Direct Tradegate membership
Joining Tradegate, the German securities exchange, marks a major strategic milestone. It allows Lightyear to offer hundreds of additional European instruments to customers, now tradable during extended hours. Tradegate’s session runs from 07:30 to 22:00 Berlin time – covering both pre-market and after-hours trading on most primary exchanges, giving investors more windows to act on opportunities.
Tradegate also unlocks quicker, more accurate market data – so your charts, order books and trade confirmations stay in sync with the market.
Clearstream integration via Nasdaq CSD
By partnering with Nasdaq CSD, we now hold your European securities directly in Clearstream – Europe’s largest central securities depository – rather than through an intermediary. This means that every European security you buy is held directly in Clearstream.
Cutting out intermediaries makes settlements faster and more reliable, with fewer moving parts that can fail:
“As a trusted leader in the post-trade industry, Clearstream is pleased to be part of the collaboration between Lightyear and Nasdaq CSD by providing best-in-class pan-European CSD services to the partnership. Our involvement in this partnership aligns with our strategy to reduce operational complexity and increase efficiency for our clients and their underlying clients.
Lightyear’s choice to use Nasdaq CSD to access European post-trade markets is a great development following Nasdaq CSD’s decision in 2024 to offer its participants access to Clearstream’s pan-European network and is further evidence of Clearstream’s longstanding contribution to making Europe’s capital markets more accessible and attractive. We provide efficient and flexible access to 60 markets worldwide, European clearing infrastructures and trading venues, supporting market participants to navigate increasingly complex regulatory and compliance requirements.”
Philip Brown
Head of Global RM, Sales & Client Services at Clearstream
"Nasdaq CSD is steadfast in its mission to bridge Baltic market participants and their clients with the expansive European investment ecosystem. Through strategic collaboration with Clearstream, this partnership provides Lightyear with a streamlined gateway to the settlement of instruments across European and other markets in central bank money on the Target2-Securities (T2S) platform. This cost-effective post-trade solution not only enhances settlement and liquidity management, but also significantly reduces costs while fostering increased investment activity from retail investors."
Kristi Sisa
Member of the Management Board of Nasdaq CSD
What this means for you
We kept our simple pricing – €1 per European share trade, with ETFs still commission-free. Thanks to our new setup, we’ve also recently been able to launch fractional investing, allowing you to buy slices of high-value instruments from €2, with the same speed and reliability as any other trade.
This integration lays the groundwork for thousands more instruments across new markets and removes the usual bottlenecks – intermediaries, limited hours, fragmented data – delivering a retail investing experience that rivals any professional setup, at everyday investor prices.
Andres Kitter is the Head of European Operations at Lightyear, bringing his extensive experience in financial services and international expansion to support Lightyear’s growth across Europe. Previously, Andres served as the deputy CEO, CTO and Head of LHV’s Financial Intermediaries sector, where he led the bank’s successful expansion into the UK market. During his tenure, Andres played a pivotal role in establishing LHV’s UK branch and spearheaded key initiatives, including enabling fast pound payments for customers—a significant milestone in the company’s international growth strategy. Throughout his career, Andres has managed complex projects, championed the financial technology sector, and contributed to the development of innovative payment solutions. Now, as Head of Europe at Lightyear, Andres is leveraging this expertise to drive Lightyear’s expansion and bring its investment solutions to more markets across Europe.
