Gain Capital’s Retail FX Deposits Drop $10 Million in August, CFTC Data Shows
- Overall, the balances of US retail traders dropped $14.8 million.

According to the CFTC’s monthly report, the FX funds held at brokerages operating in the country, including FCMs that are registered as Retail Foreign Exchange Dealers (RFEDs) and those included as broker-dealers, came in at $523 million. This figure is $14.8 million or three percent lower than the $533.7 million reported in July.
Data from the US securities regulator also showed that Gain Capital lost nearly $10 million in retail 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 trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. 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 trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Read this Term deposits. Overall, the balances of US retail traders have been largely skewed negatively during the reported period.
Only one of the four FX firms listed notched increases in Retail Forex Obligations, which was this time Interactive Brokers. The Connecticut-based company was the best performer after recording an overall rise of $3.4 million to $37.3 million at the end of August 2018, compared to $33.9 million in July, or an increase by 10 percent month-over-month.
Meanwhile, GAIN Capital saw a drop of $9.9 million, or nearly four percent month-over-month. Further, retail funds at OANDA Corporation slumped by nearly $4 million or two percent in August. Retail brokerage TD Ameritrade’s $4 million-plus loss was the biggest, on a percentage basis, as the discount broker lost more than six percent of its clients’ deposits.
Retail currency brokers are still struggling to operate in the United States after nearly a decade of tougher margin and capital requirements. But things could change if Donald Trump is able to follow through on his pledge to deregulate financial markets. Global key players in the vast retail FX market are also gearing up for a hopeful re-entry. At the heart of the forex brokers’ optimism is the possible repeal of the Dodd-Frank Act.
Looking at the market share of different brokers, distribution changed slightly in August relative to the month prior. GAIN Capital remained the leader in terms of market share, commanding a 45 percent share, but down one percent from July. OANDA also solidified its stance as the second largest in the US with 36 percent market share – TD Ameritrade and Interactive Brokers retain a 12 and seven 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 31, 2018 – for purposes of comparison, the figures have been included against their July 2018 counterparts to illustrate disparities.

According to the CFTC’s monthly report, the FX funds held at brokerages operating in the country, including FCMs that are registered as Retail Foreign Exchange Dealers (RFEDs) and those included as broker-dealers, came in at $523 million. This figure is $14.8 million or three percent lower than the $533.7 million reported in July.
Data from the US securities regulator also showed that Gain Capital lost nearly $10 million in retail 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 trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. 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 trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Read this Term deposits. Overall, the balances of US retail traders have been largely skewed negatively during the reported period.
Only one of the four FX firms listed notched increases in Retail Forex Obligations, which was this time Interactive Brokers. The Connecticut-based company was the best performer after recording an overall rise of $3.4 million to $37.3 million at the end of August 2018, compared to $33.9 million in July, or an increase by 10 percent month-over-month.
Meanwhile, GAIN Capital saw a drop of $9.9 million, or nearly four percent month-over-month. Further, retail funds at OANDA Corporation slumped by nearly $4 million or two percent in August. Retail brokerage TD Ameritrade’s $4 million-plus loss was the biggest, on a percentage basis, as the discount broker lost more than six percent of its clients’ deposits.
Retail currency brokers are still struggling to operate in the United States after nearly a decade of tougher margin and capital requirements. But things could change if Donald Trump is able to follow through on his pledge to deregulate financial markets. Global key players in the vast retail FX market are also gearing up for a hopeful re-entry. At the heart of the forex brokers’ optimism is the possible repeal of the Dodd-Frank Act.
Looking at the market share of different brokers, distribution changed slightly in August relative to the month prior. GAIN Capital remained the leader in terms of market share, commanding a 45 percent share, but down one percent from July. OANDA also solidified its stance as the second largest in the US with 36 percent market share – TD Ameritrade and Interactive Brokers retain a 12 and seven 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 31, 2018 – for purposes of comparison, the figures have been included against their July 2018 counterparts to illustrate disparities.
