If you’re concerned in forex trading, you are likely to come across the term interbank foreign exchange trading from time to time. You might see it mentioned on websites or forums. When hopeful foreign exchange trading began, after the relaxation of the gold standard which fixed relative currency values till the 1970s, it really only concerned banks and other giant financial institutions such as fund managers. Almost all of the establishments – which are often just called banks for simplicity – would have their own dealing desk where their staff would negotiate with other banks, either on a trading floor in one of the financial centers, or by wire or telephone to other locations around the world. The average Joe could only join in on the act thru a broker, and even then, only if he had plenty of money to invest. So initially the currency market was nearly entirely interbank, that means between banks. But then the Net began to take over from the phone as the main trading medium, and at the same time it became more common for average voters to have a home computer and a broadband connection. All of a sudden there was the capability for the average Joe to connect up to the currency market. This cut costs and made it productive for many brokers to take on clients who were not dealing in many thousands of dollars, but far littler amounts. So gradually it became easier for people to trade from home. That’s what can occur if a newb is not sufficiently well prepared for the swift moving and risky environment of the currency trading market.
You may see the term ‘interbank’ used in a way that includes all of the foreign exchange market and those that trade it in, but exactly it shouldn’t be used that way any more. There’s a difference between retail forex trading and interbank currency trading.