Financial news

ABN AMRO Bank, on Thursday, announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Amsterdam-based neo-brokerage platform BUX to strengthen its footprint in the retail investment space and enhance its digital offering.

The transaction is subject to approval by the regulator and is expected to be finalised in 2024. 

Based out of Amsterdam, ABN AMRO is a Northwest European bank for retail, corporate, and private banking clients. 

With over 20,000 employees, of which approximately 5,000 work outside the Netherlands, the Dutch bank serves more than 5 million clients.

Annerie Vreugdenhil, ABN AMRO’s Chief Commercial Officer Personal & Business Banking, says, “It’s a lot more common now for people to start thinking well ahead about their financial future and to take control of it themselves. Over the past few years, BUX has excelled in helping clients who want to do this. Welcoming BUX into the ABN AMRO family will create a unique combination of innovative user-friendliness and financial strength, stability, and expertise – a powerful foundation for future growth (in the private investment domain), both for our clients and the bank itself.”

ABN AMRO x BUX: The acquisition

BUX and ABN AMRO jointly aim to provide a diverse range of investment and savings products that cater to both new investors and experienced clients with larger investment portfolios.

This acquisition is an additional investment for BUX, allowing for long-term growth and innovation, leveraging ABN AMRO’s resources and infrastructure. 

However, the purchase does not include the company’s cryptocurrency activities. 

ABN AMRO and BUX have a longstanding relationship. ABN AMRO Ventures was one of the first companies to invest in the Dutch neobrokerage platform. 

In 2022, BUX became the first European broker to offer fractional ETFs in partnership with ABN AMRO Clearing Bank.

BUX: Helping Europeans to do more with their money

Founded in 2014 by Egbert Pronk, Joost van de Wijgerd, Nick Bortot, and Robbert Bos, BUX makes investing easier, giving everyone the chance to invest in various tools. 

The company’s clients can invest in (fractional) shares, ETFs, ETCs, and cryptocurrencies via one native mobile application. 

The Dutch neobroker is available in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria, and Ireland.

Yorick Naeff, CEO of BUX, says, “We’ve always had the ambition to be the leader in Europe’s retail investment arena, and joining forces with ABN AMRO is a crucial stride towards achieving this goal. We strongly believe that at BUX, our speed, agility, and relentless drive for innovation, merged with ABN AMRO’s deep expertise in personal finance and decades-long reputation, form a synergy unparalleled in the entire investment sector. This powerful combination positions BUX ideally to become a leading investment platform across Europe for everyone looking to grow their wealth for the future.”