HYCM is a globally established forex broker under Henyep Capital Markets Group, a global corporation with over four decades of experience operating in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
Since its conception, HYCM has established itself as one of the more reputable and reliable financial brokers.
Finance Magnates met with Stavros Lambouris, CEO at HYCM International, to review 2020 and find out what the new year holds for the forex industry.
What are some of your thoughts regarding the year just gone?
2020 was a difficult year for everyone on all sides. It’s been a double-edged sword for us because we’ve had a good year in very trying times.
We’ve seen an influx of new traders throughout the pandemic, but we’ve also experienced all the disruptions and witnessed the human cost of the crisis.
It’s gratifying to find that our systems were able to handle the load and that our staff performed admirably in far less than perfect circumstances, but, as I say, it’s definitely a year we’re all glad to see the back of.
Give us your market summary for 2020?
Looking back, it was one earth-shattering headline after another. Many have forgotten that we entered the year with some indicators already pointing to a slowdown and were subsequently hit by something far worse.
The last time anything as dire took place was during the GFC, but that was purely a financial phenomenon. This was both a health and economic crisis, and it has revealed fragilities in so many areas of human society.
The crash we saw in March was historic, not just because of its magnitude and speed, but also because we saw things nobody could have predicted.
The PMI figures coming out of China in February were unbelievably low and offered an insight into the shape of things to come, but who would have thought we’d see the entire global economy on pause and crude oil going negative?
Then, the equity rally that followed was just as momentous, confounding all resistance levels and breaching new highs.
Our client base was well-positioned to trade the rise and recent fall of the dollar, over 40% of our trades were in FX, with the most popular pair predictably being EURUSD.
22% was accounted for by the equity indices, the US indices being the most popular of these. However, the big move for us in 2020 was in commodities, which grew to around 33% of all our clients’ trades last year, gold being at the forefront of this trend.
What trends do you see in the online trading industry going forward?
We’ve been talking about a new generation of trader entering the market for quite a few years now, especially in the retail FX community. A lot of the development that’s been taking place behind the scenes in our industry has been in anticipation of this new demographic.
I think 2020 saw these traders coming online in full force. Especially in March and April when markets were in the doldrums. Much of the early recovery trade, particularly in equities, was a retail-led phenomenon.
Trading is not something you jump into from one day to the next, but the events of 2020 meant that a lot of people with a growing interest in the markets had the time to devote to learning and taking those first crucial steps.
At HYCM we’ve been nurturing this new generation of trader by increasing the number and types of assets we make available to our clients, as well as investing in quality educational material and analysis to help them on their way.
What are your market expectations for 2021?
There are some interesting themes developing for 2021. Should the vaccine roll-out succeed in conferring immunity to larger portions of the global population, then the reflation trade should have further to run.
This would involve a lower dollar for longer and a boost to commodities and emerging markets. We’ve already seen industrial metals like copper and platinum receiving a bid.
Bitcoin seems to have taken some of the air out of the precious metals trade, but both gold and silver are likely to do well in such an environment.
The risks to this trade are self-evident to anyone who was following the markets last year when COVID-19 overwhelmed our economies.
Much like early last year, markets are riding high in the face of a health crisis that could continue to impact economic activity, so any threat to the reflation narrative could see a sudden return to the dollar and an abrupt risk-off scenario.
What developments do you have in store for your clients at HYCM in 2021?
In the year ahead, we’ll be continuing the various initiatives that are already underway on both asset and educational fronts.
Our intention is not only to keep pace with the asset classes that our traders are interested in exploring but to offer them a variety of options within those asset classes.
Last year we expanded our products to include CFDs on ETFs, 83 new stocks and 56 new crypto symbols. In 2021, we’ll continue to broaden our offering, ensuring that our traders have the means to access all the relevant markets of their choosing.
In parallel to these endeavours, we’re continuing our educational outreach, both online and in-person when the coronavirus pandemic is over.
Giles Coghlan, Chief Currency Analyst HYCM, is set to continue his successful weekly webinars and workshops, covering news and analysis as well as practical trading education.
We plan to strengthen our ties in the MENA region by running webinars hosted by universities in the region and, when the COVID-19 situation allows, we will resume hosting in-person seminars and workshops.
As always, we remain committed to providing everything our clients need to access and learn about the markets.
The fact that we received the Best Forex Broker UAE 2020 award by Global Banking and Finance Brokerage Awards is confirmation that we are on the right path and our efforts have had a positive impact.
Trade with HYCM
Note: Cryptocurrencies are not available for trading under HYCM (Europe) Ltd and Henyep Capital Markets (UK) Ltd.
About HYCM
HYCM is the global brand name of Henyep Capital Markets (UK) Limited, HYCM (Europe) Ltd, Henyep Capital Markets (DIFC) Ltd and HYCM Limited, all individual entities under Henyep Capital Markets Group, a global corporation founded in 1977, operating in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
High Risk Investment Warning: Contracts for Difference (‘CFDs’) are complex financial products that are traded on margin. Trading CFDs carries a high degree of risk. It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. Seek independent expert advice if necessary and speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose. Please think carefully whether such trading suits you, taking into consideration all the relevant circumstances as well as your personal resources. We do not recommend clients posting their entire account balance to meet margin requirements. Clients can minimise their level of exposure by requesting a change in leverage limit. For more information please refer to HYCM’s Risk Disclosure.
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