The analyst team continuously monitors new developments and shifting dynamics within the retail brokerage industry. In this analysis, we explored publicly available datasets to identify key differences between the U.S. and European brokerage markets.
By examining broker-reported data, we compared the surge in new client acquisitions and revenue changes across both regions during 2020. Continue reading to discover the main insights.
US brokers have significantly more clients
Most US brokers have 10 or more times larger client bases than most EU brokers.
Notes to the chart:
- Data was collected from brokers’ public reports for Q4 2020.
- Plus500, E*TRADE and XTB data is for the end of Q3 2020. Robinhood’s data is from Q2 2020.
Source: Quarterly results of brokers available publicly
More clients do not mean more profits
Despite the significant increase in broker accounts and trading activity, most US brokers couldn’t increase their profitability, as many cut their commissions in late 2019.
Note to the chart:
- Data was collected for H1 2020 and compared with H1 2019, as most brokers did not have reports for Q3-Q4 available.
Source: Quarterly results of brokers available publicly
You can download our findings here.