London’s Brokerage market is quietly rebuilding momentum

Last week, I wrote about the very human impact the conflict in the Middle East is having across the brokerage and trading community. For many firms operating across Dubai and Cyprus, recent geopolitical instability has created operational uncertainty, staff displacement and difficult strategic decisions.

But alongside that disruption, we are also seeing something else happen. London is becoming increasingly active again.

Across the multi-asset brokerage and trading sector, firms are beginning to reactivate FCA licences that have sat dormant or underutilised for years. Businesses that previously operated primarily through Cyprus or offshore structures are now reassessing the value of a stronger UK-regulated presence and in many cases, accelerating investment into London operations.

This is not simply a short-term reaction to geopolitical tension. It reflects a much broader trend around credibility, regulation, client confidence and access to institutional capital.

The FCA still matters globally and for many firms, an FCA-regulated entity remains one of the strongest commercial signals they can offer clients and counterparties. Despite Brexit, London continues to hold enormous weight as a global financial centre, particularly within institutional trading, derivatives, CFDs and multi-asset brokerage markets. The FCA is still widely regarded as one of the most rigorous financial regulators globally, overseeing more than 50,000 financial services firms and maintaining some of the highest standards around consumer protection, capital adequacy and operational governance.

That reputation is becoming increasingly important again and we are now seeing firms revisit licences that were originally secured years ago as part of Brexit contingency planning or future expansion strategies. What was once viewed as optional infrastructure is now becoming commercially valuable operational capability.

The activity across the market is becoming increasingly visible.

Firms such including a global multi asset brokerage continue to expand their global regulatory footprint while strengthening UK operations and operate under FCA authorisation through a UK Limited company, to positioning London as a major part of its international structure. The business also reported record trading volumes through 2025, highlighting the continued growth and resilience within the sector.

At the same time, a well known broker in Dubai and other emerging brokerage platforms are becoming increasingly active within the London market, particularly across commercial hiring, compliance, operational leadership and institutional sales functions.

What is particularly interesting is that this is not just a compliance story, it is a talent story.

As firms activate or expand FCA-regulated operations, the hiring profile changes significantly. London entities require deeper governance structures, experienced compliance leadership, stronger finance capability and more mature operational infrastructure. That creates demand for professionals who understand regulated trading environments, multi-jurisdictional oversight and institutional-grade operating models.

We are already seeing increased conversations around:

• Compliance and MLRO appointments.
• FCA-approved persons and SMCR talent.
• Institutional sales professionals.
• Operational and platform leadership.
• Finance professionals with brokerage exposure.
• Risk and governance specialists.
• Client onboarding and KYC leadership.
• Technology and trading infrastructure hires.

For London, this matters.

There has been a tendency over recent years to focus heavily on growth stories emerging from Cyprus, Dubai and offshore jurisdictions, and rightly so. Those markets have experienced significant expansion and remain hugely important global hubs.

But London’s role has never disappeared. What we are now seeing is the market recognising the continued value of the UK regulatory environment, the depth of London’s financial services talent pool and the commercial strength that comes with an FCA-regulated presence.

In many ways, London’s brokerage market feels quietly buoyant again and not necessarily through headlines or aggressive expansion announcements, but through strategic licensing decisions, infrastructure investment and carefully targeted hiring activity.

For professionals operating within brokerage, trading and wider financial markets, that creates a very interesting market dynamic heading into the second half of 2026.

If London is the place for you, our your organisation, I'd love to hear from you. You can email me on lisa.paton@merakitalent.com or meet me on LinkedIn