December 2024 Summaries

Alpaca reported a major expansion in 2024, highlighted by its transition to a self-clearing broker-dealer at DTCC, which it says increases control over clearing and settlement while supporting lower costs, security, and product development. The company broadened its brokerage infrastructure with US options trading, a High-Yield Cash API, IRA accounts, a FIX API for institutional traders, expanded local-currency and fractional-share order capabilities, instant funding, streamlined business onboarding, Alpaca Elite services, and additional paper-trading tools, while renewing SOC 2 Type 2 compliance. Its Broker API partners, including Sarwa, Thndr, eccuity, and tyba, used the platform to expand access to investing across the Middle East, North Africa, New Zealand, and Latin America. Alpaca also advanced international partnerships with Derayah Financial, Citadel Securities, GITEX GLOBAL, and QuantConnect, and received Benzinga’s award for sophisticated brokerage services for advanced traders and Postman’s Best API award. Looking to 2025, the company plans to expand asset offerings, demonstrate financial strength, and build more global partnerships in support of its stated mission to make financial services more accessible, while emphasizing the substantial risks and regulatory considerations associated with investing, options, fractional shares, cash-sweep programs, and extended-hours trading.

Founded in Colombia in 2019 and backed by Credicorp Capital, tyba is a digital investment platform seeking to broaden access to global investing for users in Colombia, Peru, and Chile, where equity-market participation has historically been low. The company combines local regulatory infrastructure with mobile-first tools, educational content, transparent processes, and products spanning mutual funds, foreign exchange, pensions, fixed income, and U.S. equities, including tyba Pocket. Its partnership with Alpaca’s Broker API enables regulatory-compliant access to fractional U.S. shares from as little as $1, reducing costs associated with traditional international transfers. Tyba reported processing more than 80,000 orders in under a year, serving over 10,000 Colombian and Peruvian investors, and reaching $7 million in assets under management by the fourth quarter of 2024. The company plans to continue digitizing locally tailored financial products, expand its customer base, and develop a hybrid service model that combines digital tools with personalized advice for investors who want additional support.

Alpaca, a California-based brokerage infrastructure company and self-clearing broker-dealer, won Best Brokerage for Sophisticated Traders at the 2024 Benzinga Global Fintech Awards, marking its third consecutive year of recognition after awards for Best API Solution in 2023 and Best Automated Trading Software in 2022. The company provides custody and execution services for stocks, ETFs, options, and cryptocurrencies, and cited its DTCC membership, FINRA registration, SOC 2 compliance, excess SIPC coverage, and advanced trading capabilities as factors behind the recognition. Alpaca highlighted recent offerings including options trading, IRA accounts, High-Yield Cash, a FIX API, and Instant Funding, describing them as part of its effort to serve individual investors, businesses, developers, and institutional partners. It reports having raised more than $170 million and serving millions of customers and hundreds of financial institutions globally, while noting that its services involve regulatory requirements and investment risks, particularly for options and cryptocurrencies.

Alpaca, a U.S.-based self-clearing broker-dealer and brokerage infrastructure provider, has formed a strategic partnership with Saudi financial services firm Derayah Financial, which includes an investment by Derayah and is intended to expand global investor access to the Saudi Exchange through Alpaca’s technology. The companies aim to support electronic investment services for individual and institutional investors, including API-based trading capabilities, while leveraging Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030-driven financial-market growth; Alpaca has also established a local Saudi entity. Alpaca provides execution and custody services for stocks, ETFs, and options to financial institutions, while Derayah operates digital investment and mutual-fund platforms in Saudi Arabia and offers access to local, regional, and international markets. The announcement notes that investing, particularly options trading, carries risk and that neither company is responsible for the other’s liabilities.