Last updated on January 28th, 2023 at 01:53 pm
Being aware of who trades Forex is very important to a trader’s career. It enables you to treat the forex business professionally. This article highlights a list of forex market participants. Note that all of them have one common goal, which is to make a profit in each trade they open.
Table of Contents
List of Institutions and Individuals Who Trades Forex
Interbank
The Interbank is also known as the Market Maker because they move the price in forex charts. Central banks are the most influential among the big ‘boys’ in the forex market. Most often, the banks actively trade against each other directly without involving an electronic broker.
As a retail trader, no amount of trade you place will ever move the price because you don’t own a big pocket like the big banks. So the next time you see price trending heavily in one direction, know that the market makers are at play. You don’t want to trade against such a trend. Otherwise, it will be like holding a sharp knife on the edges.
Electronic Brokers
Electronic Brokers also known as E-brokers are constantly at a ‘war’ on offering the best deal on currency quote prices. They provide transaction services to commercial banks.
Commercial Banks
Commercial banks neither trade directly with the central banks nor directly amongst themselves. Instead, they get currency quote prices from electronic brokers.
We live in an era where mobile banking has taken over the financial sector by storm. The trend has adversely affected commercial banks because many prefer sending and receiving money through mobile banking over commercial bank services.
How do you think the banks remain in business when most of their customers’ accounts are inactive? To settle their bills, commercial banks engage in Forex trading.
Unlike most retail traders, the banks record profits at the end of every financial year.
Corporations, Retail Brokers, and Hedge Funds
Corporations, retail brokers, and financial institutions transact through commercial banks when engaging in forex trading.
As we move down in this list of forex market participants, the exchange rate of each currency pair is getting expensive, which means the interbank pays cheaper transaction fees when trading compared to a lower-level forex market player.
Retail Traders
Many years ago, retail traders could not engage in Forex trading. To become a trader, one had to invest a large chunk of money – a minimum of $10,000,000(over Ksh 1 Billion). That is a lot of money that only the big financial institutions can raise.
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In the late 1990s, technology provided us with a platform to trade alongside the big players. We can now get price quotes from retail brokers like XM Global, FXPesa, Fbs, JustForex, etc in order to profit in the market just like the central banks, commercial banks, national governments, and other big financial institutions.
FAQs on Forex Market Participants
Who Are the Major Players in Forex Trading?
The major players in the Forex market are large financial institutions. These are the people behind price movement in the Forex charts.
How Do Banks Trade Forex?
Banks trade Forex by providing transaction services to their customers. They earn their profits from spread fees.
Another way banks trade Forex is by hiring experienced Forex traders to analyze the charts and place trades for them.
Do National Governments Engage in Forex Trading?
National Governments engage in Forex trading through international trades. They can decide to adjust interest rates to lower or raise a currency’s value.
Conclusion
Now that you know who trades Forex, I believe you are excited to learn more about how to trade the Forex market. We have prepared a few more theories in this forex trading course for beginners. You need to go through all the articles before we begin practicals. Let me know if you need my help in the comment box below. We will talk about the advantages of trading forex in the next post.
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