GMO-Z.com Trade UK Ltd, the British unit of Japan’s GMO Click Securities, has significantly freed up its investment in the company by reducing its invested capital from £14 million in 2019 to £1.5 million, according to the latest Companies House filing.
The UK company confirmed to Finance Magnates that it is transferring a chunk of its paid-up capital to its Japanese parent for capital optimization.
The step came as the UK company already applied for the cancellation of its Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ) license last June, which is now in process.
Outside the Regulatory Scope
GMO-Z.com initially received its FCA license in September 2014 when the company was planning to offer retail forex and CFDs trading services under the brand Z.com. However, the company soon scrapped its plan to focus on institutional services.
The UK unit currently operates a Spot FX business, offering its services to a range of institutional clients. These services do not fall under the scope of the FCA and as such do not require a license.
A GMO-Z.com spokesperson told Finance Magnates: “As this is out of the scope of FCA regulations, and we ended our provision of MiFID services some time ago, the company has opted to apply to cancel its now unused FCA permissions and transfer some of its capital back to our parent company, GMO Financial Holdings, for capital optimization.”
“We recently upgraded our technology stack with further plans for expansion next year, and we look forward to engaging with the wider institutional audience to deliver optimal liquidity provision as we roll this out.”
Furthermore, the company added that it will reapply for a license and recapitalize if it plans to jump into regulated services in the future.
