AMF Publishes Four-Year FX Study, 89% of Investors Experiencing Losses

Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) has issued an announcement warning of the potential dangers of trading FX, following a mounting number of complaints from investors.

While the AMF serves as a regulator for a variety of unauthorized FX and Binary Option providers, it has embarked on a campaign to educate would-be traders and investors of the potential perils of FX trading.

Join the iFX EXPO Asia and discover your gateway to the Asian Markets

According to the results of its exclusive study, nine out of every ten individual customers experiences net losses – the sample size included both FX and CFD (Contract For Difference) traders in France, in what has become the first comprehensive assessment of these instruments in this manner.

Furthermore, the final results of the study yielded that over a four-year period (2009-2012), the percentage of investors experiencing losses came in at 89%. The average loss of a customer during this period was $13,800 (€10,900).

In the four years combined, a total of 13,224 customers experienced aggregate losses of nearly $220 million (€175 million), with the remaining 1,575 customers earning a combined $17.51 million (€13.8 million).

While these results in and of themselves are unlikely to herald a widespread change in the industry, they do underscore the latent risks in FX trading, along with the need for proper FX-educated traders.