More on "ODL Powered by FXCM"

Following the formal announcement yesterday of FXCM's takeover of ODL I've been chatting to both companies about what to expect from the new larger group, which must now be vying for the position of largest retail forex broker on the planet.  As we pointed out previously, the enlarged FXCM is still a long way from being the largest retail broker in the world per se, but the likes of Interactive Brokers deal in an awful lot more than just spot forex.

The message coming from both ODL and FXCM is that my speculation yesterday about ODL's on exchange business is wide of the mark. It seems the driver for the deal is synergy between their respective forex businesses, and equities, futures and options are not as strategically important as I assumed. Time will tell on this one.

ODL assure me that my cash will remain in the UK, which is a comfort I must say, and that Graham Wellesley and Lorenzo Naldini will remain in charge of ODL's European operations.  Apparently ODL have been providing their customers with the benefits of Straight Through Processing for around a year now, so FXCM's much heralded No Dealing Desk model won't come as a huge change for existing ODL MetaTrader customers. However we should expect to see improved spreads due to the additional liquidity providers that FXCM are bringing on board.

I haven't got a definitive answer on this one yet, but it seems that although my money won't be migrating across the Atlantic, ODL's MetaTrader and spread betting servers probably will be. We'll keep you updated on this, and any other news about the deal, as we get it.