Germany’s retail investment landscape shows a stark divide between traditional and leveraged trading participation. While 14.1 million Germans held shares, equity funds or ETFs in 2025, only 63,000 actively traded CFDs or forex in the twelve months ending February 2025, according to new FM Intelligence analysis. That represents a 224-to-one scale difference between the two segments.
The leveraged trading segment remains 25 percent below its 2021 peak despite posting modest 3 percent annual growth. However, crossover exists as 72 percent of leveraged traders started with traditional products, and 84 percent remain open to additional broker offerings. This supports a progression model where clients begin with shares before moving to leverage.
Market dynamics face pressure following Germany’s PFOF exemption expiring June 30, 2026. Brokers previously relying on payment-for-order-flow to subsidize zero-commission trading must now pivot to alternative revenue including subscriptions, cash interest and securities lending. New market entrants face first-year costs between 4.1 million and 9.3 million euros for full BaFin authorization.
FXnCO Insight
Brokers targeting Germany should prioritize share and ETF products as gateway offerings before introducing leveraged instruments to qualified clients.
Source: Finance Magnates