Forex Trading in Australia

Forex trading has only been around for the last two decades and is a fairly new financial market when compared to the other financial markets like the stock market or futures market. Thus the regulations governing this market are relatively new and are few in between.

This area of concern is compounded by the fact that the Forex market is also an Over the Counter (OTC) market that does not have central processing location.

In addition, to make matters even more complicated, the Forex market covers many countries and thus requires mutual agreements among all the countries involved to pass regulations or legislations to regulate it.

However as Forex trading becoming more and more popular, some countries have already amended their regulations to enhance the protection of investors trading in the Forex market.

To protect investors, most countries resort to raising the Forex trading companies’ capital requirements as well as having them obtain a licence from the regulatory bodies. In Australia, Forex trading is regulated by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).

All bona fide Forex trading companies that deal with retail Forex trading services must be registered with this regulatory body which ensures that these companies fulfill the capital requirement.

In addition, Forex trading companies doing business in Australia must obtain an Australian Financial Services Licence or be licenced with the RBA (Reserve Bank of Australia).

Thus, Forex traders in Australia who want to trade Forex should deal with those Forex trading companies that are registered with AISC and licenced by the RBA to ensure that their investments are properly protected by law.

Below are some of the reputable Forex trading companies that provide online Forex trading facilities which are registered with AISC.

Based in Melbourne and with offices in Sydney and the Gold Coast, Sonray Capital Markets was established in 2003 and is one of the market leaders in Forex trading facilitation in Australia.

The company utilises the services of registered third party providers that are properly licensed to deal with the execution of trades.

Also registered with AISC is Halifax. This company main base of operation is in Sydney. The HALIFAXONLINE integrated trading platform provided by this company not only permits a trader to deal with Forex but also CFD, Equities and futures as well.

Established by a group of bankers, venture capitalists and Forex specialists, ForexCT.com is one of the few Australian Forex trading companies that allows a trader to trade in Forex for as little as 0.

The company office is located in Melbourne and is regulated by AISC. Its trading platform is web based and does not require any downloading of softwares or firewall configurations. Also located in Melbourne is Go Markets Pty Ltd. The company with the AFSL licence #254963 is registered to deal with not only with Forex but also with CFDs and Equities.

They have numerous partnerships with overseas financial institutions and are well connected to act on their client’s behalf all over the world. Only a deposit of is required to open an account with them and they offer up 300 to 1 margin trading ratio to their clients.

As one of the major exporting countries of mineral resources in the world, the Australian dollar is also one of the most traded currencies. It is ranked fourth by volume traded and is the seventh largest Forex market in the world.

With the global financial crisis affecting the value of equities seriously, more and more Australian investors are now looking towards the Forex market as an investment vehicle due to its liquidity.