Trade Republic

What Is Trade Republic?

Trade Republic is a Berlin-based mobile neobroker and fully licensed European bank. It lets customers in 18 European countries buy stocks, ETFs, bonds, derivatives and cryptocurrencies from one app, with no trading commission beyond a flat 1 euro settlement fee on securities. Founded in 2015, it holds a full EU banking licence granted by the European Central Bank in December 2023 and serves around 10 million customers.

Its crypto offering works differently from a dedicated exchange: coins are priced through a spread rather than a commission, held custodially by a partner, and cannot be withdrawn to an external wallet. Those three constraints are the main thing to understand before using it for crypto, and they are covered in detail below.

Company History

• 2015 - Christian Hecker, Thomas Pischke and Marco Cancellieri found the company in Berlin, initially under the name Neon Trading.
• January 2019 - The app launches publicly in Germany as Trade Republic, offering commission-free share trading for a flat 1 euro settlement fee. It reaches roughly 150,000 users in its first year.
• July 2019 - Raises a 10 million euro Series A led by Creandum and Project A.
• April 2020 - Raises a 62 million euro Series B led by Accel and Founders Fund.
• May 2021 - Raises a 900 million dollar Series C led by Sequoia, valuing the company at roughly 5.3 billion dollars and making it one of Europe's most valuable fintechs at the time.
• June 2022 - Extends the Series C by 250 million euros, led by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board.
• December 2023 - Receives a full banking licence from the European Central Bank, upgrading it from a securities firm relying on partner banks to a bank able to hold deposits in its own right.
• December 2025 - A 1.2 billion euro secondary share sale values the company at approximately 12.5 billion euros.

Today Trade Republic reports around 10 million customers and roughly 150 billion euros in client assets, making it one of the largest retail investment platforms in Europe by both measures.

Core Offerings: A Unified Investment Platform

Trade Republic's main appeal lies in its integration of various asset classes within a single application:

• Stocks & ETFs: Users can invest in thousands of global stocks and Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). Key features include:
  • Commission-Free Trading: Trades incur zero commission, with only a small, fixed external settlement fee (typically €1) per transaction.
  • Fractional Shares: Allows investing in portions of expensive shares, making blue-chip stocks accessible with small amounts (e.g., starting from €1).
  • Savings Plans: Users can set up automated, recurring investment plans (DCA - Dollar-Cost Averaging) for stocks and ETFs, executed free of order commission (the €1 settlement fee still applies).
• Derivatives: Offers trading in certain derivatives like warrants and knock-out certificates, typically via partnerships with established issuers (e.g., Société Générale, HSBC, Citi). Note: Derivatives are complex instruments carrying high risk and are generally suitable only for experienced investors.
• Cryptocurrency Investing: Trade Republic provides access to popular cryptocurrencies within its regulated framework:
  • Availability: Users can buy, sell, and hold assets like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a curated selection of major Altcoins (typically around 50+).
  • Pricing: Crypto trades do not follow the €1 flat fee model used for stocks/ETFs. Instead, pricing is spread-based, meaning the cost is included in the difference between the buy and sell price quoted. Users should review the effective price at the time of transaction.
  • Custody: Cryptocurrency assets are held custodially on behalf of the user by Trade Republic's regulated partner, BitGo Deutschland GmbH. This means users do not control their own private keys.
  • Withdrawals: Crucially, Trade Republic currently does NOT support the transfer of cryptocurrency assets to external wallets. Crypto purchased on the platform can only be held or sold back to fiat currency within the Trade Republic account.

Platform & User Experience

Trade Republic is designed primarily for mobile use with a focus on simplicity:

• Mobile-First App: The core experience is delivered through an intuitive and streamlined mobile application for iOS and Android, designed for easy navigation and order execution. Web access is also available.

• Interest on Cash: Offers users interest (variable rate, check current terms) on uninvested cash balances held in their accounts, often up to a significant threshold (e.g., €50,000).
• Basic Educational Content: Provides market insights and basic financial explainers within the platform.

Regulation and Security

Operating as a licensed bank in Germany provides a strong regulatory foundation:

• Full EU Banking Licence: Trade Republic Bank GmbH received a full banking licence from the European Central Bank in December 2023, and is supervised by BaFin (Germany's Federal Financial Supervisory Authority) and the Deutsche Bundesbank. This subjects it to stringent EU and German banking regulations (including MiFID II requirements), offering a high level of oversight compared to many non-bank crypto platforms.
• Investor Protection:
  • Cash Deposits: Held in segregated omnibus trust accounts with established partner banks (e.g., Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan SE, Citibank Europe plc, HSBC). These deposits are protected by statutory deposit guarantee schemes (up to €100,000 per investor, per bank).
  • Securities: Stocks and ETFs are held in custody with partner banks and remain the legal property of the investor, segregated from Trade Republic's assets.
  • Cryptocurrencies: Held custodially by BitGo Deutschland GmbH, a BaFin-licensed crypto custodian, segregated from Trade Republic's corporate assets.
• Account Security: Employs standard security practices including secure login procedures, data encryption, and Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) options. General crypto safety advice is always relevant: How To Store Crypto, How to Avoid Crypto Scams.

Criticism and Controversies

• The 2021 GameStop trading restriction. On 28 January 2021, at the height of the GameStop short squeeze, Trade Republic blocked new purchases of GameStop, AMC Entertainment, BlackBerry, Nokia, Express and Bed Bath & Beyond, citing extreme volatility. Existing positions could still be sold. The move drew heavy public criticism, mirroring the backlash against Robinhood in the United States the same week.
• The BaFin investigation that followed. BaFin received more than 4,000 complaints and opened an investigation into the restrictions. After completing its analysis, the regulator did not confirm the suspicion of market manipulation and Trade Republic was cleared.
• Outages during high volatility. The app has experienced technical problems during periods of extreme trading volume, including that same January 2021 window, when orders failed to execute or could not be modified. This is a common complaint against mobile-first brokers generally, not unique to Trade Republic, but it is worth weighing if you intend to trade actively rather than invest on a schedule.
• No crypto withdrawals. The inability to move purchased crypto to a self-custody wallet is the most frequent criticism from crypto-focused users, and is covered in full below.

Fee Structure Summary

Trade Republic's pricing is a key feature, but differs by asset class:

• Stocks & ETFs: Zero commission per trade. A €1 flat fee applies per transaction for external settlement costs. Savings plan executions are free of the €1 fee.
• Cryptocurrencies: Spread-based pricing. No separate commission is charged, but the cost is embedded within the difference between the buy and sell prices offered on the platform.
• Other Fees: Generally no account maintenance fees. Fees may apply for derivatives trading, specific corporate actions, or optional services. Users should consult the official price and service directory.

Points to Consider Before Using Trade Republic

• Broker, Not a Crypto-Native Exchange: Trade Republic is primarily a securities broker that also offers access to crypto. It lacks the deep order books, advanced charting tools, extensive crypto-specific features (like complex staking, lending protocols, launchpads), or vast altcoin selection found on dedicated crypto exchanges like Binance or Kraken.
• No Crypto Withdrawals to External Wallets: This is a critical limitation. You cannot send crypto purchased on Trade Republic to your own private wallet (like a Ledger or MetaMask) or another exchange. Your crypto exposure is confined to buying, holding, and selling within their platform. This prevents participation in DeFi or self-custody.
• Custodial Crypto Holding: All crypto assets are held custodially via BitGo Germany. Users do not possess their private keys and rely on Trade Republic and its partner for security and access.
• Crypto Trading Costs (Spreads): The effective cost of buying/selling crypto via spreads may be higher than the highly advertised €1 flat fee for stocks/ETFs or the maker/taker fees on dedicated exchanges.
• Limited Crypto Selection: Offers major cryptocurrencies and popular altcoins, but the selection is significantly smaller than on large global crypto exchanges.
• Geographic Focus: Primarily available to residents within the European Economic Area. Check availability for your specific country.
• Market Risks: All investments, including crypto, involve risk and are subject to market Crypto Volatility.

Conclusion

Trade Republic offers a compelling proposition for European investors seeking a simple, regulated, mobile-first platform to manage a diverse portfolio of traditional assets (stocks, ETFs) and popular cryptocurrencies in one place. Its status as a fully licensed European bank provides a strong layer of regulatory assurance, and its low-cost model for stock and ETF investing is highly attractive.

However, when considering its cryptocurrency offering, potential users must understand its key limitations: it operates as a broker with custodial holding via BitGo, employs spread-based pricing for crypto trades, and most importantly, does not allow the withdrawal of cryptocurrencies to external wallets. This makes it unsuitable for users prioritizing self-custody or wanting to use their crypto within the broader DeFi ecosystem. For investors comfortable with these constraints and valuing regulatory oversight and a unified multi-asset experience, Trade Republic presents a streamlined and secure option within the European market.