Public.com

Public.com offers a social investing platform that allows trading in stocks, ETFs, and cryptocurrencies with the option to invest in fractional shares. The mobile platform offers a social feed where users can follow friends and domain experts to see their investments, and also allows users to invest in stocks and ETFs that are underpinned by “themes” such as industry or social causes.

The platform does not require a minimum initial deposit and does not charge fees for account maintenance, bank transfers, or incoming Automated Customer Account Transfers (ACAT). It also does not receive payments for order flow from market makers, which the company claims aligns its financial aims with those of its clients. It generates revenue through rebates from the securities lending program operated by its clearing house, Apex Clearing, as well as commissions of 1–2% on cryptocurrency transactions and outgoing ACAT fees of USD 75. Public.com also earns interest on uninvested cash balances in users’ accounts and plans to introduce subscription-based premium features in the future. Further, it allows users to tip the platform when they make a trade.

In February 2024, the company announced the suspension of its operations in the UK, effective May 3, 2024, with all UK accounts to be permanently closed after April 30, 2024.

Funding and financials

As of February 2021, it had a user base of over one million. In February 2021, Public.com raised USD 220 million in a Series D funding round that valued the company at USD 1.2 billion, backed by existing investors such as Greycroft and Accel. The company planned to use the fresh capital for scaling its platform and adding new features, including cryptocurrency trading, pre-and post-market trading, and setting up recurring investments.