X Open Hub: Selling the Platform to RivalsThin moat

XTB (XTB) — moat facet

The only customers who evaluate this technology professionally bought 48 per cent less of it in 2025.

1. ReportedX Open Hub is XTB's institutional business: it supplies liquidity and trading technology to other financial firms, which then serve their own clients under their own brands.
   XTB Group Management Board report on activities in 2025, financial results and dividend - total operating income of 2 146 056 thousand złoty against 1 873 436, up 14,6%; operating income by geography: Central and Eastern Europe 1 447 904 including Poland 1 168 350, Western Europe 387 409, Latin America 128 259, Middle East 182 480 and Asia 4 thousand złoty, with Poland at 54,4% of revenue against 52,7% in 2024; retail business 2 103 532 against 1 791 144 and Institutional Activities (X Open Hub) 42 524 against 82 292, a fall of 48,3%; net interest income on client cash of PLN 78,0 million, 3,6% of total revenue against 3,1%, PLN 19,0 million higher year on year, with interest income on client funds PLN 34,6 million or 32,7% higher and interest expenses paid to clients PLN 15,5 million or 33,3% higher, the product having been introduced in November 2023; nearly PLN 585 million of marketing spend, up 69,6% — FY2025 · publ. March 2026 · source ↗
2. Moat Explorer calcInstitutional revenue was 42,5 million złoty in 2025 against 82,3 million in 2024, a fall of 48 per cent, and 2,0 per cent of group operating income.
   Moat Explorer calculations from XTB's published figures. Correlations across the eight quarters from Q3 2024 to Q2 2026 between operating income (470 234, 465 416, 580 294, 580 597, 375 821, 609 344, 1 094 018 and 992 558 thousand złoty) and, first, CFD turnover in lots (1 627 978, 1 657 390, 1 907 974, 2 321 584, 2 094 296, 2 542 526, 2 323 204 and 1 831 627) giving 0,25, second, CFD notional in dollars (695 315, 727 854, 937 867, 1 144 554, 1 118 278, 1 605 005, 1 333 410 and 1 029 179 million) giving 0,37, and third, profitability per lot (272, 253, 277, 229, 152, 208, 439 and 484 złoty) giving 0,92; the ranges over those quarters are 1,56 times for lots, 2,31 times for notional, 3,18 times for profitability per lot and 2,91 times for operating income. Annually from 2019 to 2025 the correlation between CFD turnover in lots and operating income is 0,96. Market capitalisation of 16 970 million złoty is 144,34 złoty multiplied by 117 569 251 shares, which against trailing twelve-month revenue of 3 071,5 million złoty (2 146,056 less 1 160,891 plus 2 086,324) gives 5,53 times sales, and against trailing net profit of 1 261,4 million (644,199 less 410,052 plus 1 027,240) gives 13,45 times earnings and earnings per share of 10,73. Historic price-earnings ratios are year-end share price multiplied by 117,569 million shares divided by net profit: 8,15, 5,23, 8,31, 4,76, 5,62, 9,66 and 13,10 for 2019 to 2025, with price-to-sales of 1,97, 2,64, 3,16, 2,51, 2,75, 4,42 and 3,93. XTB's 2025 operating income of 2 146,056 million złoty converts to 570,9 million dollars at the National Bank of Poland's 2025 average rate of 3,7588, giving 480 dollars per active client across 1 189 397 active clients against Plus500's 3 268 dollars across 242 440, a ratio of 6,8 times, while Plus500's revenue of 792,4 million dollars is 39 per cent more than XTB's. Client instruments of 43 363 639 thousand złoty across 2 825 700 clients is 15 346 złoty each, against 12 603 at 31 December 2025 and 10 048 at 31 December 2024; 43 363 639 thousand złoty converts to 8,6 billion pounds at 5,03 złoty to the pound, or 3 051 pounds a client, against Trading 212's 25 billion pounds across 4,5 million funded accounts, or 5 556 each. Gross gain on stocks and ETPs as a share of gross gain on CFDs is 0,7 per cent for 2023 (11 050 over 1 622 633), 1,7 per cent for 2024 (30 654 over 1 837 173) and 3,8 per cent for 2025 (78 310 over 2 035 006); as a share of client instruments held, 78 310 over 27 283 557 is 29 basis points. Marketing divided by salaries is 0,44 in 2019 (37 716 over 86 024), 1,42 in 2025 (584 898 over 413 019) and 1,76 in the first half of 2026 (435 510 over 246 964). Revenue per employee is 1,54 million złoty for 2023 (1 618 385 over 1 054), 1,51 million for 2024 (1 873 436 over 1 245), 1,42 million for 2025 (2 146 056 over 1 516) and 2,70 million annualised for the first half of 2026 (4 172 648 over 1 548). Poland's share of operating income is 46,7 per cent in 2023, 52,7 in 2024, 54,4 in 2025 and 57,4 per cent in the first half of 2026 (1 197 033 over 2 086 324). Net interest income is 3,1 per cent of 2024 revenue and 3,6 per cent of 2025 revenue; the share of interest kept is 78 per cent of 140,1 million less 62,1 million, or 56 per cent. Institutional revenue is 2,0 per cent of 2025 operating income (42 524 over 2 146 056) and was 8,7 per cent in 2019 (20 847 over 239 304). Second-quarter 2026 net profit of 1 027 240 less 535 042 is 492 198 against 216 129 a year earlier, a rise of 127,7 per cent, while the sequential fall from 535 042 is 8,0 per cent. The 2018 to 2019 declines are 17,0 per cent in operating income and 43,1 per cent in net profit — FY2019-H1 2026 · publ. September 2026 · source ↗
3. Moat Explorer calcSet against what it once was, the decline is starker still: in 2019 the institutional segment produced 20,8 million złoty of a 239,3 million total, 8,7 per cent of revenue, and 16,4 million of a 65,4 million operating profit — a quarter of everything the group earned that year.
   Moat Explorer calculations from XTB's published figures. Correlations across the eight quarters from Q3 2024 to Q2 2026 between operating income (470 234, 465 416, 580 294, 580 597, 375 821, 609 344, 1 094 018 and 992 558 thousand złoty) and, first, CFD turnover in lots (1 627 978, 1 657 390, 1 907 974, 2 321 584, 2 094 296, 2 542 526, 2 323 204 and 1 831 627) giving 0,25, second, CFD notional in dollars (695 315, 727 854, 937 867, 1 144 554, 1 118 278, 1 605 005, 1 333 410 and 1 029 179 million) giving 0,37, and third, profitability per lot (272, 253, 277, 229, 152, 208, 439 and 484 złoty) giving 0,92; the ranges over those quarters are 1,56 times for lots, 2,31 times for notional, 3,18 times for profitability per lot and 2,91 times for operating income. Annually from 2019 to 2025 the correlation between CFD turnover in lots and operating income is 0,96. Market capitalisation of 16 970 million złoty is 144,34 złoty multiplied by 117 569 251 shares, which against trailing twelve-month revenue of 3 071,5 million złoty (2 146,056 less 1 160,891 plus 2 086,324) gives 5,53 times sales, and against trailing net profit of 1 261,4 million (644,199 less 410,052 plus 1 027,240) gives 13,45 times earnings and earnings per share of 10,73. Historic price-earnings ratios are year-end share price multiplied by 117,569 million shares divided by net profit: 8,15, 5,23, 8,31, 4,76, 5,62, 9,66 and 13,10 for 2019 to 2025, with price-to-sales of 1,97, 2,64, 3,16, 2,51, 2,75, 4,42 and 3,93. XTB's 2025 operating income of 2 146,056 million złoty converts to 570,9 million dollars at the National Bank of Poland's 2025 average rate of 3,7588, giving 480 dollars per active client across 1 189 397 active clients against Plus500's 3 268 dollars across 242 440, a ratio of 6,8 times, while Plus500's revenue of 792,4 million dollars is 39 per cent more than XTB's. Client instruments of 43 363 639 thousand złoty across 2 825 700 clients is 15 346 złoty each, against 12 603 at 31 December 2025 and 10 048 at 31 December 2024; 43 363 639 thousand złoty converts to 8,6 billion pounds at 5,03 złoty to the pound, or 3 051 pounds a client, against Trading 212's 25 billion pounds across 4,5 million funded accounts, or 5 556 each. Gross gain on stocks and ETPs as a share of gross gain on CFDs is 0,7 per cent for 2023 (11 050 over 1 622 633), 1,7 per cent for 2024 (30 654 over 1 837 173) and 3,8 per cent for 2025 (78 310 over 2 035 006); as a share of client instruments held, 78 310 over 27 283 557 is 29 basis points. Marketing divided by salaries is 0,44 in 2019 (37 716 over 86 024), 1,42 in 2025 (584 898 over 413 019) and 1,76 in the first half of 2026 (435 510 over 246 964). Revenue per employee is 1,54 million złoty for 2023 (1 618 385 over 1 054), 1,51 million for 2024 (1 873 436 over 1 245), 1,42 million for 2025 (2 146 056 over 1 516) and 2,70 million annualised for the first half of 2026 (4 172 648 over 1 548). Poland's share of operating income is 46,7 per cent in 2023, 52,7 in 2024, 54,4 in 2025 and 57,4 per cent in the first half of 2026 (1 197 033 over 2 086 324). Net interest income is 3,1 per cent of 2024 revenue and 3,6 per cent of 2025 revenue; the share of interest kept is 78 per cent of 140,1 million less 62,1 million, or 56 per cent. Institutional revenue is 2,0 per cent of 2025 operating income (42 524 over 2 146 056) and was 8,7 per cent in 2019 (20 847 over 239 304). Second-quarter 2026 net profit of 1 027 240 less 535 042 is 492 198 against 216 129 a year earlier, a rise of 127,7 per cent, while the sequential fall from 535 042 is 8,0 per cent. The 2018 to 2019 declines are 17,0 per cent in operating income and 43,1 per cent in net profit — FY2019-H1 2026 · publ. September 2026 · source ↗
4. ReportedOne is that retail simply grew past it: a segment can shrink to 2 per cent of a company by staying still while the rest multiplies ninefold.
   XTB Group Management Board report on activities in 2025, financial results and dividend - total operating income of 2 146 056 thousand złoty against 1 873 436, up 14,6%; operating income by geography: Central and Eastern Europe 1 447 904 including Poland 1 168 350, Western Europe 387 409, Latin America 128 259, Middle East 182 480 and Asia 4 thousand złoty, with Poland at 54,4% of revenue against 52,7% in 2024; retail business 2 103 532 against 1 791 144 and Institutional Activities (X Open Hub) 42 524 against 82 292, a fall of 48,3%; net interest income on client cash of PLN 78,0 million, 3,6% of total revenue against 3,1%, PLN 19,0 million higher year on year, with interest income on client funds PLN 34,6 million or 32,7% higher and interest expenses paid to clients PLN 15,5 million or 33,3% higher, the product having been introduced in November 2023; nearly PLN 585 million of marketing spend, up 69,6% — FY2025 · publ. March 2026 · source ↗
5. ReportedInstitutional revenue has now fallen for a full year from the level it reached in 2024, and 2,0 per cent of the group is the lowest share it has ever been.
   XTB Group Management Board report on activities in 2025, financial results and dividend - total operating income of 2 146 056 thousand złoty against 1 873 436, up 14,6%; operating income by geography: Central and Eastern Europe 1 447 904 including Poland 1 168 350, Western Europe 387 409, Latin America 128 259, Middle East 182 480 and Asia 4 thousand złoty, with Poland at 54,4% of revenue against 52,7% in 2024; retail business 2 103 532 against 1 791 144 and Institutional Activities (X Open Hub) 42 524 against 82 292, a fall of 48,3%; net interest income on client cash of PLN 78,0 million, 3,6% of total revenue against 3,1%, PLN 19,0 million higher year on year, with interest income on client funds PLN 34,6 million or 32,7% higher and interest expenses paid to clients PLN 15,5 million or 33,3% higher, the product having been introduced in November 2023; nearly PLN 585 million of marketing spend, up 69,6% — FY2025 · publ. March 2026 · source ↗

• XTB Group consolidated annual report for 2025
• X-Trade Brokers DM S.A. Group annual report for 2019