Internet adoption has more than doubled globally since 2010, however, the majority of countries with lower rates of internet access are in Africa, according to the World Economic Forum. In Ghana specifically, DataReportal’s figures in January 2020 claim that while internet penetration sat at 48% of the population, mobile connections in the country stood equivalent to 130% of the population.
As such, in a bid to make trading accessible to everyone, INFINOX Capital, a leading CFD trading broker with international presence and market expertise, has recently launched it’s IX Social mobile app.
Referring to PwC’s Entertainment & Media Outlook 2020-2024 report, Jay Mawji, Managing Director at INFINOX Capital, says that smartphone internet access is on the rise as more and more consumers are capable of accessing the internet on their mobile devices. “Considering that this is the largest singular contributing device to consumer data usage, brokers should be looking to technology to ensure that trading is accessible to traders anywhere and at any time, and this means putting the power of trading in the palm of their hands.”
“IX Social provides clients with the interactive functionality to social trade, see what other traders are doing, and follow and engage with them,” he explains. “Trading can be a lonely place, and the method of social trading allows clients to connect with other successful and profitable traders, and almost emulate their trading style and strategies. Further, once following a certain trader, clients have the ability to have notifications sent to them each time the trader they follow actions a trade.”
Mawji attributes IX Social’s functionality to that of social media platforms such as Instagram, where it allows clients to ‘like’ certain trades of the traders they follow, even going so far as to comment on them and to converse about why a specific trade was chosen. Apart from merely trading on the app, IX Social also incorporates community group functionalities, where traders can create sub-communities to share information, create an education portal, or even trade as friends. Further, it allows clients to share their trades and the knowledge as to why they were chosen.
This lends to the idea of the app not only making trading accessible, but bridging the education gap and providing potential traders with the knowledge to make informed decisions in future trades. While education in trading is usually learnt over time, the idea behind social trading is being a way to fast track the often lengthy process.
Although there are other apps of its kind on the market, what separates IX Social from its competitors is twofold – the first being a more social element than others, as well as the physical presence of the brokerage behind the app.
“While INFINOX Capital is a large organisation with global representation, we still maintain that we operate as a small organisation, with the ability to converse with INFINOX Capital employees anytime,” notes Mawji. “We understand that any financial transaction involves client’s money, and by putting a face to an otherwise faceless industry builds both trust, confidence, and support.”
INFINOX Capital vets providers that use the app, ensuring that they meet certain criteria before they can offer strategies or share trade ideas with users. This adds an element of security in knowing that the providers that users are communicating and interacting with are in fact real, have integrity, and knowledgeable trading brokers. Furthermore, influencing providers that meet certain criteria also have the ability to be paid a retainer based on their following, engagement and successful quality trading advice offered to others.
With the global landscape being thrust to adopt digital means, the time is rife for the trading industry to follow suit. And with IX Social, the time for potential traders to reap the rewards of trading is now.