Retail trading platforms are consolidating around US active-trader infrastructure rather than building it from scratch, and eToro’s acquisition of TradeZero is the latest proof.
What happened
eToro agreed to acquire TradeZero, a US equities brokerage built for active and day traders, in a deal worth up to $231 million in cash and newly issued Class A shares, the company announced August 11. TradeZero generated roughly $80 million in revenue over the twelve months ended June 30, 2026, at an 81 percent gross margin, and brings direct market access, extended-hours trading and stock-locate services eToro does not currently offer. “TradeZero has built a successful franchise, with differentiated technology, broker-dealer infrastructure and a highly engaged trading community,” said Yoni Assia, eToro’s co-founder and CEO. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2027 and to be accretive to adjusted earnings per share in its first year.
Why it matters
eToro built its brand on social and copy trading for a broad, largely international retail base. Active US day traders are a different customer, one that wants direct market access and speed, not a feed of other people’s trades. Buying that capability rather than building it lets eToro compete for a segment it was structurally weak in, while TradeZero gets eToro’s user base and balance sheet to fund the “accelerate innovation” that co-founder and CEO Daniel Pipitone pointed to in the announcement.
The angle
The deal fits a wider pattern among retail brokerages buying specialist infrastructure instead of competing feature by feature, a trend also visible in Robinhood’s push to fold crypto trading into one app across UK and US markets. As exchanges themselves race to extend trading hours and build always-on infrastructure, detailed in Nasdaq’s move into near-continuous market infrastructure, the brokerages sitting on top of those markets are under the same pressure to own more of the trading stack rather than rent it.
Source: eToro
