The retail trading industry saw developments acrossregulation, market access, acquisitions and customer acquisition this week. IGGroup moved closer to offering prediction markets in the UK, while Plus500agreed to buy a Brazilian broker as it continued expanding its multi-assetbusiness. Google also revised its advertising policy for contracts fordifference in two markets, potentially reopening access to paid searchcampaigns for eligible providers.London's trading industry is coming home!Elsewhere, salary data highlighted differences betweenfinancial centres, while Capital.com’s trading figures offered insight intoclient behaviour. Prop trading, institutional access to prediction markets andthe economics of broker marketing also featured in the week’s developments. Indigital assets, new figures highlighted the gap between the growth of tokenisedreal-world asset ownership and the trading activity needed to support liquidsecondary markets.Dubai Compliance Chiefs Earn Up to $425K as Cyprus FXSalaries Rise 14%FinTop Consulting’s 2026 salary surveys showed substantialdifferences in compensation across Dubai, London and Cyprus. Dubai-basedChief Compliance Officers can earn between $310,000 and $425,000 annually, withthe lower benchmark matching the upper salary benchmark for Chief TechnologyOfficers.London Heads of Compliance can earn up to $251,000, while regulatoryspecialists handling additional responsibilities command premiums of 10% to20%.Cyprus recorded annual salary growth of 14% across itsforeign exchange and fintech sectors, compared with approximately 4% across UAEfinancial services. The figures point to differing compensation trends acrossthe three financial centres. Dubai’s compliance salaries also exceed thoseavailable for several commercial executive roles, although some technology andrisk positions can command higher maximum pay.IG Applies for UK Gambling Licence to Offer PredictionMarketsIG Group has applied for a UKgambling licence to offer prediction markets covering sports, politics andentertainment, with a launch planned for early 2027. The application wassubmitted through its London subsidiary, IG View Limited, which appears on theGambling Commission’s register under the trading name ig prediction markets.The application remains pending, and the licence has not been granted.The company also plans to introduce financial eventcontracts for UK professional clients in the fourth quarter of 2026. Itsexpansion follows an agreement to acquire US fantasy sports and predictionmarkets operator Underdog for up to approximately $1.3 billion. The deal isexpected to close in late 2026 or early 2027. IG’s plans would extend itsoffering beyond conventional leveraged trading products.Capital.com UAE Clients Trade $1 TrillionCapital.com clients in the United Arab Emirates traded$1.06 trillion during the first half of 2026, accounting for more thantwo-fifths of the broker’s $2.45 trillion in total trading volume. UAE tradingvolume increased 27.7% from the second half of 2025, while closed trades rose48% to 80.9 million, according to the broker’s H1 2026 Pulse Report.However, only 18.3% of UAE trades had a stop-loss set, thelowest proportion among seven markets covered. Germany recorded the highestrate at 34.1%, followed by the Netherlands at 32.8%. Across Capital.com, 22.4%of closed trades carried a stop-loss set at entry. The report also found thatpositions closed after a stop-loss trigger recorded 39% lower average losses,although it described this as a correlation rather than proof of causation.Hantec Trader Rebrands as RZR Funded Hantec Trader, the proprietary trading business within theHantec Group, hasrebranded as RZR Funded and changed the name of its operating company fromHantec Trader Limited to RZR Funded Limited. The firm said the changeestablishes a separate identity for its prop trading operations as it preparesfor further development.The business remains part of the Hantec Group and continuesto be powered by Hantec Markets Mauritius, the group’s retail broker armregulated by the Financial Services Commission. RZR Funded Director BashaarGokal said the company was expanding its executive team and preparing tointroduce new asset classes and trading tools. He added that existing tradersshould not expect immediate operational changes as a result of the rebrand.Google Reopens CFD Advertising in Denmark and ChileGoogle has updated its policy on complex speculativefinancial products to permit advertising for CFDs, rollingspot forex and similar products in Denmark and Chile. The changes takeeffect in October, although Google has not specified an exact date.Advertisers in Denmark must hold the relevant authorisationfrom the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority, while providers in Chile mustbe registered with and authorised by the Financial Market Commission or theCentral Bank of Chile, depending on the products offered. Advertisers must alsomeet applicable local legal requirements and obtain Google certification. Therevised policy creates an opportunity for eligible brokers to advertise theseproducts through Google in both markets. Google said violations would trigger awarning at least seven days before any account suspension.Kalshi Targets Broker Distribution Kalshiis seeking to expand access to its event contracts through brokerage platforms,with liquidity central to its pitch to financial services firms. In aninterview with Finance Magnates, Andy Ross, the exchange’s Head ofInstitutional, said connecting brokers to an existing venue allows them toaccess a shared order book rather than build their own exchange and clearinginfrastructure.Kalshi has already launched an API-based service with ApexFintech Solutions, allowing brokers to integrate its contracts into theirplatforms. Tastytrade was the first broker to go live. Ross said firmsonboarding to or already trading on Kalshi collectively manage more than $1trillion in assets. The exchange is also preparing to launch perpetual futureslinked to foreign exchange markets and offers market data to firms that do nottrade its contracts directly.Plus500 Agrees to Acquire Brazilian Broker Guru Plus500 has conditionally agreed to acquire fullownership of Guru Corretora de Títulos e Valores Mobiliários Ltd, aregulated Brazilian broker-dealer.The London-listed group said the transactionwould be funded from its existing cash resources, which exceeded $860 million.The acquisition gives Plus500 access to local licences fromBrazil’s Securities and Exchange Commission and Central Bank of Brazil.These authorisations would allow it to expand its domestic offering toBrazilian shares, futures, options and fixed-income securities. Chief ExecutiveDavid Zruia said the deal provides the licences, local team and regulatoryframework needed to operate in the market. The agreement follows Plus500’sacquisition of US broker-dealer Hedge, which is intended to support its plannedUS multi-asset platform.Brokers Face Pressure as CPA Rates Outpace InitialDepositsCustomer acquisition costs are putting pressure on forex andCFD brokers as cost-per-acquisition payments increasingly exceed clients’initial deposits. Anish Lal, Chief Business Development Officer at BlackBullMarkets, noted that brokersmay pay $800 to acquire a client who makes an initial deposit of $400 to $500.They must then rely on further deposits and trading activity over the followingsix to 12 months to recover the expense. If the client leaves after one or twomonths, the acquisition becomes loss-making.Lal argued that brokers do not necessarily need to match thehighest CPA rates to attract introducing brokers. Faster reporting, reliablemonthly payments, dedicated support and stronger client retention can providealternatives to higher upfront payments.CFD Brokers Are Reassessing Marketing Strategies as FirstDeposits FallCFD brokers are facing declining numbers of first-timedepositors and rising acquisition costs, prompting some to reconsider theirmarketing teams and external agencies. Alexandru Badea, Senior RegionalDirector at NAGA, argued that changingpersonnel may not solve the problem if companies continue relying onincomplete data and outdated assumptions.Advertising platforms such as Google, Meta, TikTok andLinkedIn have changed their algorithms, affecting campaign performance. Badeasaid brokers need to connect marketing information with onboarding,verification, deposits and client retention to identify where potentialcustomers drop out. Comparing acquisition sources by the quality and longevityof the clients they generate can help distinguish inexpensive registrationsfrom valuable customers. The article emphasised data analysis over repeatedlychanging marketing teams.Tokenised Real-World Assets Gain Holders but Struggle toGenerate TradingAnndy Lian argues that tokenisedreal-world assets continue to attract holders, but secondary-marketactivity remains limited across much of the sector. Pantera Capital’s September2026 report surveyed 671 tokenised assets worth a combined $331.8 billion.Permissioned products accounted for 59% of market capitalisation but generatedjust 0.2% of spot trading volume. More than half of the analysed market showedno meaningful secondary trading activity.Holder numbers are growing, with BNB Chain exceeding twomillion RWA holder addresses in early October. However, only 29 of 110 majortokenised products met basic thresholds for both liquidity and distribution.Tokenised stocks recorded monthly turnover of 204.6%, compared with just 0.1%for tokenised rate products. Lian highlights the need for market makers,regulatory clarity and connected trading venues to support sustained activity.This article was written by Tareq Sikder at www.financemagnates.com.