
The 800% boom – a look at volumes since 1989
As FX Week celebrates its 25th anniversary

A time traveller from the year 1990 catapulted into our era would scarcely believe how much the industry has grown over the past 25 years.
Foreign exchange is currently the only asset class to have seen consistent growth in volumes at the same time as decreasing liquidity costs, raising questions over whether markets are mispricing liquidity or if the volume growth reflects a spectacular boom in speculative flows.
Globally, FX trading volumes have grown by more than 800% since 1989, according
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