The Full FX

Time and tide waits for no man – and who am I to argue with Geoffrey Chaucer? – therefore with a mix of gratitude, pride, trepidation and excitement, I will be stepping back from my day-to-day role with The Full FX at the end of the year.

The publication will go forward with Eva Szalay in the editorial chair, and with Michelle and Cindy continuing on – the only difference is likely to be higher journalism standards from someone who was actually trained at such! Otherwise, it will be business as usual.

Of my emotions, the gratitude is for everyone who has supported me throughout my 49-plus years in the FX industry, but especially to those who supported The Full FX when Michelle and I launched it. My pride comes from what we have achieved – with that critical help from the industry at large. The last six years have been exactly what we intended it to be, fun, interesting, challenging and fulfilling, our success has been a very nice cherry on the top!

Trepidation, well that is personal, I have genuinely only known the FX industry for pretty much the past half-century, so who knows what life is like beyond? A good friend described it as “looking into the abyss” before they reversed course, we shall have to see. I’ll probably report back!

The excitement is for the future of The Full FX, for just as the industry itself evolves, so must we, and with Eva agreeing to take over the editorial direction of the company, we have someone who is steeped in, and has a passion for, the FX industry, but perhaps more importantly, has an in-depth knowledge of the new influences permeating our business. Eva brings expertise, knowledge and contacts in the digital assets/stablecoin/tokenisation world that is very likely, in my view, to shape the infrastructure of the FX industry.

That blend of FX and new infrastructure knowledge means I could not think of a better person to take over the reins from me.

This is not a “hard stop”, I will remain part of The Full FX family, but, from the new year forward, on a much-reduced basis (although I am likely to nag Eva to publish occasional insight rants on certain subjects!) I will also, hopefully, still be a part of our conferences for a time, as my own passion for the industry that has given me so much remains undimmed.

Ultimately though, the time is right for a change. Not only have I been writing too many obituaries of friends in recent years (which gives you a sense of your mortality believe me), but there is a sound editorial case for doing so. Eva is tapped into where our industry is heading and is the perfect person to help two often parallel lines merge.

I should at this stage provide a long list of people whom I wish to thank, but, frankly, I am worried about missing someone out, so hopefully you all know who you are and how deep my appreciation of your help and support is – and will always be. I do, however, need to thank four very important people.

I am lucky in that I get to stand on stage and say, or publish, anything that comes into my mind – and that has made me the very proud face of The Full FX. This project would not have succeeded, however, without my co-founder Michelle, who brings structure to my occasional madness. When I was convinced by some friends in a pub garden in Sydney (shout out to Chris, Gary and Keith) to launch the publication, my first call was to Michelle, without whose efforts and business acumen we genuinely could not have succeeded.

In turn, Michelle and I also had the wonderful organisational genius that is Cindy Jiang to fall back on when it comes to conferences especially – she has been a huge part of our success and words cannot express how highly we think of her.

On a personal note, I also want to thank Julie Ros, who, I am sure with heart very much in mouth, gave an old spot trader not only the chance of a new career, but guided me through my early years, instilling in me what I hope people see as an ethos that tries to do the right thing and work in partnership with the industry. I have come a long way from “yours” and “mine”, and that is thanks to Julie and her leap of faith!

My final ‘thank you’ is to my successor, Eva, for agreeing to take the reins. It is hard not to think in terms other than handing over your child, and if that had to happen you want to make sure it goes to the right person. We could, in theory, have shut the publication down, but I feel it has an important role to play in a world in which independence is becoming even more important. Eva is the person to take The Full FX forward and maintain that independence, and for that I thank her so much.

Here’s to the continued success of The Full FX.

Colin Lambert