LeapRate Exclusive… LeapRate has learned that Nick Cooke has resigned his position as Managing Director of FCA regulated Retail FX brokerage Global Markets Group Limited (or GMG).
Mr. Cooke had been with GMG since the company’s formation in 2015, joining from LCG where he was Head of Private Client Sales & Partnerships. He had also previously worked at FXCM in a variety of roles including Head of Retail (Australia) & Institutional Sales.
Mr. Cooke’s departure shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to LeapRate readers, as we had exclusively reported back in August that GMG had brought in Alex Iakobachvili as the company’s new Chief Executive. Mr. Iakobachvili joined GMG from Global Markets Index Limited (or GMI UK, despite the similar name no relationship to his new employer) where he was VP Sales. He moved to GMI UK after spending more than seven years as a VP at FX liquidity provider and prime of prime brokerage CFH Clearing, leaving the company in late 2017 after CFH’s acquisition by Playtech.
Global Markets Group was established in 2015 and began to onboard clients in early 2017, recording Revenues of £202,000 in 2017 (actually, the 12 months ended March 31, 2018) and a net loss of £94,000. The company is controlled by Chinese entrepreneur Shi Lu, via holding company Citypark Investments Limited.
We understand that Global Markets Group is now in the process of restructuring under Mr. Iakobachvili’s new leadership. Apparently the company is planning on raising some more money from the company’s controlling shareholder, and will look to expand to new regions including Asia and South America.