StoneX mainly serves corporate clients and institutional investors who need specialized services such as clearing, execution, market intelligence, etc. It is also a prime broker.

StoneX Prime Broker

StoneX recently came to the attention of international traders following the acquisition of Gain Capital in 2020. It needs to be noted that Gain Capital was the operator of Forex.com and City Index, some of the largest retail forex and CFD brokers in the world.

While StoneX is indeed a prime broker, other queries about the company emerge, starting from What does StoneX do? Who is the CEO of StoneX? Is StoneX a big company? And more crucially, Is StoneX a legitimate company?

This article will introduce you to the new boss in this industry.

 

StoneX Company History

StoneX was unknown for the simple reason that they were previously not called StoneX. Used to be known as INTL FCStone, The company was just rebranded into StoneX Group Inc. in July 2020.

FCStone Group was born from the merger of Saul Stone & Co. and Farmer's Commodity Corporation in 1946. At that point, both companies had dealt with hedging futures contracts and other commodity contracts for years.

FCStone Group raised $122 million when it went public in 2007. It was listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol FCSX.

Following the successful IPO, FCStone went through a series of acquisitions before merging with International Assets Holding Corporation (IAHC) to become INTL FCStone in 2009.

The company went on a further shopping spree to acquire more companies and reached agreements with several important partners in the US and Europe during 2010–2018. The operation expanded INTL FCStone's business portfolio to include four major commodities: metals, agriculture, energies, and softs. They also acquired G.X. Clarke & Co., a fixed-income securities firm, and several other clearing businesses.

INTL FCStone reached greater expansion in 2019–2020. They bought UOB Bullion and Futures Incorporated's brokerage and clearing operations in Singapore in 2019, launched a prime brokerage division, and acquired the US-based GAIN Capital Holdings Inc.

The company then changed its name to StoneX Group Inc. in July 2020 (registered on NASDAQ as SNEX). Sean O'Connor is the current CEO of StoneX.

 

What Does StoneX Company Do?

Per their official website, StoneX asserts itself as an institutional-grade financial services network that connects companies, organizations, traders, and investors to the global market ecosystem. They offer a variety of services in commodities trading, OTC products, global payments, securities, and Forex.

StoneX mainly serves corporate clients and institutional investors who need specialized services such as clearing, execution, managed futures, market intelligence, and more. StoneX also provides prime brokerage services.

 

Is StoneX a Big Company?

Obviously, StoneX is a big company. To get a sense of how big it is, let's see the following achievements obtained by StoneX so far:

  1. StoneX ranked 49 in the Fortune 100 Fastest-Growing Companies in 2021.
  2. StoneX ranked 327 in the Fortune Global 500 (a list of the largest companies in the world by revenue) in 2022.
  3. SNEX is currently an S&P SmallCap 600 company.
  4. StoneX currently provides institutional access to 39 derivatives exchanges, 175 foreign exchange markets, and nearly every global securities marketplace, as well as retail market access via FOREX.com and City Index. Among them, there's also access to the Chinese commodity markets via Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE), Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE), and Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE).
  5. StoneX Markets LLC (SXM) was one of the first non-bank organizations provisionally recognized in swaps by the US CFTC and has been a market leader in OTC for the past 25 years.

StoneX has assets worth $21.1 billion as of March 31, 2022, including $1.3 billion in cash and cash equivalents. Meanwhile, they executed 42 million listed and 738 thousand OTC derivatives transactions through their subsidiaries.

 

Is StoneX a Legitimate Company?

Of course, StoneX is a legitimate company. As can be seen from its status as a public company in the US and its huge business network, StoneX is 100% legitimate.

StoneX has received various licenses separately for each of its services in the US and several other countries. Here are some of them:

  1. StoneX Markets, LLC (SXM) is a member of the US National Futures Association (NFA) and is provisionally registered with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a swap dealer.
  2. StoneX Financial Ltd. (SFL) is authorized and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (registration number FRN: 446717) to engage in the arrangement and execution of transactions in OTC products, securities trading, precious metals trading, and payment services. SFL is also a category 1 ring-dealing member of the London Metal Exchange (LME).
  3. StoneX Financial Europe S.A. (SFE) is a securities trading firm registered in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (company number RC Lux B 10821).
  4. StoneX Financial Pte. Ltd. (SFP) holds a Capital Markets Services Licence and is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore for dealing in exchange-traded derivatives, OTC derivatives, and spot Forex.
  5. StoneX Financial (HK) Limited (SHK) is regulated by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission for dealing in futures contracts.

And more.

 

Is StoneX a Prime Broker?

Yes, StoneX is a prime broker because they offer prime brokerage services for hedge funds, family offices, proprietary trading houses, and other types of asset managers. If you are an asset manager and your strategy requires worldwide, multi-asset market access and maintaining relationships with several executing brokers, StoneX's services can assist by taking over most of your tasks.

At the same time, StoneX also has several subsidiaries that provide non-prime brokerage services for retail investors. StoneX One offers powerful infrastructure to trade Stocks, ETFs, and Stock Options. And Forex.com is internationally renowned for their services in Forex, Spot Metals, and Futures trading.

 

Other than StoneX, there are more brokerages that have become major players in the industry. You can find the most well-known ones in Best Brokerage Firm for Online Trading.