The Russian central bank has just published a communique on its website which outlines that Alpari and Forex Club have been denied a license. No further information on the reasoning of the decision has been provided, with the brokers awaiting for an answer from the mega-regulator for over 6 months.
Two of the biggest brokerages in the country as per the survey by Interfax have not been able to meet the requirements of the authorities. With Alpari being established all the way back in 1998 as one of the pioneers of the industry in Russia, the decision by the central bank raises eyebrows across the industry.
Commenting to Finance Magnates, a company spokesperson of Forex Club stated: "We are working on complying with the formal recommendations of the central bank and are soon resubmitting our application."
Alpari has issued the following statement on its website: "The Russian Central Bank had a series of clarifying questions and notes on the technical norms required for a company to become a licensed forex dealer complying with the current legislative framework. The company is expecting the full list of notes and questions from the regulator in the future and will be reapplying for a license. Alpari expects to receive a license from the Bank of Russia in the third quarter of 2016."
Despite the official licenses, one of the three companies that have received authorization doesn’t even have its website operational.
Currently, despite being authorized, the brokerages are still not members of any self-regulatory organization that meets the requirements of the Russian law, since such an organization still doesn’t exist.
In its current state, it seems that the Bank of Russia's regulatory framework is established not to protect the interests of clients, but yet another branch of special interests.
