The LSE Directory / CFD and forex brokers
FXCM is an online broker offering trading in spot forex and contracts for difference (CFDs) on currency pairs, stock indices, commodities, individual shares, cryptocurrencies and treasuries, plus spread betting for UK clients. Trading is available through its proprietary Trading Station platform, MetaTrader 4, and a TradingView integration, across desktop, web and mobile. It is the operating brand of Stratos Markets Limited, part of Stratos Group, headquartered at 110 Bishopsgate in London. The firm serves both retail and professional traders and, through its FXCM Pro division, institutional clients such as retail brokers, small hedge funds and emerging-market banks seeking wholesale execution and liquidity. A related unit, FXCM Prime, offers prime brokerage to higher-frequency funds with a minimum account balance of $250,000, with Citibank N.A. and Jefferies Financial Services Inc. named as its prime brokers; FXCM's liquidity is bridged through providers including OneZero, Gold-I and PrimeXM. A further differentiator is a suite of free APIs (FIX, Java, ForexConnect and REST) aimed at algorithmic and automated traders, alongside a sister CFD brand, Tradu, which Stratos launched in 2023 to run alongside FXCM. FXCM was founded on February 1, 1999 in New York, originally as Shalish Capital Markets, by Drew Niv and William Ahdout, and expanded into London in 2003. It listed on the NYSE in December 2010, raising 211 million dollars in its IPO. On January 15, 2015, the sudden appreciation of the Swiss franc after the Swiss National Bank removed its currency cap cost FXCM roughly 225 million dollars in client-related losses; the firm avoided collapse only through a 300 million dollar emergency loan from Leucadia, later renamed Jefferies Financial Group, which took a large voting stake as a condition of the rescue. In February 2017 the CFTC fined FXCM's US entity 7 million dollars over allegations of undisclosed relationships with market makers in its "no dealing desk" marketing, and the firm was barred from the US retail forex market, with around 40,000 US customer accounts sold to Gain Capital. Its parent, renamed Global Brokerage Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2017 and reorganized in February 2018. Jefferies subsequently increased its control and, following a September 2023 foreclosure on pledged Global Brokerage collateral, became the 100 percent owner of the renamed Stratos Group. FXCM's constituent regulated entities include Stratos Markets Limited (UK, FCA reference 217689), Stratos Europe Limited trading as FXCM EU (Cyprus, CySEC license 392/20), Stratos Trading Pty. Limited (Australia, ASIC AFSL 309763) and Stratos South Africa (Pty) Ltd (FSCA registration 46534), plus an unregulated St Vincent and Grenadines entity, Stratos Global LLC. As of May 2026, trade press including Finance Magnates reported that Jefferies Financial Group was exploring a sale of Stratos, the parent of both the FXCM and Tradu brands, though no transaction had been confirmed at the time of that reporting.
