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The Forex market was created in the early 1970’s after the ‘gold standard’ was abolished by the United States. This non centralized market is unlike currency futures or stocks as it is open 24 hours a day and runs 6 days a week.
As the largest market in the world with over $3.2 Trillion USD trading daily it is the largest out of all financial markets. The US stock market considered by economists as one of the largest, only trades up to $10 Billion USD daily.
The Off Exchange Retail market commonly referred to as the ‘spot or cash’ Forex market boasts of 17 major currency pairs. The most commonly traded pairs are: Great British Pound, Euro Dollar, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollar, Australian Dollar and Japanese Yen. All of these currencies are paired and traded against the USD dollar.
From the early 70’s to the late 90’s the Forex market was played by the large institutions and hedge funds. Advances in technologies making the internet global and attainable by the masses as well as increased computing power have helped to create the ‘retail’ Forex market.
Now every individual with the ability to plug into the internet and a willingness to learn has an opportunity to trade the world’s largest market.
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