What Can Be Traded

To participate in financial markets, individuals need access.
This access is provided by a broker.

A broker is a company that connects traders to financial markets, allowing them to place buy and sell orders.Without brokers, most people would not be able to trade at all.

Asset classes commonly available through brokers

Brokers offer access to different types of assets, known as asset classes.

Currencies (Forex)

Currency trading involves exchanging one currency for another.

Examples:

• EUR/USD
• USD/JPY
  

Forex is one of the most accessible markets for individuals.

Commodities

These are raw materials traded globally.

Examples:

• Gold (XAUUSD)
• Oil (WTI, Brent)
  

Commodities are often used as references for global pricing.

Individual Stocks

Shares of specific companies.

Examples:

• Apple
• Amazon

These represent ownership or price exposure to a single business.

Stock Indices

Indices represent groups of major companies traded together.

Examples:

• S&P 500
• NASDAQ
• Nikkei 225
  

They allow exposure to overall market performance rather than single companies.

Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is often grouped with financial markets, but it is not included here intentionally.

There are three main reasons:

1️⃣ Different market structure

Cryptocurrency markets:

• are largely unregulated or inconsistently regulated
  
• operate outside traditional financial systems
  
• rely on exchanges rather than brokers in most cases
  

This makes them structurally different from FX markets.

2️⃣ Different risk profile

Crypto markets tend to have:

• extreme volatility
  
• rapid price swings
  
• higher exposure to technical and operational risks