As major banks have opened their doors for main street investors to trade the foreign exchange market after realizing that the stiff competition from retail brokers / dealers offering the same has been quite lucrative. ' Not that they don't know ', these banks have been in the market for sometime although, it was limited only to qualified, wealthy individuals and corporations who can simply open an account in the minimum of six figures low just to trade the forex market. Those days are over! In today's market, an investor can open a smaller account with these brokers and still be provided with the same information and accessibility to other markets as the banks do. In some ways there are also some limitations depending on the size of the investment a rich individual may want to risk in the FX market.

One advantage that most investors may want to consider trading the forex market with the bank is a matter of trust and confidence that the investment funds is more secure with them. Other than having to lose it to the market instead of loosing it to some unstable company that maybe offering the same type of service. As most of the investors have seen that these banks are directly competing in offering their own trading platforms as well but with a sophisticated touch in technology.

These banks have manage to make arrangements with some of the more technology backed companies that specializes in the straight through process of forex trading directly linked to the other counter party that are already contributory participants in making markets for one another.Although, interbank trading through the Reuters dealing system still sits on top of the industry level as a clear model and leader in the foreign exchange trading. While a wider array of other broker / dealers have signed up with these firms to have a direct access to secondary open markets that includes the financial instruments related to the foreign exchange market as a whole.

The companies have integrated the financial futures instruments, derivatives, commodity futures trading on agricultural products and precious metals just to name a few. Some of the world's stocks, indices are also highlighted, where the likes of the Dow Industrial Average, FTSE 100, DAX, CAC, the Nikkei Average of Tokyo are also included in some of the package which are heavily traded through the three major time zones worldwide.

By having a reliable bank to hold the investment funds, the investor will now only have to deal with the market by itself and not worry about having the funds be gone the next day. Although, what really attracts these investors is the direct access to bank information and prices direct from their ternminals that could mean an essential part of a successful trading process.

Below is only a partial list of banks that have been offering FX dealing services other than the banking services that they offer to the regular customers. International banks and other broker / dealers are not included and not necessarily in this order.

• BANK OF AMERICA                                         BLOOMBERG FX
• SAXO BANK                                                     SAXO TRADER 2
• CITIBANK GROUP                                           CITIFXPRO
• DEUTSCHE BANK                                            DB FX
• STANDARD CHARTERED BANK                     FOREXPERTISE
• AMERICAN EXPRESS                                      INTERBANK RETAIL
• HSBC                                                               INTERBANK RETAIL
• WESTMINSTER BANK                                     INTERBANK RETAIL UK
• PRUDENTIAL BANK                                         INTERBANK RETAIL

Although, these banks are in direct competition with retail FX it gives the main street investors the opportunity to have additional banking services that are quite related to the foreign exchange market. Such as letters of credit for international business concerns that deal with export and import of goods to other countries, stocks, forwards and options trading as  additional items other than trading forex, direct access to bank settlement and clearing services when it comes to exchange rate conversions which would have the direct link to fair and reasonable world market prices and not the over the counter exchange rate that one gets from money exchange centers.

This article is in relation with the ' Economic Value of the Foreign Exchange market ' brings to the overall economy. Knowing that there are banks who offer these services will at least help other investors to decide that there are other placements which they can choose from and let them feel more secure with their investment funds.