Market Share of Global FX Volumes (2022)

full image: https://blufx.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2025-03-31-18_19_46-Shell-Handwriting-Canvas.png

source: https://www.bis.org/statistics/rpfx22.htm

Since 1986, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has published a survey every three years, detailing the size and structure of the global foreign exchange and over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets. This comprehensive report gathers data from more than 1,100 financial institutions across 52 jurisdictions worldwide.

Between 2001 and 2022, Singapore’s share of this market grew steadily from 6.08% to 9.44%, a significant increase of 55.3%. Similarly, Hong Kong’s market share rose from 4.01% to 7.05%, marking an impressive 75.8% growth. Both nations gained this ground largely by capturing market share from Japan.

What has driven Singapore and Hong Kong to secure such substantial portions of the global market? Beyond their governments’ efforts to establish them as leading financial hubs, their strategic time zone advantage plays a crucial role. The forex market operates 24 hours a day, spanning the Tokyo, London, and New York trading sessions. For Singapore and Hong Kong, business hours align conveniently with all three: mornings to late afternoons overlap with Tokyo, late afternoons to evenings cover London, and nights extend into New York’s session until midnight. This overlap explains why major firms like JP Morgan, Barclays, and Morgan Stanley are expanding their workforce in these locations—employees at the forex desks can operate more efficiently across multiple sessions.

So, how does this affect us? When either Singapore or Hong Kong observes a public holiday, a significant portion of global trading volume disappears. During these times, the market often moves sideways, making it challenging to generate profits. As a result, we tend to proceed with caution or pause operations entirely. We apply the same approach during holidays in New York and London.

[Algo] Reflections for Q1 2025

High-Risk Warning: Trading Forex and CFDs carries a high level of risk to your capital and you should only trade with money you can afford to lose. They may not be suitable for you, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent advice if necessary. You could lose your entire capital.

No Solicitation: This website does not constitute a solicitation of funds or an offer to provide investment advisory services. Any information provided on this entire page is for informational purposes only.


Right after I posted my last blog entry on February 24, 2025, our algorithm hit its first losing week, dropping by 10%. Naturally, this stirred some unease—those unsettled nerves you feel when something you’ve built doesn’t perform as expected. It left me wondering: Is there a flaw in our algorithm?

The following Monday, March 3, 2025, didn’t help ease my doubts. We faced some intra-day drawdowns—those dips that make your stomach tighten. It quickly spiraled into what I’d call a psychological twist. I found myself at a crossroads: Should I keep going, or pull the plug?

Out of caution, I decided to pause the algorithm for the day. Later, the results rolled in, and it turns out I would’ve hit my daily profit target if I’d just let it run. I felt cheated—not by the market, but by my own unwarranted fear.

The week of March 3 wasn’t a total wash, though. We had one losing day, but overall, it balanced out. For our social copiers, it could’ve meant a solid +18% gain.

Unfortunately, my unnecessary pauses during the week led to a -6% drawdown for them instead. That stung, and I take full responsibility.

Over the weekend, I took a step back and dug into the data. I analyzed the toughest market conditions—daily and weekly—and reviewed how our backtests held up. What I found was reassuring: even in rough patches, like that -10% dip the week of February 24, 2025, the algorithm consistently recovered in the weeks that followed. That kind of drawdown? It’s not an anomaly—it’s part of the ride. I should expect it now and then. It is not a problem.

Here’s the thing: when I was just trading my own money, daily ups and downs didn’t faze me.

This resulted in a >100% return within few weeks of February 2024.

I know this algorithm’s strengths inside and out. But once we opened it up for others to copy, a new pressure crept in—keeping everyone happy. I started fixating on the daily copier count, watching it tick up or down, and that fed an unhealthy urge to prove profits every single day. It’s a trap I fell into, and it stopped the algorithm from doing what it’s designed to do: perform over the long haul.

I’m sharing this because trust and transparency are important. We’re not chasing perfection every day; we’re building something that wins over time. As an operator, I’ve learned my lesson, and I’m committed to letting the algorithm run its course, even when my nerves get the better of me.

I do not plan to make the same mistake over again. That said, I want to be upfront with our social copiers: expect heightened volatility ahead—it’s part of the journey.

If this stretches beyond your comfort zone, I completely understand, and it might be best to step away from following. Your peace of mind matters most.

Our equity curve (as of 11 March 2025)

[Algo] Are our Returns “Too Good to be True”?

As kids, we learned that banks offer a modest 2-3% interest rate annually. But as young adults, we discovered that carefully chosen stocks can deliver impressive returns of 20-30% per year.

Weren’t we hesitant about stocks at first? Naturally, but with knowledge—and as the saying goes, “seeing is believing”—we came to realize that returns exceeding 100% are possible. Just look at stocks like Upstart, Tesla, or Sea during the 2020 bull run. Similarly, with the right approach, it’s not hard to achieve an 8x risk-reward ratio across three market sessions (Tokyo, London, and New York). I won’t belabour on this too long—our funded accounts, backed by detailed statements, show what’s achievable with an algorithm.

Last week tested our algo a bit. We hit some temporary intra-day drawdowns, but out of five trading days, we stayed profitable from Monday through Thursday and broke even on Friday.

As I write this, I’m sitting in a Starbucks, probably looking like I haven’t slept in days. Our team spent the weekend refining our code, drawing on past forex market lessons to tweak the algo further. Thankfully, we rolled out the updates before today’s market open.

I’ll post some account updates below and then head back to my hotel for some well-earned rest.

Calculation for P/L = closed trade P/L over Deposit/Withdrawal


Account #1 (+40%) | Started on 10 February 2025

Account #1 (+23.6%) | Started on 10 February 2025

Account #3 (+164%) | Started on December 2025


Our trades are open for you to copy in exchange for a fee of 30%.

Curious and interested? Visit our onboarding guide below:

https://blufx.net/onboarding/
https://blufx.net/onboarding/
https://blufx.net/onboarding/

TAKE NOTE: IT IS NORMAL TO HAVE A DRAWDOWN OF 15-30% OCCASIONALLY.

Why IC Markets?

Through my conversations with forex traders, I’ve been surprised to learn that many still rely on brokers with wider spreads. This puts them at a disadvantage, as they’re immediately in a drawdown the moment they enter a trade. I strongly encourage traders to explore tools like the myFxBook spread comparison to independently evaluate their options and make informed choices.

Personally, I trust IC Markets as my broker of choice. Industry leaders like Neoh Yong have successfully withdrawn substantial profits from them without delays, which gives me confidence in their reliability. Other reputable options include FP Markets and HF Markets, both of which I’ve discussed directly with their management teams.

That said, could I be mistaken? It’s always possible, so I urge you to do your own research and verify what works best for you. Taking responsibility for our decisions is key in life.

For more insights on IC Markets, here are some independent resources you can check out:

1. https://www.wikifx.com/en/dealer/9641842942.html

2. https://www.trustpilot.com/review/icmarkets.com

3. https://brokerchooser.com/best-brokers/best-cfd-brokers

4. https://www.tradingview.com/broker/ICmarkets/reviews/

5. https://www.myfxbook.com/reviews/brokers/9,1/most-reviews

If you decide to go with IC Markets, feel free to use our referral code: 83515.

It allows us to earn a small commission on your trades at no additional cost to you, which helps support our efforts.


Historical Drawdown for 2024

Please read our FAQ and Disclaimer before proceeding.

This file informs any copier about the potential drawdown and volatility in our algo’s performance:


Key Takeaways:

The algorithm achieved a total net risk-reward (RR) of 802.52 in 234 trading days of 2024.

Daily Perspective (234 days)

  • 65 days (27.8% of total days) resulted in losses.
  • 19 days (8.1% of total days) had a daily drawdown of about 10% or slightly more.
  • The average RR per day was 3.63.
  • 65 days (27.8% of total days), the algorithmn hit its daily profit target by end of Tokyo session.
  • 101 days (43.2% of total days), the algorithmn met its daily profit target by end of London session.
  • There were also stretches of two or three consecutive losing days

Weekly Perspective (46 weeks)

  • 7 weeks (15.2% of total weeks) ended with losses
  • The best week achieved +51.24 RR
  • The worst week was -12.62 RR
  • The average week was 17.45 RR

Here is a list of loss-making week
Week of 12 Jan 2024: -12.36%
Week of 9 February 2024: -4.25%
Week of 8 Mar 2024: -5.06%
Week of 17 May 2024: -12.62%
Week of 28 Jun 2024: -10.59%
Week of 27 Sep 2024: -5.79%
Week of 8 Nov 2024: -10.76%

Count of Losing Days for 46 Weeks

# of Losing DaysOccurrencesPercentage
01021.7%
11328.3%
21737.0%
3613.0%
400.0%
Total46

These results show why it’s important to stick with the algorithm, even during losing periods. Forex trading is a game of probabilities, and as long as the win rate stays positive, we should keep using it.

I don’t add money to my account midweek, especially after 2–3 winning days, since the chances of a losing day increase.

This also proves the value of running the algorithm all week long. There’s no clear pattern to predict which days will lose money, so skipping specific days isn’t a smart move. The only exceptions might be public holidays, when markets often move sideways and lack direction.

[Algo] Testing IC Social

On 1 Dec 2024, we signed up to be a signal provider. We deposited a US $1,000 into our MT4 account and we ran our BluFx algo. This is a temporary account to get ourselves familiarized with IC Social.

Our performance fee was set at 0%. After leaving it for two weeks, there were 4 traders who started copying our trades.

IC Social sent us an email informing us the account sizes of our copiers:

Looking forward to our official “launch” in 2025.