DWP Bank seizes Berlin's Fintech aspirations, planning hostile takeover against Trade Republic
In a significant move to bolster its digital offerings and compete more effectively against neobrokers like Trade Republic, Deutsche WertpapierService Bank (dwpbank) has announced the acquisition of Lemon Markets, a Berlin-based Fintech offering "Brokerage-as-a-Service." The deal, subject to final regulatory approval from BaFin, is expected to be completed by autumn 2025.
Lemon Markets, founded in 2020 by Max Linden, has not experienced significant customer growth despite receiving investments from Creandum, Lakestar, Lightspeed, and Commerzventures, totaling around 30 million euros. The acquisition by dwpbank aims to help the young company achieve its growth goals.
Max Linden, the founder of Lemon Markets, will continue to lead the company. He expressed optimism about the acquisition, stating that it would provide Lemon Markets with better chances in competition with rivals like Upvest through the new parent company, DWP Bank.
The acquisition is intended to help dwpbank meet the growing pressure from neobrokers like Trade Republic by combining Lemon Markets’ fintech innovation and scalable brokerage-as-a-service platform with dwpbank’s traditional securities infrastructure and stability.
Lemon Markets offers a modular, API-based digital brokerage and custody technology that enables real-time processing, fractional trading, and fully digital workflows for stocks, ETFs, and funds. DWP Bank plans to leverage this technology to provide more flexible, competitive, and accessible brokerage solutions for banks, fintechs, and asset managers.
Key benefits of the acquisition include modernizing trade execution and reporting to improve efficiency and client investment management across multiple markets, expanding dwpbank’s cloud-based technology stack by integrating Lemon Markets’ digital brokerage and custody infrastructure with existing platforms, offering a comprehensive ecosystem of securities services, and enabling clients to dynamically combine full custody services with digital brokerage-as-a-service offerings.
In summary, the acquisition positions Lemon Markets within dwpbank’s ecosystem to accelerate digital transformation and enhance competitiveness against neobrokers like Trade Republic through innovative technology, modular platform architecture, and the security and stability of a traditional securities services provider.
DWP Bank, a heavyweight in the German securities business with over 1000 customers, including savings banks, cooperative banks, and private banks, hopes that this acquisition will help it better compete with neobrokers in the future.
References: [1] Deutsche WertpapierService Bank (dwpbank) press release, [Date] [2] Lemon Markets press release, [Date] [3] Interview with Max Linden, Founder of Lemon Markets, [Date]
The acquisition of Lemon Markets by dwpbank will integrate the Fintech's Brokerage-as-a-Service platform with dwpbank's traditional financial infrastructure, aiming to strengthen the industry competition, particularly against neobrokers like Trade Republic in the finance business. Post-acquisition, Lemon Markets, led by Max Linden, will leverage the new parent company's resources to achieve its growth goals.
