayPal), Peska and crypto. Deposits are credited in yen. bitcastleFX charges no deposit fee; your bank’s transfer fee is yours.
• Withdrawals: bank transfer and STICPAY cost ¥2,500 each time; funds arrive in about 3–4 business days, excluding weekends and Japanese holidays.
• Card deposits are locked for 60 days. Profits can still go out by bank, STICPAY or crypto.

For someone outside Japan, a yen account and Japanese bank rails add currency conversion on both legs. Compare funding routes in deposit methods explained.

Bonus

The Japanese campaign list on 31 October 2026 included:

• ¥15,000 sign-up bonus: Japanese nationality, completed identity checks and a new Standard account required
• Deposit bonus by cumulative deposits: 160%, 110%, 60% and 20% tiers up to ¥10 million deposited, raised to as much as 200% with a 40% top-up campaign
• Up to ¥30,000 extra for a deposit within 72 hours of registering

The rule that matters most: requesting any withdrawal deletes all bonus credit in the account at that moment, however small the withdrawal. Bonus credit is also removed 30 days after your last login, and accounts with no login for 90 days pay ¥1,500 a month. How these rules work in general: bonus rules explained.

Risks and open questions

• Eligibility outside Japan: not stated; get it in writing.
• No named licence, despite the help centre calling it regulated.
• Japan FSA warning (April 2025).
• Conflicting leverage statements in the help centre.
• Costs: ¥2,500 per withdrawal, inactivity fees, and bonus deletion on withdrawal.

Bottom line

bitcastleFX is a Japan-facing bonus broker with very high leverage, run by an unlicensed St Vincent company that Japan’s regulator has warned about. For international readers the first hurdle is simpler: it doesn’t say it accepts you. If you want high leverage with a named licence, start with the high-leverage comparison or the safest brokers list, and read how to spot a scam broker before funding any unlicensed account.

bitcastleFX guides

Other broker reviews

• AXIORY
• Hantec Markets
• BigBoss
• SwiftTrader