Online Trading specifically, and the wider finance technology world in general, have always been among the most global businesses there are. Some of the top stories reported over the past week show the international nature of the industry as firms engaged in cross-border cooperations and investments with companies from the U.S, E.U and Japan looking across the seas for new markets and partners. At the same time, Bitcoin - which proponents claim to be a solid basis for a new borderless financial world - exhibited tremendous Volatility in a very short time period.
London-Israel Link
On Monday, The Mayor of London Boris Johnson visited Israel's financial and technological capital Tel Aviv. Johnson's delegation, which included representatives from the London Stock Exchange, promoted the British capital as the go-to destination for Israeli-based startups and established companies seeking to raise public funds or expand globally.
Just a few days after Johnson's visit, the vitality of his City's connection with Israel was demonstrated again as London Capital Group announced that it will establish a new subsidiary in Israel. The LSE-listed brokerage has appointed Amedeo Moscato as CEO of the soon-to-be-launched LCG Digital LTD, which will focus on online and affiliate marketing.
CX Markets
On Tuesday we exclusively revealed that American binary options trading venue Cantor Exchange (CX) has launched a new educational portal to supplement its main website. It features the tailored platform of SpotOption, while TRADOLOGIC and TechFinancials’ offerings are presented as “coming soon”.
The portal, called CX Markets, offers a selection of resources for traders, such as tutorials, videos, user guides and product pages. The website also features external trading experts who provide clients with additional educational resources such as webinars.
CFH Systems China
On Wednesday, the Copenhagen based trading technology company CFH Systems announced that it has formed a joint venture with Capital Market Automation Provider Ltd to accelerate its market penetration in China. The new partnership offers ClearVision technology with local network infrastructure, specialization in MT4 hosted services and Chinese market support.
CFH Systems China will be headed up by Jeff Chao, Founder and CEO of Global Market Index, who set up Capital Market Automation Provider Ltd in 2013. He will head up a team of five, based in Shanghai.
Rakuten Looks West
On Thursday we reported that Japanese internet giant, Rakuten, has launched a massive new fintech investment fund. The conglomerate’s ecosystem includes businesses involved with banking, insurance, card issuing and brokering - like Rakuten Securities that took over FXCM's Asian operation.
Rakuten is allocating $100 million for the new venture to invest in early to mid-stage fintech startups that it believes provide the potential for an attractive return and have strategic relevance. The fund has a global mandate but is expected to focus primarily on fintech startups from the US and Europe.
No Equilibrium for Bitcoin
The BTC/USD rate rebounded on Thursday from one of its sharpest drops of the year, gaining 16% to $345. The bounce reverses the inertia of a fall that saw bitcoin shed 23% in just under 48 hours. It breached the psychologically significant $300 barrier, hitting a 2-week low of $294 before reversing higher.
It was bitcoin’s first time trading below $300 this month, undoing the last of the milestones that it achieved during the rally to above $500. These included entering positive territory in 2015 after 10 months, as well as the 52-week return turning positive.
