Guru Capital SA, a private equity firm based in Switzerland, has expanded its financial footprint by buying ETX Capital, a London-based financial spread-betting and contracts-for-difference provider. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the company expects to complete the acquisition of the trading name of Monecor (London) Limited by the end of the year.
Guru Capital bought ETX Capital from UK-based JRJ Group, which in 2007 established a joint venture with the Dutch BXR Group to acquire the broker that was formerly known as TradIndex.
Operating since 2002, ETX Capital is no newcomer to the FX industry as its parent company, Monecor Ltd, has been initially incorporated in 1965. ETX, which stands for Electronic Trading, Telephone Trading, and Execution Services, has been on the expansion trail since 2010 when it launched businesses in Germany and South Africa. In 2013, it expanded its international operations, snapping up the local offices of a filed spread better in Greece, Spain, and Denmark.
“We are grateful of JRJ Group’s support, and we look forward to growing the business with the Guru Capital team, who have substantial experience in the CFD sector. ETX Capital has an exciting future and this will present great opportunities for existing and future clients and our employees,” said John Wilson, CEO of ETX Capital.
Guru taps two veterans from Swissquote
“ETX Capital has built a best-in-class CFD and spread betting business and we are thrilled about the opportunity to invest in and grow the brand alongside the company’s talented employees,” added Ryan Nettles, Managing Partner at Guru Capital.
Nettles is the former head of foreign Exchange trading at Swissquote and has been installed at Guru Capital in mid-2019. At the time, he told Finance Magnates that Guru Capital is seeking investment opportunities with active companies in the EMEA and APAC regions who have a special focus on FX & CFD brokerage, asset management, and FinTech.
Guru Capital provides advisory services to investment funds on strategic investment opportunities within the financial services industry.
The second managing partner at Guru, Luca Merolla, had also served with Nettles at Swissquote for over four years. As such, the firm’s two founding partners have over 30 years of combined experience within the financial services and fintech industry and worked together closely for many years prior to forming Guru Capital.
“During JRJ’s ownership, we have invested in bolt-on acquisitions and enhanced the technology of the firm. We are delighted with the strength and resilience of the platform we have built, alongside the management team and employees, and we wish the enterprise every success in its next stage of growth,” concluded Roger Nagioff, Founding Partner of JRJ Group.
