German broker app Trade Republic opens tech hub in Stockholm

The German broker app Trade Republic just announced that it has established a tech hub in Stockholm. The company is opening about 250 engineering roles, based at the headquarters in Berlin, in Stockholm, or fully remote.

This is remarkable news as Trade Republic is currently not available on the Swedish market, and at least hasn't announced any concrete plans to launch in the Nordic country.

Hundreds of Stockholm-based startups and tech companies are already fighting for scarce tech talent. As the severe shortage of housing particularly in attractive central areas is creating additional difficulties when trying to attract senior professionals from elsewhere, the German company clearly doesn't seem to shy away from a challenge.

What likely impacted the company's choice of Stockholm is the recent hire of former Klarna VP Engineering Jan Plasberg, who will lead the operations at the new Swedish tech hub. Through the Stockholm-based VC firm Creandum, one of its investors, Trade Republic has other existing ties to the Swedish ecosystem.

DI Digital quotes (paywall) Trade Republic CEO and co-founder Christian Hecker saying that Sweden is a "natural hub for finding the best senior talent", referring to the country's track record of scaling up successful tech companies such as Klarna or Spotify.  

According to Hecker, Trade Republic plans to launch in 5 more markets this year, of which Sweden could be one. However, Trade Republic would face strong competition, as Sweden unlike many other European markets has a comparatively developed tradition of investing in stocks and well established, highly regarded local broker apps such as Avanza and Nordnet.

Trade Republic was founded in 2015 and currently employs around 600 people. It has raised around $844M in capital to date and was most recently valued at around $5 billion.