CFI Financial Group has switched on its Colombian operation, opening a Bogotá office and installing Simon Knudson as chief executive of the local unit nearly nine months after Colombia's Financial Superintendence cleared the firm to set up shop in the country.
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The launch turns last summer's regulatory green light into something operational, and lands as a growing list of international brokers crowd into the same market.
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"Colombia is an important market for the Group," Ziad Melhem, group chief executive of CFI, said in the company's announcement. He pointed to "strong momentum across Latin America" and to a new generation of traders entering the market.
CFI is far from alone in betting on Colombia. The SFC waved through Plus500's first Latin American office on August 19, 2025, days before CFI got its own approval on August 28. Australian broker ACY and Libertex Group's Mauritius-based offshore brand LBX followed within the same week.
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Ireland-headquartered AvaTrade got there earlier, securing SFC authorization in 2024 and using Colombia as a beachhead for the wider region. Group CEO Daire Ferguson said at the time that the approval was a "crucial step" in AvaTrade's global push.
The pile-up reflects how Colombia's representative-office regime works in practice. The license does not let foreign brokers solicit deposits or accept orders directly, but it allows them to promote products approved under local rules and build a domestic team without setting up a fully capitalized local broker-dealer.
That structure has made Bogotá a relatively low-cost test market for firms wanting to plant a flag in Latin America before committing to a deeper local entity.
Knudson Steps In to Run the Local Unit
Knudson will run CFI Colombia S.A.S out of Bogotá. He inherits an operation positioned to cross-sell CFI's multi-asset CFD lineup to Colombian residents, supported by what the company describes as fast and reliable execution and a "seamless client experience", corporate language that, in practice, will be tested against the offerings already pitched by Plus500, AvaTrade, and a clutch of offshore rivals.
Knudson said clients want platforms that are "both accessible and dependable" and that his team would focus on a "smooth, efficient experience by strong technology and a local team that understands the market."
Latin America Push Builds on Brazil License
The Colombian launch fits into a busier regional roadmap. Last week CFI secured a brokerage license from Brazil's central bank to operate as a Corretora de Títulos e Valores Mobiliários, taking the group's regulatory footprint to 15 jurisdictions worldwide.
Brazil has not been a one-way street for everyone. Warsaw-listed XTB obtained Brazilian approval earlier in 2025 only to suspend new account openings and weigh a full exit, citing what it called local protectionist measures.
CFI has been pairing its licensing push with rising activity numbers. The group reported $2.3 trillion in first-quarter trading volume for 2026, up 11% from the previous quarter and 81% year-over-year, according to FM Intelligence. Active clients rose 18% over the same period.
