US Forex Brokers Hit a Snag as Q3 Closes with Deposit Drop

<p>The last
month of the third quarter proved to be the worst for six registered retail
forex (FX) brokers operating in the United States. According to the latest data
from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) published this week, the
value of client deposits fell to $516.3 million, the lowest in Q2 2023.</p><p>CFTC Data Shows FX Deposit
Decline</p><p>According
to CFTC regulations, every retail foreign <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/e/exchange/">exchange</a> dealer (RFED) and futures
commission merchant (<a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/fcm/" target="_blank" rel="follow">FCM</a>) must report monthly financial positions to the
commission, including adjusted net capital, customers' assets, and the total
amount of retail forex obligations.</p><p>Retail
forex obligations represent the total amount of funds held by an FCM or RFED,
which is the sum of all money, securities, and property deposited by a retail
forex customer into one or more retail FX accounts, after adjustments for
realized and unrealized net profit or loss.</p><p>Out of 62
registered FCMs and RFEDs, six firms disclose data on obligations. The largest
position is held by Gain Capital, with deposits valued at over $195 million. In
second place is Oanda, with $161 million; in third place is Charles Schwab,
with just under $63 million. Following in order are IG US ($60 million),
Interactive Brokers ($36 million), and Trading.com ($1 million).</p><p>The market
share remains relatively unchanged compared to previous months, but the total
amount of retail forex obligations has decreased to the lowest quarter levels.
In July, it was $518.5 million, and <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/us-forex-brokers-report-increase-in-august-deposits-to-525-million/" target="_blank" rel="follow">in August $525 million</a>.</p><p>Despite a
month-over-month decline of over 1.5% to $516 million, compared to September of
the previous year, the indicator recorded a growth of 5.5%, rebounding from
$489.6 million.</p><p>How Have Individual
Brokers' Results Changed?</p><p>Three firms
recorded declines in FX deposits, although, for Gain Capital, they were minimal.
Trading.com lost 4.5%, while the results of IG US fell the most, with a loss
exceeding 22%, or nearly $7 million.</p><p>On the
gaining side, Charles Schwab and Oanda reported marginal gains below 1%, while
Interactive Brokers increased their retail <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/f/forex/">forex</a> funds by nearly 6.5%, or about
$2 million.</p><p><a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Finance
Magnates</a>
independently researches retail investor trends. Employing CPattern's insights,
we showcase our metrics by tracking historical shifts in average deposits,
average withdrawals, and initial deposits. <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/analysis/may-brought-the-highest-deposits-over-a-year/" target="_blank" rel="follow">The most recent study highlighted</a> a
peak in deposit activity not seen in the preceding months.</p>

This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.