Hacker News Reader

Comment by arvindamirtaa | Hacker News Reader

> No, national currencies too fail to fit the definition, because people do not "invest" in them with the expectation of gain.

The entire forex trading industry: am I a joke to you?

View on HN

Forex trading is zero-sum, your expected gain on a trade is zero minus expenses. The average user of forex is moving money from point A to point B and simply trying to minimize their loss. The ones making money in the market are those the other players are paying for the service, and the odd speculator like George Soros who's big enough to exploit market inefficiencies like currency pegs.

Isn’t forex kind of a joke to everyone?

Hearing your friend got into Forex is about the same as when they get into Amway, Tupperware, DoTerra, or Herbalife …

Yes, this is true, but at the same time - there are major institutional players and market makers who do make money off of Forex.

Hey Tupperware makes hella money off Tupperware too! Reusing your customers as your sales force, marketing, and distribution channel is hugely profitable.

George Soros would like a word.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Wednesday

The fact that you can name notable exceptions is only reinforces the general rule

It's a 6 trillion dollar a day market.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_exchange_market

speculation is fairly small portion of that market. Companies hedging exposure or just moving money around is the primary driver of volume.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com