The global financial crisis has revived the discussion on a financial transaction tax as a means of discouraging international currency speculation, help shrink 'a swollen financial sector' and perhaps simply to raise funds as an international (or national) source of revenue.

e-Forex talks with Michelle Neal, Global Head of electronic markets at The Royal Bank of Scotland about the consolidation of the banks' electronic platforms and the continuing development of its best of breed FX e-commerce solutions and e-trading tools.

The world's futures exchanges continue to make in-roads into the biggest OTC market in the world and with recent regulatory discussions on the need for greater use of centrally cleared products, currency trading innovation continues to gather pace within the exchanges.

Faced with a need for more effective risk management of their Retail FX customer positions, banks and brokerage firms in the FX space are being challenged by ballooning small ticket items, varying customer credit limits, risk mitigation issues as well strains on their back office processing capabilities. Roger Aitken talks to leading industry players to explore the key issues involved.

Service, innovation and security are the three key areas for winning the hearts and minds of retail traders. But what do these smaller traders really want from their platform providers? Heather McLean sets out to explore what brokers are doing to improve the FX experience for the armies of retail traders spilling out of the woodwork across the globe.

Mark Biezup, FX product Manager - SunGard Sierra, outlines why recent and projected regulatory changes along with a focus on risk management will have significant implications for FX brokers.

The concept of 'Direct Market Access' (DMA) is a simple one and is yet another example of an invention that started out in the equities market and is now being adopted in the FX market. Nicholas Pratt examines the evolution of DMA and what it means for FX traders

Jim Nuzum CEO of GCC Markets, (www.gcc-markets.com) explores why there is growing demand for Shari'ah compliant FX trading solutions and how the latest FX e-commerce technologies can help address the needs of Islamic traders and investors.

With the passing of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act (CFMA) in December 2000, the Commodities and Futures Trade Commission (CFTC) became officially responsible for regulating the retail FX market, thereby legitimizing the existence of the burgeoning retail market. Today, the retail FX market is booming with strong adoption across all major financial centers.