Due to EU regulation, you might discover that you are unable to trade a number of instruments such as ETFs, bonds, futures, forex, and options. In the EU, it is mandatory for the manufacturer to provide a Key Information Document (KID), and Saxo is not able to facilitate trading in instruments with missing KIDs for non-professional investors (see also: Retail or Professional? How do I check my classification status).
- What is a KID?
- What is the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) regulation?
- How can I check if an instrument has provided a KID?
- Why can’t I trade an instrument even if the provider has produced a KID?
- I was able to trade a particular instrument until now, but not anymore, why?
- Why are there restrictions on certain instruments such as ETFs?
- US ETF's are often not available, why?
- What instruments can I trade?
An orange warning sign will appear for instruments that do not have KIDs . If you click this sign, you will see the following message for ETF's: "The issuer has not provided a Key Information Document (KID) for this instrument or it may not be distributable in your country due to local regulations..."
For other instruments that are non-tradable due to missing KID, you might see the following message: "This instrument has been set to reduce-only. You can reduce or close your holdings but not open new positions".
What is a KID?
A Key Information Document (KID) is a concise, standardised document required by the EU for certain investment products. The purpose of a KID is to provide clear and essential information about an instrument in a format that is easy to understand and compare. Typically, a KID includes details about the product's objectives, risks, costs, potential performance scenarios, and other relevant information.
KIDs are part of the EU's Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) regulation.
What is the Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) regulation?
The Packaged Retail and Insurance-based Investment Products (PRIIPs) regulation is a set of rules implemented by the European Union to enhance transparency and protect retail investors. It requires firms to provide a Key Information Document (KID) for each PRIIP they offer.
PRIIPs cover a wide range of investment products.
How can I check if an instrument has provided a KID?
To check whether a KID is provided for an instrument, navigate to the trading conditions from the product overview or the trade ticket > under Trading rates, scroll down to Third-Party Payment Costs > if you can download a KID and click the blue download button, then there is a KID available for the instrument.
To change the language of the KID, click on Key Information Document (EN) and select another language.
If there is no KID available, you will see the message "Key Information Document (KID) not available" as shown below:
Disable the visibility of non-tradable instruments
- To disable the discoverability of non-tradable instruments, click Disable discoverability of non-tradable instruments as shown above in the error message
- You can also disable this by clicking
> under Settings, click Platform settings > next to Show non-tradable instruments in platform, click the toggle
>
Why can’t I trade an instrument even if the provider has produced a KID?
Before an instrument becomes available for trading, the instrument provider must ensure that it complies with regulatory requirements in each country where it intends to distribute the fund. This involves obtaining necessary approvals and meeting local regulations. If the instrument is not distributable in your country, Saxo cannot make it available for trading.
A common reason is related to the languages version permitted in your country of residence. The EU requires the provider of the instrument to have the KID translated to local languages.
I was able to trade a particular instrument until now, but not anymore, why?
You might lose access to trade an instrument because the PRIIPs regulation requires the KID to be updated whenever there are changes to the information that are significant enough to affect the investor’s decision to invest. Saxo must therefore restrict access to trade instruments where providers haven't yet updated the KIDs until the new updated KIDs are made available again.
Why are there restrictions on certain instruments such as ETFs?
KIDs are designed to help you understand the key features, risks, costs, and potential returns of financial products, enabling you to make more informed investment decisions. This requirement is part of the EU's broader efforts to promote financial stability and consumer protection in the financial markets.
US ETF's are often not available, why?
For a number of instruments, and mainly for instruments traded in the United States, the issuer has not issued a KID (Key Information Document). This is often logical, as the KID requirement is a typically European obligation. Only once a US issuer actively wants to enter the European market will they create such a KID. As a result, banks and brokers in the European Union, including Saxo, are no longer allowed to facilitate transactions in these products -often ETFs - for non‑professional clients. You will often see an exclamation mark indicating that an instrument is not available. If you click on the exclamation mark, you will immediately see a short explanation of the reason.
What instruments can I trade?
Saxo offers a wide range of instruments to both non-professional and professional clients. You can discover the full list in multiple places on the platform. The example below uses ETF's, but the same tools apply across other instruments, including bonds, CFD's, futures, FX, and options:
- By using the search bar and sorting for ETFs, you can discover the full list of ETFs. If you disable the visibility of non-tradable instruments, you will only see those you are able to trade.
- The screener gives you an overview of currently available ETFs and allows you to use filters such as currency, ratings, issuers, country/regions, exchanges, and more.
- The watchlist provides you with a tool to follow and monitor your favourite instruments. Here, you can add instruments to easily access them all. You can have multiple watchlists.
- You can also get inspiration for new ETFs by navigating to Research > Markets > ETFs. Here, you can discover the most popular ETFs, educational material, best-performing ETFs, currently trending ETFs, and much more.
- You can also use these tools for other instruments such as bonds, CFDs, futures, forex, and options.
Example of a non-tradable ETF:
Example of a tradable ETF: