The major players involved in these trades are:



Banks



Governments



Speculators



Corporations



institutions (e.g., brokers)

Now, one of the first things you must understand is that these institutions are NOT all on a

level playing field with one another.

Other, related financial markets and

Unlike the stock markets, the Forex market is divided into restricted levels of access.

In other words, not all Forex traders have equal access to the same prices. The bid price

and asking price (also known as the “spread”) between currencies is in part determined by

the

size and volume of the trade.

The more money a trading entity can put on the line, the better the 'spread'.

As you might surmise, the central and world banking institutions (the 'inter-bank' market) are

at the top of the tier. They are followed next by governments and large financial institutions

or corporations.

A Typical 'Top 10' List of Currency Traders By Volume:

Deutsche Bank

- 19.30%

UBS AG

- 14.85%

Citi

- 9.00%

Royal Bank of Scotland

- 8.90%

Barclays Capital

- 8.80%

Bank of America

- 5.29%

HSBC

- 4.36%Goldman Sachs

JPMorgan

- 3.33 %

Morgan Stanley

These are the '800 pound gorillas' of the foreign exchange market. They turn serious profits

even on the most razor-thin of margins due to the amount of currency they can move on

even one trade.- 2.86%- 4.14%

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