Hi there! With over 27 million users, eToro has become one of the largest social investing platforms for regular folks looking to trade crypto, stocks and more. I‘ve been an eToro user myself for 5 years and wanted to share an in-depth look its history, products, and controversies as an industry insider.
In short, eToro launched in 2007 with the mission of opening up investing to all. It focused on education and social trading features allowing anyone to emulate top traders. After steady global growth, eToro now offers an all-in-one platform to invest in stocks, crypto and manage your finances. But it hasn‘t been without some bumps along its journey.
Let‘s dig in…
Overview: eToro By the Numbers
Before getting into the history, let‘s break down key stats on the eToro behemoth today:
| Year Founded | 2007 |
| Founders | Yoni Assia, Ronen Assia, David Ring |
| HQ Location | Tel Aviv, Israel |
| Registered Users | 27+ million |
| Offerings | Stocks, Crypto, ETFs, Options, Copy Trading |
| Funding Raised | $262 million |
| Latest Valuation | $2.5 billion (April 2021) |
These stats showcase eToro‘s massive size and influence within both crypto and stock day trading.
Next let‘s explore how it was started and became so successful over 15 years…
Founding of eToro to Disrupt Investing (2007)
eToro began with a simple concept – making trading accessible for all global users.
It was founded by brothers Yoni Assia and Ronen Assia, together with senior software developer David Ring in Tel Aviv, Israel in 2007. Their goal was to "revolutionize" trading.
They started off offering only forex and CFDs. But using innovative graphics and simulations, they presented financial concepts visually to hook young investors.
This focus on education via engaging graphics and animations set the foundation for catering to beginners.
Within a couple years though, eToro already started expanding beyond just forex and CFD trading…
Launch of WebTrader for Online Trading (2009)
In 2009, eToro launched its WebTrader platform, allowing anyone to trade stocks, currencies and commodities online.
This new trading platform opened up digital investing to the mainstream public.
Despite aiming to help beginners, WebTrader still packed robust tools and charting for more advanced traders. This ensured eToro could serve users of all skill levels.
But the real game-changing set of features was soon to come…
Disrupting Trading with Copy Trading (2010-2011)
Arguably eToro‘s biggest innovation arrived in 2010 with CopyTrader and OpenBook. This was the start of "social trading" on eToro.
Here‘s how these features revolutionized eToro‘s platform:
🔥 CopyTrader: Let anyone automatically copy successful investors. Beginners could piggyback on trades from vetted "Popular Investors". Build diverse portfolios on autopilot.
🔥 OpenBook: Added an investment-focused social feed where users interact, share strategies and analyze portfolios. Lowered barriers to trading knowledge and access.
Together this online trading community with copy features attracted millions of new, millennial investors to eToro excited to emulate high performers.
It also firmly established eToro as an early Web 3.0 pioneer within the finance sector using these social tools. No surprise eToro won FinovateEurope‘s 2011 Best of Show award for the copy trading concept.
Up next, making crypto trading easy starting in 2013…
Expanding into Crypto Assets in 2013
Beyond traditional securities, eToro also recognized the potential of crypto early on.
In 2013, eToro enabled Bitcoin trading on its platform – making one of the first inroads amongst mainstream consumer trading apps to include crypto functionality.
Crypto trading capabilities then expanded to add Ethereum, XRP, and dozens more leading digital assets over subsequent years.
Today eToro supports 60+ cryptocurrencies – one of the widest arrays offered.
It remains a top recommended platform for regular investors wanting simple Bitcoin and crypto investing. The streamlined buying, educational guides and CopyTrader make crypto more accessible versus complex exchanges.
As cryptocurrencies grew into a $2 trillion global market, eToro ensured it remains a leader supporting blockchain-based assets.
The Evolution to a Unified Investing and Banking App
Beyond trading itself, eToro has moved to integrate more financial services like banking and money management…
In 2018, eToro launched a dedicated crypto wallet app allowing users to store bought coins and easily transfer to the wallet. This interlinking of accounts provides a seamless user experience within the eToro crypto ecosystem.
But the bigger move came announcing eToro Money in 2021 – a full banking suite integrated onto the eToro platform itself.
eToro Money features include:
🔥 eToro debit cards for spending account balances
🔥 UK bank account with account/routing numbers
🔥 Nil forex fees on money transfers
🔥 Crypto to fiat (and vice versa) conversions
By connecting payments, banking, crypto wallets and investments all in one portal, eToro aims to manage more financial pillars for customers.
Many leading crypto and fintech players like Crypto.com share this trajectory of uniting investing, crypto, and payments in unified services. eToro seems determined to match these universal digital money capabilities.
Raising Billions in Funding from Top Investors
Of course growing all these products and offerings requires serious capital…
Since 2017 eToro has raised over $262 million across several funding rounds from marquee investors attracted to its market potential and profitability:
| Date | Amount Raised | Lead Investors |
| March 2021 | $200 million | Softbank Vision Fund 2 |
| March 2018 | $100 million | China Minsheng Financial |
| Sept 2017 | $50 million | Korea Investment Partners |
| Total | $262 million+ |
This mammoth funding attracted at increasing valuations confirms investor excitement around eToro‘s growth.
It has propelled new products like eToro Money while expanding to new markets like the U.S. in 2021.
But that fast-scaling hasn‘t come without some stumbles…
Controversies Around Liquidations and Policy Changes
Success certainly hasn‘t come without critics though.
As one of the largest trading platforms, eToro has faced scrutiny around sudden policy changes and forced liquidations:
2022 – Russia Sanctions Chaos
When war hit Ukraine, Russia faced sudden asset trading suspensions. But many criticized eToro‘s handling of Russian stocks like Magnit PJSC:
- eToro forcibly closed all Magnit positions at near $0 stop loss levels despite users‘ investments.
- Firm claimed no liquidity, but surprise losses infuriated traders.
- Eventually eToro returned 100% of capital, but damage done to trust.
2021 – Crypto Leverage Crackdown
eToro also closed all leveraged crypto positions without notice in 2021 amidst Bitcoin volatility:
- Again sudden forced liquidations angered investors.
- Traders faced losses and liquidated collateral they deemed unnecessary.
- Lawsuits filed claiming losses from eToro policy decision itself.
More Transparency Needed
Through these incidents, one consistent complaint has been eToro‘s lack of transparency around rapid policy changes impacting certain assets and trading products.
While protecting company risk, affected users have disputed forced liquidations and their scope. They demand more openness around key policy decisions that destroy positions/investments.
As a public company itself eToro has tried improving communication. But doubts linger on exactly what triggers sudden platform restrictions, especially around cryptocurrencies.
What Next for the FinTech Giant?
As one of the largest social trading platforms now with over 27 million registered users, eToro is firmly established within both crypto and traditional day trading.
It continues spreading globally, targeting emerging consumer classes in developing nations across Asia and Latin America.
We can also expect product expansion to continue evolving into a true hub for investing, crypto management and personal banking/payments.
If successfully executed, expect to see eToro right alongside Crypto.com, Revolut and Robinhood as a top consumer neobank option wedded to crypto and stock investments.
But it still needs to nurture users‘ trust by clarifying policies enforcement around liquidations and assets restrictions. Striking the right balance between risk management and user expectations poses the single biggest challenge.
Yet with charismatic co-founder CEO Yoni Assia still at the helm since founding 15 years ago, eToro has continually navigated similar regulatory hurdles before. And it remains a pioneer in social, educational crypto and stock trading for the next generation of young investors worldwide.
