Exclusive: Australian Broker FP Markets Acquires CySEC License

After the latest batch of changes to the EU's retail broker regulatory framework, European brokers have been looking for ways to divest their geographical reach. The same however appears to be valid for Australian brokers, who are actively pursuing opportunities to attract EU clients.

FP Markets is the latest company from the land down under to acquire a license from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC CySEC The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) is a financial regulatory authority of Cyprus. CySEC is one of the key watchdog authorities for brokerages in Europe, whose financial regulations and operations comply with the European MiFID financial harmonization law.Founded in 2001, CySEC is instrumental in providing licensing and registration for forex brokers and previously binary options providers.CySEC is responsible for a variety of different functions, which includes the supervision The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) is a financial regulatory authority of Cyprus. CySEC is one of the key watchdog authorities for brokerages in Europe, whose financial regulations and operations comply with the European MiFID financial harmonization law.Founded in 2001, CySEC is instrumental in providing licensing and registration for forex brokers and previously binary options providers.CySEC is responsible for a variety of different functions, which includes the supervision Read this Term). In the final quarter of last year, one of the biggest Australian brokers, ICMarkets also acquired the permit to operate in the EU but is yet to officially launch its operation.

FP Markets has registered the .eu domain name, and at present is stating that it is not offering its services yet. The company is preparing to start welcoming clients from the EU in the near future.

After acquiring a license from the CySEC in October of last year, the European branch of ICMarkets also hasn’t started its operations yet. The company is showing a similar message on its .eu domain website.

Two-Way Traffic of Australian and EU Brokers

While some EU brokers are seeking licenses in Australia, Australian brokers with an established foothold are looking for ways to onboard more European clients.

Every retail broker advertising its services to clients in the EU is obliged to hold a valid regulatory permit. Google Ads policies could be another limitation which brokers are aiming to circumvent.

At present, the search giant requires brokers to provide it with a legal opinion that they are allowed to advertise in any jurisdiction they choose to.

Over the past couple of years, European brokers have been actively looking for ways to acquire an Australian license. The local regulator, ASIC, has been notoriously difficult towards retail brokers only recently allowing a new brokerage to obtain one for offering Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest tradi Read this Term and CFDs. As Finance Magnates exclusively reported, that company is Fortrade.

Despite the challenging regulatory environment globally, companies are continuing to come up with creative ways to attract new customers. While EU citizens are looking for high leverage offshore, the regulated part of the industry has been shifting towards STP execution at a point in time when spreads are starting to matter more.

Traditional market makers on their part have been migrating offshore, while the big, strongly capitalized brokers have increased spending to attract more new clients to their established brands.