I wrote about the importance of presence in Dubai a few months ago. FXCM and Saxo Bank have opened offices there a few months ago and it seems that every broker that intends to grow its business it looking in that direction. It is interesting to see OANDA the low-profile, high-volume broker is making a major step here in its expansion efforts. I’m not aware of OANDA’s other regional offices except maybe an Asia Pacific regional office (it has a Singapore based website).
Dubai – September 9, 2009 – OANDA, an innovative foreign exchange leader that provides Internet-based forex trading and currency information services to everyone from individuals to large corporations, has formed the OANDA Middle East Corporation Ltd. and opened an office in Dubai. Paul Hayward, the managing director of OANDA Middle East Corporation, will focus on high net worth investors and institutions in the Middle East and their need for ultra competitive spreads and consistent liquidity.
“OANDA is always looking to innovate through technology and push the boundaries of what is possible,” said OANDA’s president and CEO Michael Stumm. “Our focus on technology makes us a good fit in the Middle East, which is a sophisticated market with a clear need for equitable and fair FX trading. The OANDA FXTrade platform boasts a long list of innovative firsts, including any-size trades and immediate execution with no requotes. The platform offers automated 24/7 trading, a particularly attractive feature in a region where Sunday is a typical business day.”
Hayward brings more than 25 years of foreign exchange experience to his position at OANDA. Before relocating to Dubai three and a half years ago, Hayward held a number of senior management positions at institutions regulated by the UK FSA, including CEO of Swiss Financial Services and Head of Sales at Raiffeisen Zentralbank London. Hayward was also jointly responsible for setting up a highly successful margin trading and hedge fund service desk at HSBC.
According to Hayward, “the global financial crisis has highlighted the need for enhanced vigilance in the area of currency risk management. Middle East institutional investors are especially interested in hedging their exposure to volatile currencies such as the US dollar. OANDA has a long history of strong technology and openness, and we look forward to helping our clients manage their foreign exchange exposure and implement cost-effective hedging strategies.”
OANDA Middle East Corporation Ltd is located in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), which is the world’s fastest growing international financial centre serving the vast region between Western Europe and East Asia. Financial Services firms within the DIFC are regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), which has set uncompromisingly high standards in creating a regulatory and legal framework built on the best practices of leading jurisdictions in Europe, North America and the Far East.
About OANDA
OANDA started in 1995 as the first online provider of comprehensive currency exchange information. Since then the “OANDA Rate”® has become the touchstone for corporations, tax authorities, auditing firms and even central banks. In 2001 OANDA launched FXTrade, the first fully automated online forex trading platform. FXTrade was the first platform to offer immediate execution, support trades and accounts of any size, enable true 24/7 trading, and eliminate the rollover swap by calculating interest by the second. OANDA’s innovative technology has enabled it to sustain a large trading volume. Peak performance has been measured at 1.5 million trades a day, far exceeding the volume typically handled through any of the leading global banks or electronic communication networks (ECNs) that trade forex.
OANDA Corporation is a registered Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and is a member of the National Futures Association (NFA). OANDA Corporation owns the following subsidiaries: OANDA Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore with a Capital Markets Services licence; and OANDA Middle East Corporation Ltd., with a license from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). www.oanda.ae
