FXCM’s UK Arm Lost $2.2 Million in 2025 Ahead of Sale to Trade Nation

Stratos Markets Limited, the company behind FXCM's UK operations, recorded a $2.24 million loss for 2025, according to accounts filed at Companies House. That is wider than the $2.02 million loss reported a year earlier, with administrative expenses climbing 28.6% to $12.03 million.

The filing covers the entity whose UK client book Trade Nation agreed to acquire on October 6, with the transfer expected to complete in late November. Client money held by the firm increased 24.3% to $110.34 million at the end of 2025, up from $88.77 million a year earlier. Three days after the Trade Nation agreement, AvaTrade struck a deal to take over the majority of FXCM Group's business and brand rights from Stratos. Neither transaction's terms were disclosed. Jefferies Financial Group has owned Stratos outright since late 2023.

Matthew Wright, chief strategy officer and UK chief executive at Trade Nation, described the FXCM book as having "a lot of FX business [and] longevity."

Commission income climbs with volumes

Stratos hedges all client trades with Stratos Group affiliates and receives a commission for passing on that market risk. That commission rose 73.1% to $10.82 million from $6.25 million, as retail trading volume grew 40% to $340 billion from $243 billion. Reported turnover came in at $4.82 million after a $6 million transfer pricing adjustment allocating Stratos Global LLC's expenses to the UK firm; a $6.15 million charge in 2024 had left turnover at $103,606. Interest income on cash balances fell 39.6% to $2.98 million. Directors attributed the losses in both years mainly to weaker trading activity in 2024 and to group spending on product and technology.

Staff costs nearly doubled, rising 92.5% to $5.50 million from $2.86 million, with wages and salaries up to $4.09 million from $1.52 million. Average headcount increased to 48 from 43, of which 29 worked in management and administration. The increase came in the year Stratos was preparing to cut more than 100 roles across FXCM and Tradu. Legal, management and professional fees reached $3.57 million, and directors' pay totalled $1.58 million.

Amounts owed to the UK firm by group companies rose to $45.04 million from $17.12 million, covering intra-group recharges, profit sharing and trading margin, and are repayable on demand. The firm's own cash fell to $18.73 million from $48.44 million, while total cash including segregated client money slipped 5.9% to $129.07 million. Regulatory own funds stood at $58.78 million against an FCA requirement of $5.89 million, roughly ten times the minimum, and no dividend was paid. The going concern assessment relies partly on a written letter of support from Jefferies covering at least 12 months from April 24, when the board approved the accounts.

The 2025 result is the firm's third consecutive annual loss, following a shortfall of more than $2.5 million in 2023 and a profit of $860,500 in 2022. Stratos Group has said it plans to move retail FX and CFD trading onto a single new platform in 2026, with the foundation due in the second quarter, describing the move as a deliberate shift away from adding features to legacy infrastructure. A third-party e-wallet product was discontinued at the end of 2025, and sister brand Tradu has halted new onboarding while migrating users back to FXCM.