IFX Payments To Acquire Argentex After Liquidity Crisis
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Argentex, a foreign exchange broker based in London, has agreed to be bought by competitor IFX Payments. The deal values Argentex at about £3 million. The agreement follows serious liquidity problems that hit Argentex after big changes in the global currency market.
Trading in Argentex shares was stopped on April 22 due to the firm’s weakened financial position. The problem began when the U.S. dollar dropped to its lowest level in three years. This shift triggered margin calls that Argentex could not meet since it had large dollar positions and insufficient collateral to cover them.
IFX Payments Plans To Grow Global Reach
To keep its business running, Argentex received a £6.5 million short-term loan from IFX Payments. IFX is also in talks to give more support if needed. The board of Argentex has fully backed the sale, with shareholders owning over 58% of the shares agreeing to the offer. The deal will give them 2.49 pence per share.
Will Marwick, the Chief Executive Officer of IFX Payments, explain that buying Argentex will help improve their services. He noted that the deal will boost their regulated financial operations, grow their FX risk management products, and extend their international presence.
Argentex’s trouble worsened due to its use of “zero-zero” margin setups. This allowed some clients to trade without putting up any collateral. When the dollar lost value quickly, due to U.S. tariff changes and public comments from President Trump, Argentex was left without enough funds. Its banking partners demanded money the company didn’t have on hand.
As part of the leadership shift, Argentex Chief Executive Officer Jim Ormonde stepped down just before the deal was made public. The company’s Chief Operating Officer, Tim Rudman, has now stepped in as interim Chief Executive Officer to help manage the transition.
Shareholders Choose Certainty Over Risk
The deal still needs approval from regulators and is expected to close later in the year. IFX Payments, known for its cross-border payment services, plans to use the purchase to strengthen its offerings and support more large-scale clients in the FX space.
Argentex’s board said the offer gives shareholders a better option than the small returns they might get if the company went into insolvency. In the past, Argentex had turned down two other offers, including one from Lumon Acquisitions, before agreeing to the IFX deal.
The situation has drawn the attention of financial authorities. The Financial Conduct Authority has recently increased its checks on how trading firms handle liquidity and prepare for market shocks. The goal is to avoid similar issues from spreading across the financial sector.
