FXCM, Gain Capital and IG Group shares set all-time or multi-year highs, while the overall stock market stalls in Q2.
Q2 was not very kind to Gold prices (down 23%) or equity markets (basically flat), or even bond prices, but it was very kind to publicly traded Forex brokers. But Q2 brought with it increased volatility in virtually all financial markets, as investors hovered between liquidity-driven euphoria, and this-must-end-at-some-point worry.
The result — great conditions for retail forex brokers. Several of the world’s leading forex brokers reported record volumes during Q2. And the stock market finally began to take notice. During the second quarter:
- FXCM — up 20%
- Gain Capital (Forex.com) — up 42%
- IG Group — up 9%
FXCM (at $16.41 per share) and IG (at £5.79) are basically at all time highs. Gain Capital ($6.31) still sits well below its December 2010 IPO price of $9, but is certainly moving in the right direction, and in mid June crossed the $6 barrier for the first time, while continuing to climb higher to the end of the month.
As we exclusively reported several weeks ago, we understand that more than one retail forex broker is taking a serious look at launching an IPO during the fall months — which would be the first forex IPO since 2010 — riding the wave of positive investor sentiment on Wall Street and in the London City crowd toward the forex industry.
Stay tuned…
For more on the global Forex industry see the LeapRate-Dow Jones Forex Industry Report.