UK-based forex trading company CMC opens first office in China

CMC Group, a UK-based Internet foreign exchange trading service provider, opened its Beijing representative office Wednesday, Thursday's China Daily reported.

The firm is the first foreign non-banking forex trading company to set up an office in China. The China Banking Regulatory Commission gave the go-ahead about a month ago, said the paper.

Peter Cruddas, managing director of CMC, was quoted as saying that the launch of the representative office demonstrates the group's long-term commitment to the Chinese market. It aims to eventually open a subsidiary in China to do business locally when regulators allow.

"China is an important country for forex trade," Cruddas said at a press briefing in Beijing. He said that the participation of foreign dealers will push forex trade services in China to become cheaper and more competitive.

Given the nation's huge forex reserves - in excess of 600 billion US dollars- there has been growing demand locally for professional and advanced forex trade services, said the paper.

However, due to regulatory restrictions, the services CMC can provide are limited to offshore business, which means only retail traders that have offshore forex assets can enjoy the services. "But that is a start," Cruddas was quoted as saying.

Local customers can apply to CMC's subsidiary in Sydney via telephone to open accounts and trade by telephone or the firm's online trading platform "Marketmaker", said the paper.

The platform enables customers to trade in over 60 foreign currencies. They can also attend seminars run by CMC in Beijing and a number of other major Chinese cities. The seminars will cater to potential customers with different levels of knowledge and expertise in forex trade, according to the paper.

The company hopes to provide onshore forex trade services in China when regulators relax the relevant rules. This is likely to happen in the coming five years, Cruddas was quoted as saying.

Regulation changes and a further opening-up of financial markets are necessary as China becomes increasingly influential in global commodity and forex markets, said Kenneth Roland Jones, a financial expert and advisor to CMC.

Presently, CMC Group transacts over one billion US dollars per day, with clients from over 100 countries, company sources said.