Financial firms create foreign exchange Web site

Seven of the world's top financial services companies have joined forces to create a foreign exchange Web site. Bank of America, Credit Suisse First Boston, The Goldman Sachs Group, HSBC Holdings, J. P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter & Co and UBS Warburg last week announced the creation of FXall.com, which promises to offer low-cost, one-stop electronic access to services ranging from foreign exchange research to actual trading.

"Currently, there isn't a platform that is open and accessible and inclusive for lots of providers," said FXall.com CEO Philip Weisberg. "A lot of dealers have their own system and a lot of business is still transacted on the phone."As a result, he said, it can be cumbersome for customers to compare prices.

"With FXall.com, there will be increased transparency to clients," he said.

"They will be able to see price information from multiple providers." In addition, he said, dealers themselves will have lower marketing costs.

The seven founders of FXall.com have equity stakes in the system, but a dealer doesn't have to be an owner to join, Weisberg said. "Our objective is to make the system as open as possible."FXall.com will be accessible through an Internet-based browser interface. A phased rollout of the services will begin by the end of the year. The new venture's revenue stream will come from transaction fees, with the pricing system still to be determined. There are currently $1.4 trillion in transactions in the foreign exchange market daily, according to FXall.com.