As the CME Group (literal) meltdown left a number of CFDs brokers in the dark and unable to quote prices to clients on many instruments, the past week also saw a number of interesting strategic moves in the online trading sector.
How did UAE SCA Category One licensed CFDs broker Cara Markets rebrand? (And why?)
Why is leading Australia based broker Pepperstone launching a new crypto exchange?
Who replaced longtime easyMarkets CEO Nikos Antoniades?
Which broker did former Capital.com CEO Kypros Zoumidou join?
Why was Cyprus based CFDs broker SquaredFinancial fined €35,000?
Where did Capital.com just expand its customer service operation? (And, what were Capital.com’s trading volumes in Q3?)
Some of the most read and commented-on FX/CFD industry news stories to appear over the past seven days on FNG included:
Top FX and CFDs industry news stories this week
Exclusive: UAE CFDs broker Cara Markets rebrands as KIRA Financial. FNG Exclusive… FNG has learned that Cara Markets has become KIRA Financial, at website kirafinancial.com. KIRA Financial was established by Kiran Pethani, co-founder and co-owner (alongside his brother Anilkumar Pethani) of Dubai based Cara Jewellers, a premium luxury brands retailer in the UAE. The company received a UAE SCA Category One license in mid 2024, and has gone on to hire a number of experienced FX and CFDs industry executives, including former ADSS institutional sales director Hasan Hamd, who is now KIRA Financial Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).
Exclusive: Pepperstone launching spot Crypto exchange. FNG Exclusive… FNG has learned that leading Australia based Retail FX and CFDs broker Pepperstone is “imminently” launching a new spot Crypto exchange in Australia. In a panel discussion (pictured above) at the annual AusCryptoCon convention, Pepperstone CEO Tamas Szabo (making his first AusCryptoCon appearance) said that Pepperstone will soon be launching a spot Crypto exchange in Australia, pending final regulatory approval.
Spotware adds Prop Firm Challenges to the cTrader Store. Trading platform developer Spotware has announced that it has expanded its cTrader Store with a dedicated section listing prop firms and their trading challenges in a convenient and organised way. Integrated directly into the Store’s ecosystem of trading tools, automated strategies and partner services, this section offers traders a transparent way to review and compare trading conditions while giving prop firms significant visibility within the cTrader community.
Cooling issue leads to CME Group markets halt. International derivatives marketplace CME Group has reported a cooling issue at CyrusOne data centers, leading to its markets getting halted. Numerous brokerages have confirmed the CME markets problems. The list includes (among others) IG, OANDA, FOREX.com, eToro. All of these companies said they are monitoring the situation and will provide updates.
SquaredFinancial fined €35K by CySEC for CFDs marketing. Cyprus financial regulator Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) has announced that a settlement has been reached with CIF license holder Squared Financial (CY) Ltd, which operates the SquaredFinancial Retail FX and CFDs brokerage brand. The settlement reached with the Company, for the possible infringement, amounts to the amount of €35,000.
Capital.com Q3 volumes hit $744B, expands service hub in Bulgaria. Leading online broker Capital.com has announced the expansion of its operations in Bulgaria, with the opening of a new office at Sofia’s Office X Business Garden and a 51% increase in local headcount over the past year. This development aligns with the company’s strategy to build specialised centres of excellence across key functions, with Bulgaria leading the way in customer service.
Top FX industry executive moves this week
❑ Trade Nation hires former Capital.com CEO Kypros Zoumidou as Managing Director.
❑ easyMarkets leadership transition sees departure of CEO Nikos Antoniades.
❑ Exclusive: Saxo Bank Customer Director Thomas Dam departs.
❑ Exclusive: DB Investing hires Kama exec Karthik Arumugam as Head of Marketing Ops.
❑ Equiti Group appoints new CISO and Compliance head.
❑ Exclusive: EXANTE LaTAM sales head Luis Simões Pereira moves to Saxo Bank.
❑ 24 Exchange hires DriveWealth exec Gina Tuccio as CFO.
