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London-based online trading platform Freetrade has announced its acquisition of the U.K. customer book of Stake, an Australian investing app. The move aims to strengthen Freetrade’s domestic business amid increased competition from new players in the market. The transaction involves Freetrade taking on all of Stake’s U.K. clients and transferring their assets to its platform.

Stake, founded in Sydney in 2017, provides low-cost brokerage services to retail investors in Australia and New Zealand. Following a recent business review, Stake decided to focus primarily on its operations in Australia and New Zealand, leading to the sale of its U.K. customer book to Freetrade.

Customers of Stake U.K. will receive communication on how to transfer their assets to Freetrade in the coming weeks, with the transition expected to be completed by November. Freetrade, which operates primarily in the U.K. and has ambitions to expand into the European Union, offers a variety of investment products on its platform such as Stocks, exchange-traded funds, individual savings accounts, and government bonds. The company currently serves over 1.4 million users as of April 2024.

Earlier this year, Freetrade experienced a change in leadership, with co-founder and CEO Adam Dodds stepping down after six years in the role. The company reported its first half-year of profit in 2024, indicating a positive turnaround in its financial performance. CEO Viktor Nebehaj expressed the firm’s commitment to becoming a leading commission-free investment platform in the UK market.

With the acquisition of Stake’s U.K. customer book, Freetrade aims to further solidify its position in the market, having over £2 billion worth of assets under management for U.K. clients. Stake, on the other hand, manages over $2.9 billion in assets globally. The industry heavyweight, Robinhood, with $144 billion in assets under management, entered the U.K. market in November 2023 and continues to expand its offerings to attract British clients.

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