Author: David Kimberley

Zenoni made the move from Tickmill, where he was Content Strategist. He has held other industry roles at BDSwiss, IQ Option, and Dutch broker AFS.

We speak to Joshua Tari, Manager of the Supervision Department at the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission, about his role and developing the local industry.

SquaredFinancial hired Mario Martins from ActivTrades earlier this week. Martins is likely to be focusing on the Brazil market, which he did at ActivTrades.

eToro has been trying to expand into offering more investment products, as opposed to its traditional focus on leveraged trading instruments.

New app Revolut Invest was launched on Tuesday and is already in top 3 spot for free finance apps in both Greece and the Czech Republic.

Martins was with ActivTrades for over a decade in sales and marketing. He was a board member for the company’s Brazilian entity.

Trive South Africa announced a partnership with Finalto earlier this month. The company can now offer retail clients trading in CFDs.

Financial Markets Online first launched in 2018. The company’s Co-Founder James Bentley the plan is to expand in Dubai and the wider MENA region.

ATFX acquired a South African brokerage firm – Khwezi Trade – last year. Wurr was one of the co-founders of that firm and also set up CFD Central Securities.

UVELER has onboarded at least four executives from the prop firm. One of the company’s Co-Founders was previously CMO at the Trading Pit.

We speak to IG Group UK Head Matt Brief about the launch of options trading in the UK, keeping clients happy, and changes in his 25 years at the company.

The GMI UK entity provides liquidity and institutional services to brokers and professional traders, although it also operates with offshore licences too.

ATFX said in a statement that its goal was to reduce latency and improve uptime for clients, as well as to set the stage for its future growth plans.

Trading 212 continues to offer interest on uninvested cash that’s above the BoE rate. So how is it doing that and why? We reveal all.

Abuhadra will reconnect with Capital.com MENA CEO Tarik Chebib, who was Head of Sales for the MENA region at IG Group previously.

Brokerage group XTB has previously had partnerships with UFC fighter Conor McGregor and ex-Spanish football player Iker Casillas.

BDSwiss has seen a wave of resignations among its senior employees over the last two weeks. The broker says it is in the process of restructuring.

Investa is an options and stock trading start up in the UK. The company is yet to launch a product but has built a 1000s strong waitlist for it.

CMC Markets will be the second large provider to acquire a license in Bermuda. IG Group has been regulated in the territory since 2020.

ATFX Connect is the institutional arm of brokerage group ATFX. The Connect division has grown substantially over the last two years.

Vanuatu is a great place to live. It’s laid back, there is almost no crime, and you can drive a car with no speed limit. Why haven’t you moved yet?

The new tool fits within the FXStreet Economic Calendar. It can be used to trade on central banker speeches, based on what the likely policy outcome will be.

The application launch means traders can sign up, deposit, and trade with NAGA, all without ever leaving the Telegram messaging app.

cTrader has become increasingly popular in the last few years, in part due to MetaQuotes making it much harder to access its products.

Swap rate miscalculations happen all the time. But why does it happen, how are brokers setting overnight rates, and what are the consequences?

Almost half of respondents to the Capital.com survey expressed a willingness to relocate to the gulf state to further their careers, ahead of Germany.

Chaili joined 26 Degrees in 2021 as Managing Director. She was appointed CEO for the EMEA region the following year and was based in the firm’s Cyprus office.

ATFX acquired the ASIC license of Japanese firm Rakuten Securities last year. The company has made several key hires in Australia since then.

Trading 212 set up a German entity in 2020. All local staff left the firm last year. Now the company is hiring again, exclusively in compliance roles.

Kirill Getmanskiy has joined Multibank Group as Chief Marketing Officer for APAC. He was previously Head of Marketing at rival brokerage group Exness.

Holmes was previously at Infinox from 2022 to 2023. He has also held roles at multiple brokers, including FXCM, Vibhs Financial, and Taurex.

MetaTrader 4 and 5 have been the incumbent trading platforms for two decades now. There are signs that could be changing.

Eliadou joins HFM from rival brokerage group Rostro, the owner of Scope Markets. She has also had stints at easyMarkets and London Capital Group.

ATFX Connect is likely launching the contracts, which typically involving emerging market currencies, to cater to demand from retail brokers that need pricing.

MetaQuotes has been clamping down on firms globally over the last two years, making it much harder for firms to access the MetaTrader platforms.

Fintokei – a funded trader firm – has also seen a near three-fold increase in paid for evaluations so a far this year compared to 2023.

Finyard operates a brokerage and technology company based in Limassol. Rival firm Exness also has a huge set of company cars.

Simon Ormrod joins liquidity provider Finalto from Vantage Capital Markets. He also spent 14 years at institutional trading firm Liquidnet.

Danishkin joins NAGA from Admirals, where he was Head of Partnerships. He has held senior management roles at two other brokers in the FX/CFD industry.

Simon is the latest in a string of executives to join MAS Markets over the last 18 months, including senior hires from brokers and tech providers.

The ATFX client insurance fund was launched last month. It provides protection for traders up to $1m and is underwritten by a leading insurance provider.

This is the fifth major integration that Centroid Solutions has completed in the last two months, including another with the London Stock Exchange Group.

Lokhandwala joins ADSS in their Dubai office. He was previously at fellow broker Accuindex and has sales experience at other firms in the UAE and India.

We visited the island in the Pacific, met the regulator and the ex-finance minister, saw a tribal dance, and got drunk at the French ambassador’s house.

Robomarkets is the latest broker with headquarters in Cyprus to stop using its CySEC license to onboard clients for CFD trading in the European Union.

Demetriou joins the firm as Head of Client Management. He is the latest in a string of execs to join Onyx, who have prior experience at rival firms.

Heinrich was with BDSwiss for almost a decade, rising from an Account Manager to become Chief Sales Officer at the start of 2023.

eToro has built a new office in the country’s capital Tbilisi. The broker entered the country with the help of tech outsourcing firm Webiz.

The National Stock Exchange of India’s attempt to force affiliates to become Approved Persons will push those people to work with unregulated firms.

Sedri AI provides a compliance solution to brokers that automatically flags compliance breaches. Several large brokers already use the company’s services.

Mihail Petkov joins Admirals as Head of Client Services. He was previously Head of Back Office in the Capital.com Cyprus office.

Ali Makki joined the brokerage – which is the retail arm of Finalto – at the start of this year. Makki was based in the group’s office in Lebanon.

Oranu spent almost six years at Blackwell Global. He joined the firm’s Cyprus office as a risk and liquidity manager, before being made a Director in 2021.

We talk to MAS Markets CEO and Founder Simon Blackledge about goings on at the liquidity provider, why they rebranded and more.

The Australian regulator said that FXOpen did not have the human resources necessary to run the firm and had breached other financial regulations.

Fernandes joined IG Group five years ago. He moved up from being a New Business Associate to become Team Lead Manager for the broker’s premium client desk.

B2Broker servers no longer show up on either MT4 or MT5. The trading platform provider has made it harder for firms to access its products over the last two years.

IG Group acquired Daily FX from FXCM in 2016 for $40m. Trade Live with IG appears to be an attempt to mirror the success that tastylive has had in the US.

We speak to Biyi Cheng about Moomoo Australia’s plans for the land down under, including options, platform upgrades, revenue sources and more.

The new agreement means that NAGA branding will appear at Borussia Dortmund home games for this season and the following one.

Pilavakis was most recently at funded trader firm The Trading Pit. FunderPro is operated by Malta-based tech group Red Acre and has a B2B and B2C arm.

Centroid Solutions first integrated with DXtrade in 2021. The new partnership means firms using DXtrade can now access more advanced risk management tools.

Plus500 launched futures trading in the US in earnest this year. The broker revealed several interesting bits of information in its most recent annual report.

The deal reflects the fact that the XTB MENA entity has been the fastest-growing branch in the brokerage group’s history over the last few years.

Alkhaldi announced he is leaving Tickmill after a decade at the firm as Regional Manager. He is the second exec to leave the broker in the last two months.

The funded trader firm has big growth plans and is in the process of setting up a CFD brokerage business. FTMO also seems to have operations in Cyprus.

Notional trading volume at Capital.com also rose to $725bn in H1, with the broker increasing its tech and engineering headcount across the EU and UK.

Sebbata was the CEO of BUX UK previously and was instrumental in the APM Capital acquisition of the stockbroker’s UK entity, which he will now oversee.

Taurex is the latest broker to launch a prop firm, with providers including IC Markets, Axi, and OANDA already offering a funded trader product.

The new Exinity brand is regulated in the UAE and offers trading in cash equities and CFDs. Marketing appears to be focused on clients in the UAE.

Saxo Bank said that it will close its office in China in its latest half-year financials. The broker’s majority shareholder is Chinese car manufacturer Geely.

eToro has already partnered with numerous football teams. This will be very similar, with plenty of branding opportunities for the broker and access to VIP tickets for clients.

Last year Century Financial was voted number two in the list, which is put together by workplace analysis and research company Great Place to Work.

Prop trading firms don’t make as much money as brokers do. Will that mean changes? Also we look at UK options brokers and goings on in ASEAN.

The partnership means that Pinnacle will use TRAction Fintech to meet its trade reporting regulatory requirements for Australia and the European Union.

According to a recent CFD industry report, ATFX was the fourth-largest broker, in terms of trading volumes, on MT4 and MT5 over the course of Q2 2024.

Going joins Britannia Global Markets from Capital.com. He has also had stints at IG Group, ETX Capital, and LMAX. His new role will be institutionally focused.

Poynter joins OneRoyal from HYCM, where he was Chief Marketing Officer. He has also had stints at FxPro, EasyMarkets, ATFX, and Axiory.

The integration means that cTrader brokers and clients can access a range of features from B2Copy, including MAM and PAMM solutions, and customisable fee structures.

Payments and banking are probably the biggest pain points for CFD brokers today. So is the industry really about marketing or sales any more – or just making sure you can transfer funds?

The new offer means that brokers can hold large net open positions with Match-Prime in a wide range of small and large cap cryptocurrencies.

Kasraei joins iSAM from Hidden Road, where she spent just under two years. She has almost two decades of experience working with financial institutions.

ATFX has added MetaTrader 5 to its offering, meaning its clients globally can trade on the platform. The broker will continue to offer MT4 as well.

We travel to Sydney and speak to CMC Markets, Moomoo, TRAction Fintech, 26 Degrees, and Blueberry Funded in a busy day in Australia.

The decision may be related to the fact that Eightcap has been one of the main providers of gray label services to prop trading companies.

The company will provide trading in oil swaps to retail clients, with the firm led by ex-IG Group executive Andrea Rebusco.

The insurance applies to all clients of AT Global Markets Intl. Ltd. and AT Global Markets LLC.

Fetherston has been appointed General Manager of the new prop trading brand, having spent several years working with props at Eightcap and PropTradeTech.

McCarthy spent over a decade at retail broker CMC Markets and will link up again with Biyi Cheng, who recently joined Moomoo AU as country head.

CFI Financial has acquired AzFinance İnveŞtisiya Şirkəti, an Azeri-regulated broker. It means CFI is the first foreign brokerage to acquire a license in Azerbaijan.

Having the ODP license means Exness can offer trading in CFD products and act as counterparty to trades. The license was introduced by the FSCA in 2018.

This is the second major product launch for 26 Degrees, an Australia-headquartered prime of prime, in the last month, following its new Pairs Trading product.

The newly formed company will use the Naga brand name, they’re looking for a license in Chile, and may add options trading down the line.

James Watts has joined Taurex in their Dubai office. Watts has held sales roles at several brokers, including Swissquote, London Capital Group, Alpari, and MultiBank.

Zino is the latest in a string of senior executives to join ATFX Connect – the institutional arm of brokerage group ATFX – in its Dubai office.

After adding TradingView charting to its platform last week, Match-Trade has now launched a tournaments product that brokers and props can use.

Hantec Markets has rebranded its website and improved its prime offering. The broker is also planning to improve several products by the end of 2024.

Holding the Type 3 license from the Hong Kong regulator means that ATFX can offer clients trading in leveraged foreign exchange contracts.

DMM used to make porn but now does CFDs. XM is huge. Plus500 is growing. And more. We look at what’s going on with CFDs in Japan.

We speak to Tomoharu Furuichi, IG Securities CEO and Head of Japan at IG Group, about the broker’s explosive growth in the last five years.