During the last week, the hashtag #10yearchallenge has been trending on several social media platforms including Facebook and Twitter. The idea is that users compare the year 2009 with 2019 usually using photos of themselves. Although, some users have taken it a step further and are comparing services and trends.
We thought it was a fun and interactive way of looking at 10 years worth of developments and decided to do the same with online trading.
So for this year’s #10yearchallenge, we’re taking a look at how trading today compares to trading 10 years ago.
Trading in 2009
10 years ago, online trading was alive and well and as a trader you had quite a few options in terms of available markets and brokers. Similar to now, one of the most popular markets back then was the forex market and the stock market was not far behind in terms of active traders.
Compared to today, the 2009 trading industry was more “open” so to speak. The regulation was not nearly as strict and the brokers that were dominating the industry would probably not have been approved today.
In fact, many of the leading platforms that we use today had not even been founded in 2009, and the few that had were still in their crate.
That being said, the MiFID II Directive (2004) that serves as the foundation for trading laws in Europe was in place already back then.
Naturally, the software that was used back then was also very limited compared to today, and mobile trading platforms were definitely not around.
All in all, the market in 2009 was exciting at the time but not very impressive compared to trading today.
Online Trading in 2019
Fast-forward 10 years and you have a trading atmosphere that looks completely different.
All the top brokers today are characterized by their drive to be innovative, and they all offer top-shelf trading software that we could only dream of in 2009.
As you probably know, mobile trading is one of the fastest growing trends at the moment, and the mobile trading software that is available now is many times better, faster, and stronger than the desktop platforms that were available even just 5 years ago.
One of the biggest differences between today’s market and the 2009 market has to do with regulation. You see, since 2009, the online trading industry has gone through some major changes that have made the industry much safer. The latest major update happened in mid-2018 when the ESMA changed the rules regarding leveraged CFD and forex trading while also completely banning binary options in the EU.
Moreover, let us not forget the introduction of one of the most exciting markets.
In 2009, Bitcoin was officially launched, and at the time, no one could have imagined how big of an impact the new concept of cryptocurrencies would have on the financial markets. Today a few weeks after Bitcoin’s 10 year anniversary, the cryptocurrency market is thriving with thousands of available assets totaling a value of several billion dollars. In turn, this new market has resulted in the introduction of an array of new trading tools, exchanges, and platforms which is changing the way we trade as we speak.
A Summary of the Trading Industry’s #10yearchallenge
The last 10 years have seen some impressive changes within the trading industry and generally speaking it has been a positive development.
Everything from the brokers and platforms we use to the available markets and assets, and even the rules and laws that regulate our trading experience has been upgraded. And in the end, we should all be happy that the market has experienced such development because online trading in 2019 is far superior to online trading in 2009.
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