Tom Higgins said a Gold-i and Finance Magnates survey shows cryptocurrency trading has moved into the core offering for retail FX firms. The survey of 110 respondents worldwide found that 91% already offer it, with 53% planning to expand their crypto offering in the next 12 months.
Gold-i and Finance Magnates survey
The respondents represented FX/CFD brokers, prop trading firms and liquidity providers/Prime of Primes. Higgins said the results make it clear that crypto trading is no longer a peripheral opportunity for those businesses. That is consistent with the survey’s broader reading: 97% said cryptocurrency trading will be strategically important to their business over the next 2 years, and 75% called it a high priority.
91% already offer crypto trading
Client demand was the main driver behind adoption, cited by 82% of respondents. Market growth opportunity followed at 58%, while revenue diversification came in at 43% and competitive pressure at 36%. Improving regulatory clarity drew 12%, a small share that suggests most firms are moving for commercial reasons rather than waiting for rule changes.
The revenue figures point in the same direction. Eighty-one percent reported an increase in revenue attributable to crypto trading, and 38% of those said the increase has been significant. Only 2% reported a negative impact, saying volume shifted away from other products such as FX. For firms weighing whether to add or expand the product, that split is the most practical part of the survey: the new line is already producing business for most of the respondents who offer it.
Expansion plans over the next 12 months
More than half of respondents, or 53%, plan to expand their crypto offering in the next 12 months. Crypto CFDs were the most popular target product at 31%, while spot crypto drew 21%. Staking and yield, futures and copy trading were each chosen by around one in five firms.
Regulatory uncertainty remained the biggest obstacle, cited by 55% of respondents, followed by the need for 24/7 support at 25%. One in ten said technology and integration complexity was a barrier. The practical reading is straightforward: the market is already moving, but the firms most ready to scale still need clearer rules, round-the-clock operations and systems that can handle larger volumes.
Higgins’s conclusion matches the numbers. If 91% already offer cryptocurrency trading and 53% plan to expand it, the question for retail FX firms is no longer whether the product belongs on the shelf. The next step is whether they can clear the regulatory and operational hurdles fast enough to grow it without slowing the rest of the business.
