If you are a Retail Forex Trader, then you had better read this: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-1...stly-lose.html . And, you had better watch this: http://www.bloomberg.com/video/ex-cf...IXtyPH67g.html
They say you are gambling. They say that the Retail Forex should be shut down. They say that you have no real knowledge of what's going on. They say that there is no real hedging purpose in Retail Forex. They say that you are better off going to the Casinos.
The former Director of Division of Trading and Markets at the CFTC, says he wants to shut down your opportunity to join the 5%. The article blasts a ton of irrational conclusions that I won't get into, but the primary issue is that you are engaged in 100% gambling, according to the former Director at the CFTC, now a university law professor at Maryland.
What this article and the former Director fails to recognize is that the vast majority of private individuals who graduated from Retail Bucket Shops into Prime Broker accounts on commercial and/or institutional platforms, had to cut their teeth, develop their skill and design their edge in trading on Retail Forex - after years of research, hard work and a sincere commitment to being accomplished at what they do on a daily basis. No respect whatsoever, was paid to those Traders who did their homework and worked hard to become successful. In fact, the article acts as if those people never existed - which is a complete fallacy.
As well, neither the article nor the professor ever once considered shutting down all Universities and Colleges in the United States because thousands of people are forced to spend $50,000 to over $100,000 on an education, without being able to enter a job market that pays them back. No concern whatsoever, about college graduates who have a hard time paying back college loans and university debt. Not once, did the article stake the claim that because people were paying money for an education that they were unable to turn into a resounding personal economic success story, that Universities should be shut down across the country. Nor, did the article say that because American Taxpayers were throwing money down the tubes at a Congress that can't control its spending habits, that we should abolish the United States Congress, to get Taxpayer money back. The degree of hypocrisy in this article and coming directly from the former CFTC Director himself, was staggering.
There is no such thing as a Risk Free Trade. Any currency trade is going to cost you something to execute, one way or another -win or lose. As if, the Stock Market, is so superior to currency trading and deserving of its existence within our society - nothing is said about shutting that Rigged Game Racket down merely because the leverage it offers is 2:1. Is there another market anywhere on earth more Rigged than the United States Equities Markets? Maybe there is - I just have not found one, yet. Why no calls to shut down the Equity Market Casinos?
Leverage?
Nobody puts a gun to any Trader's head and forces them to use high leverage. Any Trader can gear down anytime they want. Yet, this is the primary calling card of those wanting to shut down Forex in the United States. The article says that because people still lose money after going through some form of "training," and because they use "high" leverage, the churn rates are high in Retail Forex. I am always amazed at the quote that a "High Percentage" of Retail Forex Traders are losing money, when nobody ever seems to run a story or try to find out how or why a "Lower Percentage" of Retail Traders are actually making money in Retail Forex.
Most disturbing, at least for me, is the fact that no attention is paid to explaining what it really takes to become consistently profitable as a Trader of any market. No one talks about the years of work one puts into the business to become consistent and confident. In Retail Forex, there is the built-in attitude, opinion and belief that success is guaranteed merely because the industry exists and that's simply not the truth. But, why would that be sufficient to shut down an industry? It is not sufficient - therefore, there must be another reason why people like Greenberg, want to see Retail FX go away.
The hypocrisy behind Greenberg's comments are equal to his status as an attorney - the ability to speak from both sides of his mouth have been made readily apparent. He sat inside the very regulatory body that supported the notion of lowering leverage, preventing U.S. residents from opening overseas accounts (reducing competition among broker/dealers) and making hedging illegal. He then turns right around and tells Bloomberg that there is no real hedging taking place in Retail Forex, ergo the entire industry should be banned. So, he was once on the side that got rid of hedging, and now he's using that very fact to get rid of the industry. That's pretty cute. Create the problem and then proclaim that you have the fix for the problem, and oh, by the way, that fix means getting rid of the entire industry. Total hypocrisy.
The article never once suggests that the recent Government Libor Probe leading to the big hit on Barclays and others, are indications that Interbank itself should be shut down, or that Institutional trading in the U.S. should be shut down. Maybe, Mr. Greenberg, would like to see a return to the Gold Standard, such that all currency trading world wide is shut down. Oh, darn - that's right! All the world's gold has been consolidated into the hands of a precious few - namely the Central Banks. Hmmmm. I wonder who benefits from that?
This article is dripping with convenient excuse after convenient excuse and it never hits upon the central problem in Retail Forex, that people need to take responsibility for their own Trading Education and that individuals must develop a Trading Edge of their own and that works for them, according to their own needs.
Maybe one day Bloomberg will interview Traders who have turned the corner, so that they can offer them their opinion on why graduating from Retail Hell is so important and what it took for them to do it - instead of always focusing on the guy who is not a real Trader, and who clearly has some kind ulterior motive.
For those who do not have the required start-up capital to launch their trading business immediately on top of Commercial and Institutional Trading Platforms and through Prime Brokerage Accounts, developing their skills to the point where they can make that necessary step in their Currency Trading Career can only be done on a Retail Bucket Shop Platform. So, getting rid of an entire industry that is the University Campus for novice currency Traders is like tossing out the baby and the tub out with the bathwater.
The notion that Mr. Greenberg, puts forth that the only possible reason for having Retail Forex is to provide hedging, completely misses the point of being a for profit Trader. He clearly has never trading a single instrument a day in his life and statement proves it. You trade to generate revenue - to grow capital. If hedging helps you accomplish that goal, then you hedge. Of course, given the actions taken by people like Greenberg, you can't hedge in a U.S. Retail Forex account. Somehow, he can't see the contradiction that he himself helped to create. Mind blowing.
GAMBLING? NO HEDGING?
THEN SHUT IT ALL DOWN!
They say you are gambling. They say that the Retail Forex should be shut down. They say that you have no real knowledge of what's going on. They say that there is no real hedging purpose in Retail Forex. They say that you are better off going to the Casinos.
The former Director of Division of Trading and Markets at the CFTC, says he wants to shut down your opportunity to join the 5%. The article blasts a ton of irrational conclusions that I won't get into, but the primary issue is that you are engaged in 100% gambling, according to the former Director at the CFTC, now a university law professor at Maryland.
What this article and the former Director fails to recognize is that the vast majority of private individuals who graduated from Retail Bucket Shops into Prime Broker accounts on commercial and/or institutional platforms, had to cut their teeth, develop their skill and design their edge in trading on Retail Forex - after years of research, hard work and a sincere commitment to being accomplished at what they do on a daily basis. No respect whatsoever, was paid to those Traders who did their homework and worked hard to become successful. In fact, the article acts as if those people never existed - which is a complete fallacy.
As well, neither the article nor the professor ever once considered shutting down all Universities and Colleges in the United States because thousands of people are forced to spend $50,000 to over $100,000 on an education, without being able to enter a job market that pays them back. No concern whatsoever, about college graduates who have a hard time paying back college loans and university debt. Not once, did the article stake the claim that because people were paying money for an education that they were unable to turn into a resounding personal economic success story, that Universities should be shut down across the country. Nor, did the article say that because American Taxpayers were throwing money down the tubes at a Congress that can't control its spending habits, that we should abolish the United States Congress, to get Taxpayer money back. The degree of hypocrisy in this article and coming directly from the former CFTC Director himself, was staggering.
There is no such thing as a Risk Free Trade. Any currency trade is going to cost you something to execute, one way or another -win or lose. As if, the Stock Market, is so superior to currency trading and deserving of its existence within our society - nothing is said about shutting that Rigged Game Racket down merely because the leverage it offers is 2:1. Is there another market anywhere on earth more Rigged than the United States Equities Markets? Maybe there is - I just have not found one, yet. Why no calls to shut down the Equity Market Casinos?
Leverage?
Nobody puts a gun to any Trader's head and forces them to use high leverage. Any Trader can gear down anytime they want. Yet, this is the primary calling card of those wanting to shut down Forex in the United States. The article says that because people still lose money after going through some form of "training," and because they use "high" leverage, the churn rates are high in Retail Forex. I am always amazed at the quote that a "High Percentage" of Retail Forex Traders are losing money, when nobody ever seems to run a story or try to find out how or why a "Lower Percentage" of Retail Traders are actually making money in Retail Forex.
Most disturbing, at least for me, is the fact that no attention is paid to explaining what it really takes to become consistently profitable as a Trader of any market. No one talks about the years of work one puts into the business to become consistent and confident. In Retail Forex, there is the built-in attitude, opinion and belief that success is guaranteed merely because the industry exists and that's simply not the truth. But, why would that be sufficient to shut down an industry? It is not sufficient - therefore, there must be another reason why people like Greenberg, want to see Retail FX go away.
The hypocrisy behind Greenberg's comments are equal to his status as an attorney - the ability to speak from both sides of his mouth have been made readily apparent. He sat inside the very regulatory body that supported the notion of lowering leverage, preventing U.S. residents from opening overseas accounts (reducing competition among broker/dealers) and making hedging illegal. He then turns right around and tells Bloomberg that there is no real hedging taking place in Retail Forex, ergo the entire industry should be banned. So, he was once on the side that got rid of hedging, and now he's using that very fact to get rid of the industry. That's pretty cute. Create the problem and then proclaim that you have the fix for the problem, and oh, by the way, that fix means getting rid of the entire industry. Total hypocrisy.
The article never once suggests that the recent Government Libor Probe leading to the big hit on Barclays and others, are indications that Interbank itself should be shut down, or that Institutional trading in the U.S. should be shut down. Maybe, Mr. Greenberg, would like to see a return to the Gold Standard, such that all currency trading world wide is shut down. Oh, darn - that's right! All the world's gold has been consolidated into the hands of a precious few - namely the Central Banks. Hmmmm. I wonder who benefits from that?
This article is dripping with convenient excuse after convenient excuse and it never hits upon the central problem in Retail Forex, that people need to take responsibility for their own Trading Education and that individuals must develop a Trading Edge of their own and that works for them, according to their own needs.
Maybe one day Bloomberg will interview Traders who have turned the corner, so that they can offer them their opinion on why graduating from Retail Hell is so important and what it took for them to do it - instead of always focusing on the guy who is not a real Trader, and who clearly has some kind ulterior motive.
For those who do not have the required start-up capital to launch their trading business immediately on top of Commercial and Institutional Trading Platforms and through Prime Brokerage Accounts, developing their skills to the point where they can make that necessary step in their Currency Trading Career can only be done on a Retail Bucket Shop Platform. So, getting rid of an entire industry that is the University Campus for novice currency Traders is like tossing out the baby and the tub out with the bathwater.
The notion that Mr. Greenberg, puts forth that the only possible reason for having Retail Forex is to provide hedging, completely misses the point of being a for profit Trader. He clearly has never trading a single instrument a day in his life and statement proves it. You trade to generate revenue - to grow capital. If hedging helps you accomplish that goal, then you hedge. Of course, given the actions taken by people like Greenberg, you can't hedge in a U.S. Retail Forex account. Somehow, he can't see the contradiction that he himself helped to create. Mind blowing.
F-X-C-M | A Classic Retail Bucket Shop Scam Artist Who Manipulates Prices