February volatility remains low as GAIN Capital reports 20.2% drop in retail volumes

Andrew Saks-McLeod
March 10, 2015 2:03 pm

Gain Capital Holdings Inc (NYSE:GCAP) today reported certain operating metrics for the month of February 2015.

An overall downturn in volumes has blighted the entire FX industry during February in comparison to January, with GAIN Capital’s figures now adding further evidence to an overall slowdown in trading activity. February resulted in a 20.2% decline in retail FX volumes compared with January, and a 22.6% downturn in institutional trading activity in February compared with January this year.

Whilst the entire industry has experienced a slowdown as volatility has tailed off since January’s period of high activity following the Swiss National Bank’s removal of the 1.20 peg on EURCHF, it is important to note that January was a record month for GAIN Capital for retail volumes, itself being a month in which retail volumes 18.4% higher than in December, therefore the downturn in February, considering the market conditions, is not so dramatic as the figures may suggest.

Retail metrics

  • Retail OTC trading volume of $223.0 billion, a decrease of 20.2% from January 2015, and an increase of 30.3% from February 2014.
  • Average daily retail OTC trading volume of $11.2 billion, a decrease of 16.3% from January 2015 and an increase of 30.3% from February 2014.
  • Active retail OTC accounts of 97,167 an increase of 1.1% from January 2015 and a decrease of 0.4% from February 2014.
  • Futures contracts of 709,563, a decrease of 4.5% from January 2015 and an increase of 47.4% from February 2014.
  • Average daily futures contracts of 35,478 an increase of 0.3% from January 2015 and an increase of 47.4% from February2014.
  • Total funded accounts of 136,728, an increase of 1.0% from January 2015 and an increase of 5.9% from February 2014.

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Institutional metrics

  • Total institutional trading volume of $349.2 billion, a decrease of 22.6% from January 2015 and a decrease of 15.7% from February 2014.
  • Average daily institutional volume of $17.5 billion, a decrease of 18.7% from January 2015 and a decrease of 15.7% from February 2014.
  • GTX trading volume of $327.9 billion, a decrease of 20.4% from January 2015 and a decrease of 11.6% from February 2014.
  • Average daily GTX volume of $16.4 billion, a decrease of 16.4% from January 2015, and a decrease of 11.6% from February 2014.

For the official announcement from GAIN Capital, click here.

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