Fazzaco Weekly Digest: 31 Brokers' Client Profitability in November; SquaredFinancial Senior Appointments; Binance to Pay $4.3Bn to Settle with SEC

Several financial services companies have experienced their executive changes over the past week.

SquaredFinancial announced six senior appointments including Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Technology Officer and Chief Legal & Compliance Officer. AFTX, The Trading Pit​, Nomura and BCB Group​ also unveiled their new executive appointments. OneRoyal and Multibank Group​, by contrast, each lost one of their top executives.

Among them, the most high-profile personnel change last week was the dramatic dismissal and return of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

In the cryptocurrency space, the half-year-long dispute between Binance and the U.S. SEC appears to be nearing an end. The exchange will reach a settlement with the U.S. regulator after paying the largest fine in history and confirming their CEO change.

Last week, Fazzaco collected the data of profit/loss ratio of client accounts from 31 brokers in November 2023, showing that an average of 27.20% of client accounts achieved profits, while 72.80% of client accounts suffered losses.

Here are the related details, as well as some of the most read forex, crypto, and fintech news pieces and articles from Fazzaco over the past week.

1. Fazzaco Reports: Client Account Profit/Loss Ratio of 31 Brokers in November 2023​

Fazzaco collected the data of profit/loss ratio of client accounts from 31 brokers in November 2023. The brokers we have in this month-on-month comparison were the same as last month. 

Among the 31 brokers this month, an average of 27.20% of client accounts achieved profits, while 72.80% of client accounts suffered losses. Compared with the average data in October, the winning rate of client accounts decreased by 0.62%.

2. SquaredFinancial Bolsters Leadership Team with Six Industry-Seasoned Execs

SquaredFinancial, a multi-regulated award-winning FinTech firm offering CFDs trading, has strengthened its leadership team with six senior hires. This follows Founder and CEO Philippe Ghanem's issuing an inspiring call for talents to join his company in early September, as SquaredFinancial is embarking on an exciting phase of expansion around the globe.

"People are catalysers of growth and drivers of innovation. I’m happy to welcome these new forward-thinking minds, as their arrival marks a significant milestone for SquaredFinancial. Each of them has proven expertise and will bring, in strong collaboration with the current team of talents, strategic value and experience to the company, further shaping its future," commented Philippe Ghanem.

3. Binance to Pay Record $4.3Bn Penalty to Settle with SEC, CEO to Step Down​

The CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, has stepped down after the company pleaded guilty Tuesday to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, an anti-money laundering law, among other charges.

The company will pay more than $4.3 billion to settle the charges, the largest penalty in the history of the Treasury Department. Zhao also agreed to a $50 million fine as part of the settlement.

4. Jefferies' Stratos to Launch New Multi-asset Trading Platform, Tradu

Stratos Group International, LLC (Stratos), a wholly owned subsidiary of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (Jefferies), plans to roll out Tradu, a new multi-asset trading platform for active trader and investor in December.

Also, Stratos operates FXCM, a leading provider of online foreign exchange (FX) trading, CFD trading and related services.

5. LMAX Group Obtains RMO Licence in Singapore to Offer FX NDFs​

LMAX Group, a global financial technology company and the leading independent operator of multiple institutional execution venues for FX and crypto currency trading, announced today that it has obtained a Recognised Market Operator (RMO) Licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The new license will allow its subsidiary, LMAX Exchange Singapore, to provide Non-Deliverable Forward (NDF) trading in Singapore and London.

According to the Group, the introduction of NDFs will enable customers to hedge their FX exposure against fluctuations in non-convertible currencies on a Central Limit Order Book (CLOB), as well as offering transparent price discovery, deeper liquidity and efficient market structure, streaming real-time, firm limit order market data to all participants.

6. Listen to the Article: OpenAI Drama Ends, But Is the Market Still Bullish on AI?

OpenAI, one of the leading firms in AI, has undergone a series of dramas recently. Following Fazzaco's report on its former CEO Sam Altman joining Microsoft, it was surprising to hear on Tuesday that Altman would resume his role as OpenAI's CEO.

As of November 22, OpenAI and Sam Altman announced a resolution on X, committing to continued collaboration for advancing AI. This came as a surprise, given that just days earlier, the OpenAI board had dismissed Altman and Greg Brockman.

7. HFM Enhances Its Copy Trading Services with Introduction of Pro Account​

HF Markets (HFM), a leading online forex and commodities broker for both retail and institutional clients, announced the launch of Copy Trading Pro Account. Furthermore, the broker has introduced the Japanese yen as a base to its portfolio, along with providing new features to traders in Africa.

According to HFM, the broker offers a standard copy trading service, which is not particularly different from similar offerings on the market.