After 15 years of gaining experience in the FX/CFD industry, Sam Eder, the Head of Emerging Markets at OANDA, has decided to leave the company to start his own business from scratch. He announced today (Thursday) that he has started working on the Market Mates project. Interestingly, this is not the first business venture that Eder will develop.

After 7 Years at OANDA, Eder Starts His Own Business

Eder's career in the financial markets began in 2008 when he joined the Australian branch of GFT Markets. Then, in 2013, he moved to Invast Securities, where he held the position of Director in the Sales and Customer Experience Department.

In 2014, he first attempted to create his own business, FX Renew, which provided trading signals produced by former investment bank employees and hedge fund workers. However, after five years, he sold his business and returned to salaried work.

This time, he joined the OANDA team, where he was connected for the next seven years. During this time, he held the position of Head of Sales for the Asia Pacific region and the Head of Emerging Markets for the last two years.

However, at the beginning of February 2024, he is parting ways with the well-known brokerage brand to launch Market Mates. From Eder's information, it is unclear what the new company will focus on, and the marketmates.com website is still under construction.

We can only guess that it will either be an independent FX/CFD brand or, similar to FX Renew, a service designed to support retail investors or brokers themselves.

"We will offer some innovative pricing structures to IBs," Gibson told Finance Magnates, adding his platform will take a unique approach with "educational services and training" and "automated bespoke trading strategies."

Industry Pros Forge Their Own Path

The story of individuals leaving established careers to start their own ventures is a common narrative within the FX/CFD industry and the broader business world. It's a well-known phenomenon where directors or senior managers with years of experience decide to strike out on their own. This trend of transitioning from employee to entrepreneur is exemplified by numerous instances across the sector.

For example, Finance Magnates reported two months ago that Andrew Gibson, a seasoned professional in the FX/CFD industry, parted ways with Tavira Financial to launch his own brokerage firm, Timberfx. The official launch of the company is scheduled for March 2024.

Gibson has announced that the new brokerage's services and support operations will be based out of offices in Cyprus, with his current focus being on recruiting the necessary staff to ensure a smooth start of operations starting January.

"We will offer some innovative pricing structures to IBs," Gibson told Finance Magnates, adding his platform will take a unique approach with "educational services and training" and "automated bespoke trading strategies."