LeapRate Exclusive… Towards the end of Q4, Equiti Group had officially completed the rebranding of its UK entity as part of its global growth strategy.
The company showed strong financial results in 2018. Brian Myers, CEO of Equiti Capital, joins LeapRate today to discuss what’s new in the company.
LR: Hi Brian and thank you for joining us today. Can you let our readers know a little more about Equiti Capital UK?
Brian: Equiti Capital (UK) is a key part of the wider Equiti Group, which has local presence in 7 jurisdictions across the world. Equiti Capital is the FCA regulated arm that provides bespoke FX and CFD liquidity and accessible Prime Brokerage services with real liquidity from top tier banks and ECN venues. The Group offers best-in-class solutions to our key Brokerage and Retail markets through Europe, Americas, Middle-East, Asia and Africa.
LR: You joined the company back in July 2018. What has changed since then?
Brian: With the evolving landscape of huge regulatory and technological changes in our space, it is critical to have a solid management and corporate governance structure- and correct culture- throughout the organisation. This is something that we were laser-focused on through 2018, hiring industry leading professionals into all areas of our business to support this framework.
2018 and early 2019 have also given the Group an increase in Revenue from both our Retail and Brokerage business lines and we have invested this into people and technology. Relevant, client-led technology has to be front and centre for any brokerage, and that is certainly the case at Equiti Group. From our new soon to be launched Equiti WebTrader, mobile App and 1000s of new products (including a full suite of equities) to constant improvements in Equiti Vault (our Institutional next-gen platform), we have listened to our partners and work tirelessly to deliver on their needs. We have a very aggressive roadmap of product deliverables, ensuring our clients- be it Retail, Brokerage or Institutional- have the best access to the market and technology.
We are also mindful that in both the Brokerage and Institutional spaces, growth is invariably linked to increasing coverage within networks outside the ones you currently participate in. We are working towards this, and we are excited of the developments coming here shortly.
Aside from this, the Group has an insatiable appetite to grow and we believe in local presences servicing our key markets. This is why over the past year, we have obtained the Jordan Securities Commission (JSC) license and we were the first online broker in Africa (outside of South Africa). We are constantly analysing other regions and their local licensing requirements and the Group continues to do this through 2019, where we expect at least one new license to be added.
LR: Do you provide PAMM services? And do you think that providing PAMM services is essential for a broker?
Brian: We don’t service Money Managers from the UK, but on a group level we do. As for whether I think it is essential or not for brokers, that the answer depends on the type of clients each broker has.
LR: There have been a lot of changes in the Retail FX broker space, driven both by regulation (like ESMA’s leverage cap) and increasing competition. From your unique perspective, what changes do you envision for the industry in the coming months?
Brian: The barriers to entry for our sector are growing. The capital requirements and cost & complexity of running an operation are just a few reasons why I believe that there will ultimately be less players in the UK space and why it is imperative to have the right team of skilled professionals around you. Whilst this is undeniably a challenge, there is of course opportunity to be found in this environment. Clients are looking for their primary broker and professionals are looking for the right company to work in.
LR: Equiti Group showed impressive financial results in 2018, including significant growth, expanding network of offices in the Middle East, North America, Europe, Africa, and the Asia Pacific regions. What can we expect to see from Equiti Capital UK going forward?
Brian: I’ve mentioned the big product innovations and additions coming to market soon and this (plus further expansion) is central to the strategy in all our regions. The positioning of the company works for us currently, with Global brokerage/ institutional business driven by the UK entity and our group Retail business absorbed by other entities. We think that is strategically the best way to align the business, but we have to be agile and able to adapt to any other regulatory shifts.
Equiti Capital (UK) has profoundly grown all key metrics in the last 6 months, especially b2b client numbers and volumes, but I’m most proud of the substantial increase in quality talent we’ve managed to acquire in our London office. We’ve built a truly special team and will continue to add to it this year to ensure we hit our growth targets.
Brian has resigned his position as CEO of FCA regulated Retail FX broker GKFX Financial Services Limited back in April 2018 to join Equiti Capital as CEO. He joined GKFX as CEO in late 2016 after leaving his position as VP Sales of OANDA Europe.