Following an announcement today by Alpari’s UK division that it was setting trading with USD/RUB to close only, the company’s Russian headquarters has now ceased trading in ruble currency pairs.
A notice on the company’s website attributes this to absent liquidity trading on USDRUB and EURRUB, this resulting in trading in these instruments being temporarily closed.
Alpari’s Russian division has temporarily suspended ruble trading previously, citing difficulties with low liquidity, subsequently reinstating it and embarking on a search for new USD/RUB liquidity providers.
Just a matter of hours ago, Alpari RU reduced leverage across the board for ruble pairs to 1:10 for new and existing open positions, which replaced a reduction in leverage which was announced yesterday, at the time maintaining staged leverage according to notional volume in favor of a blanket 1:10 limit across the board.
As Russia’s low ruble liquidity and high volatility continue, and FX firms reduce leverage, the economic situation in Russia is having a significant effect on the global currency markets.
For the official announcement, click here.