Trade Republic Valued at €12.5 Billion Following €1.2 Billion Secondary Share Deal

​Berlin-based neobroker Trade Republic has reached a €12.5 billion valuation after completing a €1.2 billion secondary share transaction, according to company reports. The deal, which does not bring in new capital, involved existing investors selling shares to both current and new long-term backers.

Peter Thiel's Founders Fund led the participation from existing investors, while new entrants included Wellington Management, Singapore's GIC, and Fidelity Management & Research Company. Other established investors taking part in the share purchase include Sequoia, Accel, TCV, and Thrive Capital, alongside Khosla Ventures, Lingotto Innovation, and Aglaé, the investment arm of France's Arnault family.

Trade Republic, which launched in 2019, has reported profitability for three consecutive years. In the year to September 2024, the company posted €340 million in revenue and €34.8 million in profit. Its equity rose to €566.5 million following the full European Central Bank banking license it obtained in 2023.

Co-founder Christian Hecker highlighted the company's rapid customer growth, noting that its user base has doubled over the past 18 months to more than 10 million clients, managing €150 billion in assets. "Seventy percent of Trade Republic customers are first-time investors," Hecker said, adding that the "cultural shift to retail investing in Europe is only starting."

The ECB banking license has allowed Trade Republic to expand its offerings beyond brokerage services, including current accounts with local IBANs and interest payments directly tied to ECB rates. Since January 2023, the platform has distributed €2.5 billion in interest. The company has also introduced child savings accounts, access to private markets and fixed income, and a crypto wallet.

Hecker cited Europe's growing pension gap as a key factor driving retail investment. "This is more important than ever as the public pension system is under growing pressure to fulfill its promises," he said, noting that 41% of Europeans do not contribute to supplementary pension schemes and state pensions across the EU are projected to decline from 46.2% of retirement income in 2019 to roughly 37.5% by 2070.

Trade Republic now operates in 18 European countries, including recent expansions into Poland, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and Austria. It is supervised by Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the Deutsche Bundesbank.