Types of Forex Market Participants & Their Purposes: | BR Trading

Category One: Speculative Traders (Profit-Seeking)

These are participants who trade for the purpose of making profits from rapid changes in currency prices.
They make up 91% of the total trading volume in the Forex market.

Examples include:

  • Major investment banks (core members of the Interbank network)

  • Hedge funds and investment funds

  • Asset management companies

  • Brokerage firms

  • Large individual traders

These participants aim to capitalize on price fluctuations for financial gains.

Category Two: Functional/Non-Speculative Traders

These participants trade currencies for purposes other than profit, such as travel or international trade.
They represent only 9% of the market's trading volume.

Examples include:

  • Central banks:
    Engage in Forex to:

    • Secure foreign currency reserves

    • Maintain exchange rate stability

  • Commercial companies (import/export firms):
    Trade currencies to pay for goods and services across borders.
    For instance, a U.S. company that wants to import goods from Japan must sell U.S. dollars and buy Japanese yen to settle the payment.


⏰ Forex Market Hours

The Forex market is a non-centralized, borderless market operating via various communication networks worldwide.
It does not have a physical location and is open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week:

  • Opens: Monday

  • Closes: Friday

  • Closed: Saturday & Sunday (global weekend break)


This round-the-clock operation allows traders from different time zones to participate at any time.