DMA to acquire majority stake in Saxo Australia

PRESS RELEASE

SYDNEY, 10 February 2025 – DMA, a global leader in all-in-one software solutions for financial advisers and wealth managers, has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Saxo Australia from Saxo Bank, a leading online trading and investment specialist. As part of the acquisition and partnership, DMA will leverage Saxo Bank’s platform and trading technology for clients via a white-label agreement for the Australian market.

The Johannesburg-headquartered DMA will assume 80.1% ownership of Saxo’s Australian business (subject to regulatory approvals). Saxo Bank will retain the remaining 19.9%. With this transaction, Saxo’s award-winning platforms, vast product range, competitive prices and interest rates will be complemented and strengthened by DMA’s business-to-business knowhow, world-class adviser offering, and track record of growth.

This transition represents an expansion of the existing partnership between DMA and Saxo in South Africa, the Netherlands, and the UK. In these regions, DMA already leverages Saxo’s capabilities, outsourcing the brokerage business model, managing all aspects of trade orders, execution, settlement, and post-trade operations. Saxo’s open architecture means that DMA can build additional interfaces, digital services, and trading experiences for Australian clients.

Specifically for the partners in the Australian market, Saxo’s banking as a service (BaaS) solutions paired with DMA’s software solutions will enable Australian institutional partners—such as financial advisers and asset- and fund managers — to connect front, middle, and back-office functions under one solution. Saxo will deliver the best-in-class digital investing and trading platforms, and will also provide the back-office infrastructure, from clearing and settlement to execution and custody. This will support financial services firms to reduce back-office cost and complexity, and enhance client-facing services. Currently, more than 160 wealth managers and adviser networks across Africa, Europe, and the United Kingdom use DMA to access global markets.

“We believe DMA’s platform offering will bring tangible benefits to Australian financial advisers and wealth managers, while the business will continue to focus on delivering high-touch, high-quality service for self-directed retail clients,” DMA’s CEO, Richard North, said. “It'll be the best of Saxo and the best of DMA—and we think that adds up to the marketplace’s best choice for investors and partners across the entire lifecycle.” ​
​“With this agreement with DMA, Saxo Bank leverages its core strength—providing a scalable and multi-asset trading infrastructure with our award-winning platforms,” Saxo Bank’s CEO and Founder, Kim Fournais, said. “We couldn’t be more pleased to partner with DMA as we seek to capitalise on the huge opportunity in the Australian market and fully leverage this win-win solution to get more curious people invested in Australia.”

The name and brand of the new business will be determined after a transitional period, with the business to continue operating as Saxo Australia in the meantime.

The new business will retain Saxo Australia’s staff, led by CEO, Adam Smith, while looking to bolster its Australia-based workforce to ensure clients get the best investing and trading experience.

“We will ensure a smooth transition and aim to enhance the offerings and services provided. The clients of Saxo Australia will notice absolutely no disruption in service, product range, or platform access,” Adam Smith said. “We are very pleased to partner up with DMA and believe that this will be a game changer for Australian clients.”

The sale comes after Saxo Bank in June 2024 announced a review of strategic opportunities in the Asia-Pacific, seeking to accelerate its growth in the region.

Media contact

Wim Heirbaut

Senior PR Consultant, Befirm

About DMA

SCM DMA (Pty) Ltd (DMA) is a technology and financial services company based in South Africa, licensed by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority. Other entities in the DMA Group are licensed in their respective jurisdictions. Together, the DMA Group's entities manage and administer more than EUR 15 billion in assets and services through its integrated software as a service (SaaS).

DMA’s proprietary SaaS is designed to simplify the process of asset management so institutional investors can focus on what matters: growing wealth. Our modular technologies work as one to connect front, middle and back office, allowing regulated entities to grow AUM and reduce operating costs. More than 160 wealth managers and advisor networks across South Africa, Mauritius, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Channel Islands rely on DMA to access global financial markets, all in one platform.

For more information, please visit www.dma.co.za.

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About Saxo Bank

About Saxo

At Saxo we believe that when you invest, you unlock a new curiosity for the world around you. As a provider of multi-asset trading and investment solutions, Saxo’s purpose is to Get Curious People Invested in the World. We are committed to enabling our clients to make more of their money. Saxo was founded in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1992 with a clear vision: to make the global financial markets accessible for more people. In 1998, Saxo launched one of the first online trading platforms in Europe, providing professional-grade tools and easy access to global financial markets for anyone who wanted to invest.

Today, Saxo is an international award-winning investment firm for investors and traders who are serious about making more of their money. As a well-capitalised and profitable fintech, Saxo is a fully licensed bank under the supervision of the Danish FSA, holding broker and banking licenses in multiple jurisdictions. As one of the earliest fintechs in the world, Saxo continues to invest heavily into our technology. Saxo’s clients and partners enjoy broad access to global capital markets across asset classes on our industry-leading platforms. Our open banking technology also powers more than 150 financial institutions as partners by boosting the investment experience they can offer their clients (B2B2C). Keeping our headquarters in Copenhagen, Saxo has more than 2,300 professionals in financial centres around the world including London, Singapore, Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Zurich, Dubai and Tokyo.

For more information, please visit: www.home.saxo

 

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