What Is eToro? History, Products and Business Model Explained

eToro is a global trading and investing platform best known for combining stocks, cryptocurrencies, exchange-traded funds, commodities, currencies, and social investing tools in one service.

The company lets users trade independently, discuss markets with other investors, or automatically copy selected investors through its CopyTrader system. This social approach has helped eToro distinguish itself from conventional online brokers and crypto exchanges.

Founded in Israel in 2007, eToro has grown from a visual foreign exchange trading platform into a publicly listed financial technology company. By the end of 2025, it had approximately 3.81 million funded accounts across 75 countries.

eToro company overview

Yoni Assia, Ronen Assia, and David Ring founded eToro with the goal of making financial markets easier for ordinary people to access. The company’s official history says the founders wanted to reduce investors’ dependence on traditional financial institutions.

eToro initially focused on foreign exchange trading. It later expanded into stocks, exchange-traded funds, commodities, indices, cryptocurrencies, options, managed portfolios, and money services, although product availability varies by country.

The company now describes itself as a multi-asset investing platform built around three activities: investing, sharing, and learning. Its social feed, investor profiles, educational content, and copy trading features sit alongside its conventional brokerage tools.

Company detail	Current information
Founded	2007
Founders	Yoni Assia, Ronen Assia, and David Ring
Chief executive	Yoni Assia
Public listing	Nasdaq under the ticker ETOR
Funded accounts	Approximately 3.81 million at the end of 2025
Global reach	75 countries at the end of 2025
Assets under administration	$18.5 billion at the end of 2025

How eToro started

Yoni Assia developed an interest in investing at a young age. His father, technology entrepreneur David Assia, introduced him to stock market prices and gave him shares as a bar mitzvah gift.

The collapse of technology stocks during the dot-com crash gave Assia an early lesson in market bubbles and investment risk. After completing his military service, he worked on technology projects while continuing to study financial markets and online investing.

Assia became frustrated with brokerage services that required complex paperwork and long account-opening processes. He began developing the idea behind eToro in 2006 and launched the company with Ronen Assia and David Ring the following year.

From Visual FX to a multi-asset platform

eToro launched its first public product, Visual FX, in September 2007. The browser-based platform used visual elements to make foreign exchange trading easier to understand.

The company introduced WebTrader in 2009, adding more financial instruments and a more conventional trading interface. It launched OpenBook in 2010, bringing social networking and automated trade copying to the platform.

These products established the foundation for the service eToro offers today. The company’s corporate timeline identifies social investing and CopyTrader as central parts of its development.

• 2007: eToro launched its first trading platform.
• 2009: WebTrader expanded the available trading experience.
• 2010: OpenBook introduced social trading features.
• 2013: Bitcoin became available on the platform.
• 2019: eToro acquired portfolio-tracking app Delta.
• 2024: eToro acquired Australian investing platform Spaceship.
• 2025: eToro completed its Nasdaq IPO.

How eToro’s trading platform works

eToro provides a web platform and mobile app through which users can research assets, build watchlists, place trades, follow market discussions, and monitor their portfolios.

The available products depend on the customer’s location and the relevant eToro entity. Users in some markets can access real stocks, ETFs, cryptoassets, commodities, currencies, indices, contracts for difference, options, and Smart Portfolios.

The US eToro platform focuses on products such as stocks, ETFs, cryptoassets, and options. Contracts for difference remain unavailable to retail customers in the United States.

Product	What it provides
Stocks	Access to shares and fractional investing in supported markets
ETFs	Funds covering indices, sectors, regions, and investment themes
Cryptoassets	Trading in supported digital assets, with availability varying by region
Options	Options trading for eligible customers in supported markets
CFDs	Leveraged speculation without owning the underlying asset
Smart Portfolios	Pre-built thematic portfolios managed by eToro
CopyTrader	Automatic replication of another investor’s portfolio activity

CopyTrader and social investing

CopyTrader is eToro’s most recognizable feature. It allows a user to allocate money to another investor and automatically reproduce that person’s portfolio activity in proportion to the allocated amount.

Investor profiles display information such as historical performance, portfolio composition, risk scores, trading history, and investment strategy. Users can stop copying an investor at any time, and eToro does not list a separate CopyTrader service charge.

eToro’s US CopyTrader launch extended the product to eligible American customers in October 2025. The US version initially launched with restrictions that reflect local regulatory requirements.

Copying another investor does not guarantee a profit. Historical performance cannot predict future results, and copied portfolios can lose money when markets or the selected investor’s strategy move in the wrong direction.

The eToro Pro Investor program

Investors available through CopyTrader can participate in eToro’s Pro Investor program. The company reviews applicants against criteria that may include investment history, risk levels, account equity, communication quality, and responsible trading practices.

Approved investors can receive payments based on the amount of money other users allocate to copy them. This creates an incentive for experienced investors to publish market analysis, maintain public portfolios, and build an audience within eToro.

The company’s 2025 annual report says 85% of users who copy an investor select someone who lives in another country. This highlights the global nature of the platform’s social investing network.

Smart Portfolios

Smart Portfolios are diversified collections of assets built around an investment theme, market segment, or strategy. They can include stocks, ETFs, cryptoassets, commodities, or combinations of several asset classes.

Unlike CopyTrader, which follows the decisions of an individual investor, Smart Portfolios follow a defined portfolio methodology. eToro’s investment team or an external partner may create and periodically rebalance the portfolio.

These products can provide broader exposure than buying a single asset. However, they still carry market risk, and some Smart Portfolios focus on volatile themes or concentrated industries.

• Technology and artificial intelligence
• Dividend-paying companies
• Cryptocurrency markets
• Renewable energy
• Regional economies
• Consumer trends
• Large market indices

eToro’s virtual portfolio

New and existing users can access a virtual portfolio with simulated funds. The feature allows them to test the platform, explore assets, and practise investment strategies without risking real money.

Virtual trading can help users understand order screens and portfolio movements. It cannot fully reproduce the emotional pressure, liquidity conditions, slippage, and financial consequences associated with real trading.

Users can switch between their real and virtual portfolios from the platform. The virtual account does not require them to deposit funds before experimenting with supported features.

How eToro makes money

Older descriptions often present eToro as a company that earns most of its revenue from trading spreads. Its current business model has become more diversified.

eToro now earns money from trading activity, interest on customer balances, currency conversion, withdrawals, subscriptions, crypto transfers, wallet services, debit card activity, and other financial products. The company explains these components in its 2025 annual report.

Its trading contribution comes from equities, commodities, currencies, and cryptoassets. Revenue can change significantly depending on asset prices, market volatility, customer activity, interest rates, and the mix of products traded.

Revenue source	How eToro earns money
Trading activity	Spreads, commissions, markups, and income from trade execution
Interest	Income generated from eligible customer cash and other balances
eToro Money	Currency conversion, withdrawals, cards, transfers, and wallet services
Subscriptions	Paid account services and platform benefits
Crypto services	Trading, transfers, staking-related activity, and wallet fees
Payment for order flow	Compensation for routing eligible US orders for execution

Why eToro emphasizes net contribution

eToro reports billions of dollars in gross cryptoasset revenue, but this figure can give an incomplete picture of the company’s performance. The company records the purchase price of cryptoassets sold to customers as revenue and records a corresponding cost of revenue.

For this reason, eToro emphasizes net contribution. This measure subtracts cryptoasset revenue costs and margin interest expenses from total revenue and income.

The SEC-filed annual report says net contribution reached $868 million in 2025, up 10% from approximately $788 million in 2024.

eToro’s 2025 financial performance

eToro reported net income of $215.7 million for 2025, compared with $192.4 million in 2024. Adjusted net income increased to $251.5 million, while adjusted EBITDA reached $317 million.

Funded accounts increased from 3.48 million at the end of 2024 to 3.81 million at the end of 2025. Assets under administration rose from $16.6 billion to $18.5 billion.

The company’s full-year 2025 results also showed that eToro ended the year with approximately $1.3 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments.

Financial measure	2025 result	Annual change
Net contribution	$868 million	Up 10%
Net income	$215.7 million	Up 12%
Adjusted net income	$251.5 million	Up 10%
Adjusted EBITDA	$317 million	Up 4%
Funded accounts	3.81 million	Up 9%
Assets under administration	$18.5 billion	Up 11%

eToro’s Nasdaq IPO

eToro became a publicly traded company in May 2025 after completing an initial public offering on the Nasdaq. Its shares trade under the ticker ETOR.

The company priced the offering at $52 per share. Its stock opened at $69.69 on its first trading day, giving eToro a market value of approximately $5.6 billion at the opening price.

Reuters reported that eToro shares rose sharply during their Nasdaq debut. The listing gave the company additional capital and exposed its financial performance to greater public scrutiny.

eToro’s global customer base

eToro served users in 75 countries at the end of 2025. Europe and the United Kingdom remain core markets, while the company has continued expanding in Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas.

The median eToro user was 37 years old at the end of 2025. More than half of funded accounts held or traded more than one type of asset, supporting the company’s strategy of offering several investment categories through one platform.

eToro says the average user visits the platform about four times per day and spends approximately 12 minutes in each session. Its social feed, notifications, market discussions, and public portfolios encourage frequent engagement.

eToro in the United States

eToro entered the US market with cryptocurrency trading before expanding into stocks, ETFs, options, and social investing. Its American service differs from the international platform because US securities and derivatives regulations restrict certain products.

The current US investment service offers stocks, ETFs, selected cryptoassets, options, recurring investments, and social tools. US customers cannot use the international CFD service.

Crypto availability has also faced regulatory limits. Following a 2024 settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, eToro sharply reduced the number of cryptoassets available to American customers.

Delta and Spaceship acquisitions

eToro acquired investment-tracking app Delta in 2019. Delta lets users connect multiple brokerage accounts, exchanges, wallets, and blockchain addresses to view their investments through one portfolio dashboard.

Delta continues to operate as a distinct product. It expands eToro’s reach to investors who may hold assets elsewhere and do not actively trade through the main eToro platform.

eToro acquired Australian investing app Spaceship in 2024. The transaction added approximately 200,000 funded accounts and strengthened eToro’s presence in Australia.

eToro’s cryptocurrency strategy

eToro added Bitcoin trading in 2013, years before many mainstream brokers entered the crypto market. Digital assets later became an important source of customer activity and revenue.

Crypto performance can make eToro’s headline revenue figures unusually large because of its accounting treatment. Investors should compare gross crypto revenue with the corresponding cryptoasset costs and the company’s net contribution.

The 2025 financial results showed almost $13 billion in gross cryptoasset revenue and approximately $12.93 billion in associated costs. Crypto trading remains important, but equities, commodities, currencies, interest income, and money services provide substantial diversification.

Education and market research

eToro Academy provides courses, guides, videos, and articles covering investing, trading, cryptocurrencies, risk management, and financial markets.

The platform also publishes market news and analysis. Individual asset pages can include price charts, statistics, analyst forecasts, community posts, and technical information.

These tools can help users begin their research, but they should not replace independent analysis. Community posts and copied strategies can contain errors, excessive risk, or conflicts of interest.

eToro’s main competitors

eToro competes with online brokers, cryptocurrency exchanges, trading applications, and wealth platforms. Its competitors vary by country and asset class.

Robinhood offers a mobile-first service focused on US stocks, options, cryptoassets, retirement accounts, and cash products. Coinbase concentrates on cryptocurrency trading and blockchain services, while Interactive Brokers targets investors who need more advanced market access and trading tools.

eToro’s main point of differentiation remains its combination of several asset classes with CopyTrader, public investor profiles, Smart Portfolios, and a social market feed.

Competitor	Primary focus	Key difference from eToro
Robinhood	US stocks, options, crypto, and cash products	Mobile-first interface without eToro’s global copy trading network
Coinbase	Crypto trading and blockchain services	Greater focus on digital assets rather than multi-asset investing
Interactive Brokers	Advanced global market access	More professional tools and fewer social features
Trading 212	Stocks, ETFs, and CFDs	Emphasizes low-cost trading rather than investor copying
Public	Stocks, bonds, options, crypto, and alternatives	Includes social discussion but not the same automated copying system

Benefits of using eToro

eToro can appeal to investors who want to manage several asset classes without switching between multiple platforms. Its social tools also make the service more interactive than a conventional brokerage account.

• Stocks, ETFs, cryptoassets, and other products in one account
• CopyTrader for automatically following selected investors
• Virtual portfolio with simulated funds
• Public investor profiles and market discussions
• Fractional investing in supported markets
• Smart Portfolios built around investment themes
• Web and mobile access
• Educational courses and market analysis

Risks and disadvantages

The platform’s simple design can make high-risk products appear accessible, but that does not make them suitable for every investor. Cryptoassets, CFDs, options, leveraged positions, and concentrated copied portfolios can generate substantial losses.

Fees also vary by asset, region, account currency, and transaction type. Users should check spreads, commissions, conversion charges, withdrawal costs, overnight financing, blockchain fees, and other expenses before trading.

CopyTrader can create additional risk when users rely on historical returns without understanding the copied investor’s strategy. eToro’s CopyTrader information warns that copied performance can change and does not guarantee future results.

• Product availability differs between countries.
• Spreads and fees can make frequent trading expensive.
• CFDs and leverage can rapidly amplify losses.
• Cryptoassets can experience extreme volatility.
• Copied investors can underperform or change strategies.
• Some services depend on third-party custody and execution providers.
• Investor protection does not cover ordinary market losses.

Is eToro suitable for beginners?

eToro’s interface, virtual portfolio, social feed, and copy trading tools can make it approachable for beginners. The platform reduces some of the technical barriers associated with opening and managing an investment account.

However, beginners still need to understand the assets they buy. Copying another person does not remove the need to evaluate risk, diversification, fees, and potential losses.

New users may benefit from starting with the virtual portfolio, reading the risk disclosures, and avoiding leverage until they understand how market movements affect their positions.

How eToro has changed since going public

Becoming a public company has placed greater attention on eToro’s funded-account growth, assets under administration, revenue mix, user engagement, and dependence on market activity.

The business remains sensitive to cryptocurrency cycles and speculative trading, but the company has worked to broaden its income through stocks, commodities, currencies, interest, subscriptions, money services, and acquisitions.

The company’s Nasdaq market debut gave investors a direct way to evaluate that strategy. Future performance will depend on eToro’s ability to retain users, navigate regulation, control acquisition costs, and convert its large registered community into funded accounts.

Final verdict

eToro has developed from a simple foreign exchange platform into one of the most recognizable social investing businesses. Its central idea remains unchanged: make financial markets easier to access and use community participation to shape the investment experience.

CopyTrader, Smart Portfolios, public investor profiles, and multi-asset access give eToro a distinct position among retail brokers. Its global reach and diversified revenue model also make it more than a cryptocurrency trading company.

The platform still carries important risks. Fees can vary, leveraged products can produce rapid losses, and copying an investor cannot guarantee positive returns. eToro may suit investors who value accessibility and social features, but every user should examine the available products, costs, regulatory protections, and risks before depositing money.

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