Size of the global online trading market 2020, with forecasts up until 2026

It is forecast that the global online trading market will increase at a global compound annual growth rate of 6.4 percent per year, increasing to an estimated 13.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2026. This is from a base of around 10.21 billion U.S. dollars in 2022. Following the coronavirus pandemic beginning in 2020, online trading activity increased among millennial investors. Many online brokers, including Robinhood, experienced notable growth in the number of platform users from the second quarter of 2020 through to 2021. A low-cost business model, paired with technological integration and social media promotion were contributing factors to the popularity of online trading.

What is an online trading platform?

The online trading market is typically accessed through an online market broker, providing a platform for users to track market prices and execute buy and sell orders on financial securities. The user typically holds their portfolio through an online broker. The number of monthly downloads for leading online trading apps spiked in early 2021. While this was influenced by media attention to popular news stories such as the increase in the price of GameStop shares, online trading is expected to continue as an alternative to traditional investment methods.

Factors driving online trading

The integration of technology has improved investing activities. From a global survey, most respondents stated technology made investing easier, cheaper, and more efficient. The use of technology allowed information such as real-time data, industry and firm reports, and trading notifications to be more accessible directly to the investor. Online platforms had experienced an increase in the number of trades placed per day, in 2019, interactive brokers had an average of 1,380 trades placed per day. This number steadily increased to 3,905 trades per day in 2021. Technological integration allowed trading via online platforms to be an alternative to traditional methods of relying on an in-person full-service broker.