Your Starter Guide to the Foreign Exchange Market

Forex trading is an exciting world that is slowly becoming popular with people who thrive on the excitement as well as the incentive of making fast money. However, making money in forex trading is not all that easy and it requires a basic understanding of the foreign exchange market.
The foreign exchange market can be loosely termed as the place where foreign currencies are exchanged to make a profit. An interesting fact to note is that in the early days, there was free floating exchange of major currencies, which occurred through banks and important financial institutions, where the rate of exchange was largely determined through the existing demand and supply of currencies. However, there have been instances where banks and institutions have interfered to either increase or decrease these rates, but these have been few and far between. In the earlier days, only banks and such institutions were allowed to speculate but in recent times, this has been extended to private parties too.
The foreign exchange market is an OTC or over the counter market, which means that there is no central exchange system like the stock markets. Rather, the market consists of a multi tier system, of which the first tier or the top tier consists of banks, the largest banks in the world to be precise. These banks have created an interbank market, where they agree to buy and sell currencies at rates set by them in mutual agreement. They have an electronic broking system in place, which allows all banks to be aware of the exchange rates simultaneously.
The second tier of the forex market comprises of the branches or parts of multinational companies, like branches of various banks or financial institutions so that people at the local level wanting to exchange currency can do so easily.
The third tier of the foreign exchange market is that of the retail brokers who form the most liquid and volatile part of the market. It is interesting to note that the currency trading market is not only the biggest market in the world but is also the most liquid one, which in turn is maintained with the help of private traders and retail brokers. With the ease in which forex trading can now be conducted in the comfort of your home, with only a computer and broadband connection, the number of retail traders are increasing at an exponential rate every day. Dare you miss out on this opportunity?