Japan's largest retail FX broker sees its lowest volumes since December 2012. Although GMO Click's forex trading volume metrics are still more than double what they were last year, there is a clear slowdown in forex trading in Japan after a record start to the year. GMO Click reported September trading volumes at ¥62.8 trillion, or…
Read moreLesson learned? Don't fight your regulator, even if you think you're right. The CFTC (and NFA) seems to have it in for FXDD, unless this is just a coincidence (which we believe it is not). For the second time in just two weeks, the CFTC has announced fines against the leading forex broker for two…
Read moreRetail forex trading volumes globally drop to $285 billion daily, in typical August fashion. Nothing to worry about in the retail forex industry, it was just summer..... LeapRate's Retail FX Volume Index, sponsored by Leverate, decreased by 6% in July to average $285 billion daily, down from $305 billion in July and off 13% from an all…
Read moreRJO fined $125,000 and Vision Financial $525,000, both related to handling of client funds. Futures brokers RJ O'Brien (RJO) and Vision Financial Markets LLC were each sanctioned by the CFTC for issues tied to client funds. RJO's $125,000 fine was for commingling secured foreign futures and options customer funds, with segregated domestic futures and options customer…
Read moreMost major swaps industry participants have now received their SEF designation, ready for October 2. This might have just been a coincidence, or someone at the CFTC has a sense of humor. The CFTC has indeed before combined, in one press release, announcements regarding licenses or other issues which involve more than one company. But…
Read moreHowever the CFTC denies the six month full implementation delay requested by the securities industry. Despite warnings by many securities industry firms that they and their clients are not fully ready to move swaps from over-the-counter platforms to SEFs, the CFTC apparently will not delay the October 2 deadline (i.e. this Wednesday) for SEF implementation.…
Read moreHisham and Wissam Mansour will own 5% of Swissquote going forward. LeapRate Exclusive.... As we promised, some more details on the Swissquote acquisition of rival Swiss forex broker MIG Bank. Apparently the deal was done for a combination of cash and stock, fairly standard in this type and size of acquisition. Swissquote has paid 750,000…
Read moreIG's rebranding and reorganizing has gone beyond the purchase of domain name IG.com. LeapRate Exclusive... LeapRate has learned that Tim Hughes has left IG Group. Hughes had joined IG as a graduate in 2000, and through 13 years at the company moved up to become Head of Sales until 2010 when Hughes was promoted to…
Read moreiFinix and CEO Benhope Marlon Munroe falsified bank statements and didn't meet minimum capital requirements. The CFTC has imposed a permanent trading and registration ban against introducing broker iFinix Futures (which also did business under the name Pro-Active Futures) and its principal Benhope Marlon Munroe for providing falsified bank account documents to the NFA during its audit of iFinix, in…
Read moreDCM was close to a deal with Straticator; founder and Saxo Bank alum Paul Hawtin has moved on to Investment Management. LeapRate Exclusive... A quick follow up to one of our more followed stories from earlier this year, that of UK forex and spreadbetting broker Derwent Capital Markets (DCM) and the attempted auction of DCM to…
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