FXCM Faces New Challenges as Technology Providers Expand

The most popular stories on Finance Magnates over the past week showed the lasting effect of Black Thursday on the global financial trading industry. At the same time we also saw trading signals and technology providers successfully expanding their businesses.

TradeQQ Targets the World

A China-based online real-time information service for FX and CFD traders has launched a new financial news terminal in English. This move by TradeQQ counters the familiar trend of Western providers trying to go East, signaling that the local market is maturing fast.

Speaking with Finance Magnates about the goals for the new offering, the firm's CEO says he plans to expand the service to five million global users in ten languages within two years.

AvaTrade Launches Hedge Fund Algos

Tradency’s hedge fund driven algos have been made available to AvaTrade clients. The broker will begin to offer the hedge fund trading algos as part of their overall solution of Mirror Trader strategies to retail customers.

Developed by hedge funds from around the world, each algo strategy was hand-selected according to Tradency, based on their performance in FX and assets under management. Some of the funds involved at launch were CenturionFX, IntelAgent, Sagat Capital, Tribelet Capital Management and Bluehive Capital.

IG Group Face UK Ombudsman

Multiple clients of IG Group (LON:IGG) have turned to the British Financial Ombudsman Service to challenge the firm's trading practices during January's CHF crisis. The traders have accused IG of breaching UK regulations by acting out of self-interest rather than in favor of its clients.

The group’s interim chief executive has confirmed that less than eighty clients (out of 341) with outstanding disputes now remain. Despite the relatively small number of debtors, the group says it is still owed £15 million. This topic remains very controversial as can be seen from our readers' reactions.

FXCM's Troubles

On Tuesday, the U.S. CFTC CFTC The 1974 Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) in the United States created the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Commission protects and regulates market activities against manipulation, fraud, and abuse trade practices and promotes fairness in futures contracts. The CEA also included the Sad-Johnson Agreement, which defined the authority and responsibilities for the monitoring of financial contracts between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commiss The 1974 Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) in the United States created the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Commission protects and regulates market activities against manipulation, fraud, and abuse trade practices and promotes fairness in futures contracts. The CEA also included the Sad-Johnson Agreement, which defined the authority and responsibilities for the monitoring of financial contracts between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commiss Read this Term simultaneously filed and settled charges against FXCM for failing to diligently supervise its employees’ handling of accounts held by Revelation Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Read this Term Fund. The CFTC requires FXCM to pay a civil monetary penalty of $700,000, disgorge commissions and fees of $143,922.50 that it earned from the Revelation Forex accounts.

Just a couple of days later, FXCM revealed that it was notified by the NYSE that it was not in compliance with the continued listing standards. The notification letter cited that FXCM’s share price had fallen below $1.00 per share over a period of 30 consecutive trading days, which is the minimum average share price for continued listing. The company’s Board already approved a 1-10 reverse stock split back in July.

Tools for Brokers Enters Binary Race

Tools For Brokers Inc., a company specializing in software development for financial markets, has revealed a new binary options web platform which was developed over the last few months.

The competitive advantage that the firm believes will help it in the already crowded field is that the platform is easily compatible with MT4, and that its integration does not require any changes on the broker side, therefore not creating additional issues for the broker or the clients.