Publishing standards

These are the rules we publish by. They cover how we are paid, what money can and cannot buy, how we source and correct our work, and how every kind of content is labelled.

How we make money

Trading Business Review is free to read. It is paid for in the ways below, and each is labelled where it appears.

Commissioned audits

A firm can commission an audit for a fixed fee, agreed before work starts and not dependent on the result. The result is published whatever it is, and the report says above its findings that the firm commissioned and paid for it. We also carry out desk audits on our own initiative, from public sources, for which no firm pays; each report says which kind it is. The full rules are in our independence rules.

Sponsorship

Articles marked Sponsored or In partnership with a company are paid for by that company. The label sits above the headline. Sponsored articles are never reviews or audits and carry no score, and the sponsor does not approve or edit them.

Preferred firms

Firms marked Preferred have a commercial partnership with Trading Business Review. The label appears on the firm's profile, audit report and review, and wherever we list or feature the firm. A partnership buys visibility, never judgement. Preferred firms are listed first in our tables and lists and, when they hold a current audit graded A or higher, in the "Audited firms" box in our articles, which is completed with the other firms holding the highest current audit grades of A or above. They are audited and reviewed under exactly the same methods as every other firm; a partnership has no effect on audit grades, review scores or findings, and a partner sees a report only at the right-of-reply stage open to every firm.

The TBR Briefing may carry sponsor slots, which are always marked as such.

What money cannot buy

We accept no affiliate, referral or per-client commissions from any firm. Links to firms' websites are plain links.
No firm can pay for a review, a review score, an audit grade or the contents of a finding.
No firm can see or approve an article, a review or an audit before it is published, other than the right of reply described below.
Reviews and audits are scored separately, each against its own published method, and neither changes the other.

What we publish, and how it is labelled

Market Intelligence and interviews are written by our editorial team.
Reviews score a firm's product from hands-on testing, against the criteria in how we score reviews.
Audits grade whether a firm can be relied on, against our audit methodology.
Bulletin items are press releases issued by the firms named, labelled Press release. We choose the releases we publish for their interest to our readers and publish them as issued, shortened only to remove contact details, sign-up prompts and long legal notices. We do not write or check them, they are not an endorsement, and they have no effect on grades or scores. We decline releases that promise returns, promote incentives where they are not permitted, or misstate a firm's regulation.

Sources and accuracy

We check factual claims against a primary source wherever one exists: regulators' registers and announcements, court and stock-exchange filings, and firms' own published documents. Sources are listed at the end of each article, review and audit. Figures are given as at the date stated.

We use software, including AI tools, to help research and draft. An editor checks every fact against its source and takes responsibility for everything we publish.

Right of reply

Every audited firm can correct facts and publish a reply, which we print in full on the report. Any firm can request a re-audit from its report, with evidence, from a company email address.

Corrections

We correct factual errors promptly. A correction is noted on the article with its date, and a change to an audit grade is recorded in the report's version history. To report an error, use our contact form.

Conflicts of interest

Members of our editorial team may not hold positions in, or take personal payments or gifts of value from, the firms they cover. Where TBR has a commercial relationship with a firm, it is disclosed as described on this page.

Risk warning

Trading leveraged products such as CFDs carries a high risk of losing money rapidly. Only trade with money you can afford to lose. Nothing on this site is investment advice or a recommendation to trade, and our grades and scores are not guarantees or regulatory approvals. Please read our terms of use.