CFTC Data Shows US Retail FX Deposits Static in August 2017

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has released its monthly report for August 2017 which covers data for FCMs that are registered as Retail Foreign Exchange Dealers (RFEDs) and those included as broker dealers that hold retail Forex obligations in the United States. The latest data shows a total marginal change month-over-month from July, though differences amongst each broker were more pronounced.

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Retail forex deposits in the US have been largely flat or skewed slightly positively during August. The FX funds held at registered brokerages operating in the United States came at $521 million in August 2017, a marginal advance of less than one percent month-over-month compared with $519 million reported in July.

According to the CFTC dataset, three of the four FX firms listed notched increases in Retail Forex Obligations including GAIN Capital, OANDA Corporation and TD AMERITRADE. The best performer for the month was OANDA which saw an overall rise of $4.7 million to $168.2 million at the end of August 2017, compared to $163.5 million at the end of July, or an increase by 3 percent month-over-month.

Meanwhile, the single loss was made by Interactive Brokers, which saw a drop of $5.1 million, or more than -12 percent month-over-month. Interactive Brokers was the notable exception in the previous reported month, as the broker dealer saw substantial growth month-over-month across its Retail Forex Obligations. The company notched an increase over last month’s figure by $5.23 million, gaining 13.0 percent compared to June’s metrics.

Looking at the market share of different brokers, distribution remained unchanged in August relative to the month prior. GAIN Capital remained the leader in terms of market share, commanding a 49.0 percent share. OANDA also solidified its stance as the second largest in the US with 32.0 percent market share – TD Ameritrade and Interactive Brokers retain a 11.0 and 7.0 percent share respectively.

The chart listed below outlines the full list of all FCMs that held Retail Forex Obligations in the month ending in August 30, 2017 – for purposes of comparison, the figures have been included against their July 2017 counterparts to illustrate disparities.