Author: Desmond Brooks
Desmond Brooks
Desmond Brooks is a skilled financial strategist with a keen eye for market analysis and trading opportunities. With a solid foundation in finance and a passion for economic trends, Desmond provides clear, actionable insights that help traders navigate the complexities of the market. He has contributed to several financial platforms, where his expertise in strategic planning and risk management has made him a trusted voice in the trading community.
MetaQuotes has rolled out Build 4620 for its MetaTrader 5 platform, bringing a slew of updates aimed at improving stability, enhancing user experience, and supporting advanced trading strategies. This update went live on October 11, 2024, and addresses key issues with the MQL5 programming language while introducing exciting new features. What’s New in Build 4620? 1. Reliable Tick History RetrievalTraders can now access uninterrupted historical tick data, solving a bug that previously disrupted backtesting and strategy optimization. This enhancement ensures accuracy and consistency in analyzing past market movements—an essential feature for creating profitable strategies. Tick history improvements mirror trends in…
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged Rimar Capital USA, Inc. and its top executives for allegedly misleading investors by exaggerating the firm’s AI capabilities. The SEC claims that the company raised close to $4 million from investors by promoting a non-existent AI-driven trading platform, a practice referred to as “AI washing.” False Promises of AI-Driven Success According to the SEC, Rimar Capital lured 45 investors with the promise of an advanced AI-powered system that could automate trades and deliver high returns. However, the regulator found that the firm’s claims about its AI technology and overall assets under management…
StoneX Group, a US-based financial services company, has put forward a $480 million takeover bid for UK-listed CAB Payments. This marks the second time StoneX has approached the payment solutions provider, raising its offer from an earlier proposal that was turned down by CAB Payments’ board. The latest bid is set at 145 pence per share, offering an 18% premium over the current share price of 123 pence. Background on the Bid StoneX made its latest offer on September 23, according to a report from Dow Jones Newswires. This follows a previous attempt in July, when StoneX proposed a 115…
CMC Markets (LSE: CMCX) has reported a remarkable financial recovery for the first half of its fiscal year 2025, turning a previous £2 million loss into an estimated £51 million profit. The London-based brokerage attributes this success to a strong focus on cost management and strategic expansion in its business-to-business (B2B) segment. Impressive Revenue Growth For the six months ending September 30, 2024, CMC Markets projects net operating income of approximately £180 million, a 45% increase compared to £123 million in the same period last year. This growth is driven by ongoing diversification efforts, a boost in client trading activity,…
Interactive Brokers has announced a new partnership with SNB Capital, a leading financial firm licensed by the Saudi Arabian Capital Market Authority, to provide international investors with direct access to the Saudi stock market. The collaboration will allow Interactive Brokers’ clients to diversify their portfolios by trading in Saudi equities, global stocks, ETFs, and other securities all from a single platform. Expanded Investment Options Under this new agreement, clients of Interactive Brokers can now trade a variety of securities on the Saudi Exchange, including local stocks, real estate investment trusts (REITs), and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The Saudi market, considered a…
LMAX Limited and its subsidiary, LMAX Broker Limited, have released their financial results for 2023, showing a mixed performance. Despite a rise in trading volumes and revenue, the companies struggled with profitability due to mounting administrative expenses. Combined, the two UK-based subsidiaries of the LMAX Group generated nearly £52 million in revenue, but net losses exceeded £750,000. Trading Volumes Rise but Costs Weigh Down Profits LMAX Limited reported that trading volumes reached $4.5 trillion in 2023, marking a 5% year-over-year increase. Average Daily Volumes (ADV) climbed to $17.4 billion, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 10% in…
FXSpotStream, a provider of multibank FX aggregation services, has announced that Australia’s ANZ bank has joined its platform as a liquidity provider. ANZ is the first Australian bank to become part of the platform, joining a network of 17 global liquidity providers, including industry giants like Bank of America, JP Morgan, and Barclays. This strategic addition is aimed at bolstering FXSpotStream’s presence in the Asia-Pacific region and enhancing its offerings for clients seeking liquidity in Australian, New Zealand, and other Asian currencies. Expanding Liquidity Offerings in Asia-Pacific The inclusion of ANZ as a liquidity provider is part of FXSpotStream’s strategy…
Tickmill UK Ltd, a subsidiary of the Tickmill Group regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), has released its financial results for the fiscal year ending on December 31, 2023. The company’s revenue climbed to £6.6 million, reflecting a solid improvement from the previous year’s performance. However, the net profit dropped significantly to £77,500 compared to £643,300 in 2022, pointing to a challenging year for profitability. Increased Costs Impact Profitability According to the latest filing with Companies House, administrative expenses surged by 68% year-over-year, reaching £9.5 million. Despite this, Tickmill UK reported a slight operating profit of £107,200 and a…
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has called on firms to demonstrate their commitment to the Consumer Duty regulations by adopting a more data-centric approach to ensure compliance and better consumer outcomes. Despite being in effect for a year, the Duty is still facing challenges, especially in areas like customer service and product administration. Background on Consumer Duty The FCA’s Consumer Duty officially took effect with an implementation deadline of July 31, 2023, for all new and existing financial products and services. A staggered approach was used, with different obligations being rolled out at various stages. The final phase concluded in…
Visa has announced its acquisition of Featurespace, a technology firm specializing in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven fraud prevention solutions. The move is aimed at bolstering Visa’s ability to detect and mitigate financial crime, as the payments giant looks to reinforce its security measures amid rising cyber threats in the digital asset and payments space. Integrating AI for Advanced Fraud Detection Featurespace’s proprietary algorithmic systems analyze transaction patterns in real-time to identify suspicious activity, offering an advanced layer of fraud detection for financial institutions and merchants. With this acquisition, Visa plans to integrate Featurespace’s solutions into its global network, enhancing its ability…