25 million dollars total funds introduced for trading through licensed forex companies in Palestine last year

Exclusive to "SadaNews Economy": The Capital Market Authority announced that the total amount of funds introduced for trading through licensed forex companies in Palestine reached approximately 25.2 million dollars last year.

According to data available at the Capital Market Authority, presented during a meeting with journalists working in the economic sector in the presence of Ammar Al-Akhr, Chairman of the Authority's Board of Directors, and Baraq Nabuls, General Director of the Authority, Murad Jadbeh, General Director of the Financial Securities Administration, Amjad Qabha, General Director of the General Insurance Administration, Lina Ghabish, General Director of the General Mortgage and Leasing Administration, and Dr. Bashar Zaarour, the Authority's General Director Advisor for Development Affairs, it was shown that the total withdrawals from these trades during the year 2025 amounted to approximately 15.5 million dollars, leaving a net amount in the trading phase of about 9.7 million dollars by the end of the year.

Ammar Al-Akhr, Chairman of the Authority's Board, confirmed that the approval for licensing companies in the forex market despite the high risks involved came with the aim of controlling market chaos and its widespread existence.

Al-Akhr emphasized that despite the efforts made by the Authority to regulate the market in this area and pursue unlicensed companies with various official authorities, including security agencies, these companies often reopen under different names, appearing to the public as training companies in financial analysis, while they engage in illegal trading operations.

The Authority clarified that it announced last year a list of 54 unlicensed offices operating in the forex market illegally, and that work is ongoing with the relevant authorities to address them according to the law, noting that it does not have any statistics on the informal market in this context.

The Authority revealed that more than 91% of those entering forex trading through licensed companies are male, with most being young people aged 18-35.

Al-Akhr explained that the number of new accounts opened in November reached 474 accounts, estimating that this increase is directly related to the rise in global gold prices, noting that most trading on digital platforms in Palestine is concentrated on gold, which accounted for 58% of total contracts, as it is one of the most sought-after commodities in global markets during 2025, noting that the total number of open accounts reached about 4,800 accounts.

Murad Jadbeh, General Director of the General Securities Administration at the Capital Market Authority, previously confirmed to "SadaNews Economy" that the Authority approved the licensing of three companies in recent years to conduct foreign exchange trading, emphasizing its commitment to regulate the market. A fourth company was licensed recently.

Jadbeh mentioned in a conversation with "SadaNews Economy" that there are several reasons behind the Authority's decision to approve licenses for companies to engage in "forex" after years of restraint, pointing out that combating the black market, protecting investors' funds, and tackling fraudulent operations are at the top of those reasons.

Jadbeh indicated that the Capital Market Authority is aware that investing in the forex market is a high-risk investment, which is why the Authority requires any advertisement promoting dealings with licensed companies to refer to this fact.

The Authority relies on a stringent legislative and regulatory framework for its oversight, in addition to using advanced electronic systems to monitor and verify companies' compliance with laws and instructions by adopting a central custody system for all operations related to this activity.

The Authority called on investors and traders to exercise caution and verify that any party has obtained the necessary license from the Authority before dealing with it, by checking the licensed entities section on the Authority's website.

Jadbeh pointed out that the Authority grants forex activity licenses only to companies that meet specific criteria, the most important of which are:

- High capital requirements: The Authority requires companies wishing to obtain a license to operate foreign exchange provide additional registered and paid capital of no less than three million US dollars to ensure the company's financial solvency and its ability to meet its obligations.

- Submission of detailed business plans: Companies are required to provide their organizational structure, internal control procedures they will follow, and a detailed description of the nature of foreign exchanges they will deal with.

- Electronic infrastructure requirements: Companies must provide globally recognized and reliable trading platforms that are licensed by those entities.

The Capital Market Authority issued a notice recently calling on individuals and entities engaged in activities related to dealing or promoting in unregulated foreign exchanges (Forex) without obtaining the necessary licenses from the Authority to immediately cease these practices, based on the laws and regulations in force in Palestine.

Forex is the largest market in the global financial system, with daily trading volumes reaching 8 trillion dollars, while the number of traders is around 15 million traders.