In financial markets, the figure of a market maker defines any company with the power to set buy and sell prices of financial instruments or commodities. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission defines it as "a firm that stands ready to buy and sell a particular stock on a regular and continuous basis at a publicly quoted price".In practice, a market maker, also known as a liquidity provider, is a company or individual that quotes the bid and ask price of any commodity or financial product in order to make a profit from the bid/ask spread.In stock markets, market makers are the entities entitled to buy and sell stocks listed on an exchange, such as the London, New York or Tokyo stock exchanges.In the foreign exchange market, most trading firms and many commercial banks are market makers. They create a bid/ask spread between the price they pay for a specific currency and the price at which they sell that currency, in some cases applying significant surcharges.