(1) foreign exchange banks: foreign exchange banks refer to banks designated or authorized by central banks or monetary authorities of various countries to engage in foreign exchange business. Foreign exchange banks are usually commercial banks, which can be domestic banks specializing in foreign exchange, domestic banks concurrently engaged in foreign exchange business or branches of foreign banks in their own countries. Foreign exchange banks are the most important participants in the foreign exchange market, and their foreign exchange transactions constitute the main part of foreign exchange market activities.
(2) Foreign exchange dealers: Foreign exchange dealers refer to trading companies or individuals that buy and sell foreign bills. Foreign exchange dealers use their own funds to buy and sell foreign exchange bills to obtain the bid-ask difference. Most foreign exchange dealers are operated by trust companies, banks and other institutions, and there are also companies and individuals specializing in this business.
(3) Foreign exchange broker: A foreign exchange broker refers to an intermediary who facilitates foreign exchange transactions. It is between foreign exchange banks and between foreign exchange banks and other participants in the foreign exchange market, handling foreign exchange trading business on their behalf. It does not buy or sell foreign exchange itself, but only connects buyers and sellers of foreign exchange, facilitates transactions and collects commissions from them. Foreign exchange brokers must be approved by the host country's central bank to operate.
(4) Central Bank: The central bank is also a major participant in the foreign exchange market, but its main purpose of participating in the foreign exchange market is to maintain exchange rate stability and rationally adjust international reserves. By directly participating in foreign exchange market transactions, it regulates the relationship between supply and demand of funds in the foreign exchange market, and keeps the exchange rate at a certain level or limits it to a certain level. The central bank usually sets up a foreign exchange stabilization fund. When the market demand for foreign exchange exceeds supply and the exchange rate rises, sell foreign currency and recover local currency. When the market supply exceeds demand and the exchange rate falls, buy foreign currency and put it in local currency. Therefore, in a sense, the central bank is not only a participant in the foreign exchange market, but also an actual manipulator of the foreign exchange market.
(5) Foreign exchange speculators: Foreign exchange speculators buy and sell foreign exchange not for the actual needs of the balance of payments, but by using various financial instruments to pay a certain margin in exchange rate changes to earn exchange rate spreads.
(6) Actual suppliers and demanders of foreign exchange: The actual suppliers and demanders of foreign exchange in the foreign exchange market are individuals or companies that use the foreign exchange market to complete international trade or investment transactions. They include importers, exporters, international investors, multinational companies and tourists.