Why Customers Join Forex Trading

• Forex asserts that there are three primary reasons why customers choose its forex trading platforms over competitors:
• #1: Forex is the dominant forex trading platform in the United States, having been in operation since 2001 and having the largest volume of client forex assets as of 2020.
• #2: The platform enables customers to trade over 80 foreign exchange pairs, as well as other popular assets including gold and silver.
• #3: Forex offers a range of pricing options, including "spread only, spread + fixed commission or STP Pro" as well as EUR/USD trading as low as 0.2.
• Investopedia corroborates these assertions by stating that Forex is attractive to customers in the US due to its "wide range of product offerings."
• The business trade adds that Forex is in the "upper echelon of online brokers" in terms of its robust level of regulation and has a "well-organized and navigable website" that is particularly appealing to high-volume traders.

What Problems does Forex Trading Solve

• The Forex trading platform as well as FX trading in general solves a number of key problems for consumers who are looking to engage in capital markets activity. For example:

• Forex provides 24 hours per day, 5 days a week trading opportunities (unlike platforms that cater only to individual stock markets).
• There are no restrictions on short selling.
• Forex is traded with a "degree of leverage," which enables market participants to take a larger market position for less upfront cash.
• FX is the most liquid market globally, which results in more "actionable prices."
• Given its scale and ubiquity, forex trading allows consumers to participate / gain exposure to a diverse array of geographies and market profiles (e.g., emerging markets).

Top Desired Outcomes from Forex Trading

• According to Benzinga, one of the top desired outcomes for consumers who use the Forex platform is to have a "home base" or "one-stop-shop" for all of their FX trading needs.
• Whether consumers are beginner forex traders or seasoned market participants, Forex offers access to a wide variety of tradable currencies within a trading platform that is easy to use and offers the educational tools (e.g., free forex trading courses by skill levels) to support consumers in their trading activities.

Key Questions / Challenges with Forex Trading

• However, Investopedia and Benzinga also note several key drawbacks or challenges associated with using Forex, such as the fact that it does not enable the procurement of other desirable assets (e.g., stocks, bonds).

Deterrents from Joining a Forex Platform

• Additionally, consumers may be deterred from joining a Forex platform because it offers "no account protection" as well as "no guaranteed stop losses" for American customers.

Other Pertinent Information

• Forex trading (also known as foreign exchange or FX trading) is a type of trading that involves the conversion of one currency into another currency.
• Notably, forex markets are among the most actively trade globally, with an average daily trading volume of $5 trillion.
• Historically, commercial and investment banks, central banks, investment managers, hedge funds and multinational corporations have been the largest participants in forex trading.
• However, forex trading has been "growing rapidly in popularity" among individual or retail investors.

Summary of First Hour of Research

• The research team leveraged the first hour of research to confirm the availability of information on consumer expectations related to Forex trading, as well as to provide an initial summary of findings.
• Notably, the research team inferred based on the provided information that the primary interest of this research was consumer expectations related to the Forex trading platform (capitalized Forex), rather than forex trading platforms in general or forex markets (not capitalized forex). If there is a desire for future research to focus on forex trading platforms in general or forex markets overall, this could be accommodated in response to a follow-up comment.
• Additionally, given that a geographic focus was not provided for this research, the research team proceed with a US focus. If a different geographic scope is desired for future research (e.g., global) this could be accommodated in response to a follow-up comment.
• Overall, the research team confirmed that Forex.com, industry trades and consumer reviews offer ample opportunities to collect and synthesize insights related to the stated goals of this research.
• Moreover, it appears that information may exist related to several other pertinent research areas, such as the consumer profile of forex traders, key competitor platforms and their marketing strategies as well as the growth in popularity of forex trading among retail investors.