OpenMarkets is now Australia's second largest retail broker and is eyeing an ASX listing

OpenMarkets has just become Australia’s second largest retail broker and completed a $10 million pre-IPO raising.

The fintech stockbroking solutions provider has overtaken CMC Markets and Westpac’s Ausiex so far this year and now only trails CommSec.

It services 150 B2B clients as a market participant including retail players such as Stockspot, Superhero, Raiz (ASX:RZI) and Selfwealth (ASX:SWF).

Between its B2B and B2C platforms, the group services 180,000 accounts and clears more than $50 million in annualised volume. In the last 12 months, trading volumes on a monthly basis are up 228 per cent and funds under administration are up 111 per cent.

OpenMarkets ready for retail acceleration

Speaking with Stockhead this morning CEO Ivan Tchourilov put it down to his firm’s technology, how it enabled other unique platforms and was not trying to be everything to everyone.

The company has also benefited from increased participation in the retail space.

“There’s been a trend towards digitisation going on,” Tchourilov said.

“For the first time, in January 2020 before COVID really hit proper, we saw retail participation start moving away as a percentage of overall trading from institutional trading and more and more retail [investors] started to play in the space due to the accessibility point.

“And the second part is really when COVID did finally happen, it just accelerated that move – so, think of people using digital wallets and not wanting to go back.”

“It’s been a couple of things happening together but what OpenMarkets overall does is something that, as far as we understand, no one else is doing in the Australian market at the moment.”

However OpenMarkets has benefited from the success of its clients and the trading participation solution it offers them.

“I think the number one driver for a lot of clients is still technology,” Tchourilov declared.

“If you see guys like Superhero for example, they build a specialised tool for traders which really is friendly, guys like SelfWealth who have a really powerful social with a trading component, MarketTech is a good tool for traders.

“These providers that we’re powering are focusing on building engaging new lines, focusing on disruption and they’re specialising in their area within the tech framework which is different to CommSec which is trying to everything including the back end and the front end.”

Eyeing an IPO

OpenMarkets is also targeting an ASX listing and has raised $10 million in a pre-IPO round.

While the investors remained confidential, the funding round was over-subscribed and led by Investec Corporate Advisory & E&P Corporate Advisory.

If OpenMarkets lists it will join a handful of other retail brokers including Selfwealth (ASX:SWF), Bell Financial (ASX:BFG) and of course the Big Four banks themselves.

Tchourilov declined to put a specific time frame on when his firm would list.

“Obviously we are in progress so hopefully sooner rather than later, but there’s still a lot of work to do before we’re there,” he said.