ESMA analysis shows continued growth in cross-border investment services
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The annual analysis by ESMA and national authorities shows that cross-border provision of investment services to retail clients kept growing strongly in 2025: about 15.5 million EEA clients received services from firms in another Member State, almost twice as many as in 2023.
Key points
- 379 firms provide cross-border services to retail clients, up 2% on 2024; client numbers rose 47%.
- Cyprus remains the main home country (20% of passporting firms), followed by Luxembourg (14%) and Germany (12%).
- France, Spain, Germany and Italy are the main destinations; complaints were stable.
Who is affected
Retail investors, investment firms using the EU passport and national supervisors, including the CNMV.
Deadlines
Next data collection in 2027.
Plain-language version
More and more Europeans invest through brokers and apps based in another EU country, something the so-called European passport allows. According to ESMA, the EU's stock market watchdog, there were about 15.5 million such clients in 2025, up 47% on the year before, served by 379 firms. Many are based in Cyprus or Luxembourg, and Spain is one of the main destination countries.
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