Dutch neobroker BUX launches in Ireland
BUX, Europe’s fastest-growing neobroker, has officially launched its zero-commission investing app, BUX Zero, making it the first exclusively mobile platform to offer investing in Ireland.
Now available in both the Apple and Google App Store, the investing app allows individuals to directly invest in any of the over 2,000 stocks available on BUX Zero. Users can open a free account in minutes, deposit or withdraw money for free at any time, search for specific assets and create lists of their favourite stocks, and access investment plans, jargon-free news, and educational content to help them make better decisions backed by solid financial knowledge.
Yorick Naeff, CEO of BUX, said, “At BUX, our goal is to create a new, more equitable financial future where anyone has the opportunity to invest and put their money to work. Against the backdrop of the 2008 financial crisis, followed by the tracker mortgage scandal, and, most recently, the impact of Covid-19, Irish people’s trust in the traditional banking sector has been eroded. This, combined with the imminent exit of two of Ireland’s largest banks from the market and the closure of other bank branches across the country, has left consumers with limited choice.”
“As the Irish financial services landscape undergoes rapid change, BUX Zero is giving consumers more options when choosing what to do with their money. Providing an avenue for direct investment, BUX Zero is making commission-free investing accessible for both first time and existing investors by allowing them to easily invest in companies they know and believe in. Irish customers are conscious consumers who are tech and money savvy, with a strong appetite for digital-first financial services. This made our decision to launch in the Irish market an easy one,” Naeff added.
One of the greatest barriers to financial investing is education and BUX aims to be a platform that not only provides intuitive tools to start investing, but the resources to do it responsibly.
“Investing has long been something for those with the capital and the knowledge to do so, and the rise of retail trading has left many new entrants to the space navigating an often complex environment,’’ said Naeff. “That’s why we’re committed to providing our users with the tools to be confident in beginning their investment journey. We currently offer educational content including videos, knowledge centres, and market news and are putting more resources behind this everyday because it’s just as important to our clients as having a sophisticated platform.”
Headquartered in Amsterdam, BUX recently announced an $80 million (€67 million) funding round. With increasing appetite across Europe for simpler ways to start investing, particularly with a younger generation, BUX is focusing efforts on scaling internationally. The company has become adept at scaling rapidly thanks to a few key attributes, most notably its custom-built, back-end broker. Additionally, BUX’s smart order routing system ensures better value for customers than the payment for order flow model used by other market players.
Other neobrokers often sit on top of existing, legacy institutions. With BUX Zero, the app is only what is visible on the surface, but beneath sits a complex engine that allows BUX to process transactions, send clients to different stock exchanges, and process payments without reliance on a legacy institution. This backend broker is what drives BUX’s ability to rapidly expand and adapt to local regulations and needs. Leveraging Yapily’s Open Banking infrastructure, BUX users are also able to make simple, hassle-free deposits into their accounts. Through Open Banking, Irish clients are able to connect and fund accounts with financial service providers like Revolut. Others are expected to be added throughout the year.
Regulated by the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets (Autoriteit Financiële Markten – AFM), and with over 500,000 clients across Europe, BUX Zero has established itself as Europe’s go-to neobroker and is currently available in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, France, and Belgium, with plans to expand further across Europe in 2021.
