Forex in Russia after the New Year, first impressions

The new law of the Russian Federation on the regulation of dealer activities in the Forex market has simply created a huge panic among traders.

The fear of losing their money due to the banal blocking of bank accounts of brokerage companies by the National Bank of Russia led to the fact that clients began to massively withdraw their funds from their accounts and uncontrollably wait for the financial world to turn upside down in the new year.

However, despite the enormous panic and fear of traders, almost all brokers worked as usual and there were no disturbances on their part at all.

Only a few directors spoke out about the flawed nature of this law and hinted at consequences due to which even honest companies that paid all taxes to the state treasury would be forced to move to another jurisdiction, since they simply would not be able to compete with foreign competitors.

To be honest, our team also kept its finger on the pulse in anticipation of something terrible, but judging by our first observations after the new year, radical changes did not occur at all. Of course, earlier we examined in detail what this law could bring to the world of Forex and even came to the conclusion that if it actually comes into force, nothing good will happen.

However, we could not even imagine that the law would be completely ignored by brokers. So, what can we observe? Yes, in principle, nothing, brokers have worked and continue to work, accounts of new clients are opened, service updates occur and life goes on as usual.

I would like to note that almost all brokers have launched various promotions to encourage their clients, ranging from bonuses for replenishing accounts to various reductions in commissions and spreads. As a result, we see that this law has not become an obstacle at all for brokerage companies , and if you look at customer reviews on various forums, no one has had any problems with withdrawing funds.

Clients and taxes

No matter what anyone says, the vast majority of our citizens regard the Forex market as nothing more than a hobby or, at most, as additional income. Previously, all traders were not subject to taxation, but with the introduction of the law, we all have to pay taxes for our activities, and this falls on the shoulders of the company.

Agree, it is not at all a bright prospect for the state to provide additional income, and we all know very well how unstable this income is. Considering our tax service and the simply huge number of clients each company has, the national regulator will almost always be able to put pressure on the broker with constant checks, which is not necessary for any company. Therefore, this is also one of the factors that pushes a broker away from licensing.

So what did the new year and this law bring us?

If you soberly evaluate the changes, then there is simply nothing. I think it’s no secret that most companies are registered in Cyprus and other offshore zones, and since the new year these registrations have increased a little.  

The only beauty of the law that everyone was probably able to notice was the radical reduction in advertising on TV and other resources controlled by the Russian Federation. In general, there are no changes, and I don’t think there will be!