Brokerage group CMC Markets has quietly launched an investment product in the US market.
The broker’s OPTO app is accessible to US clients, via a partnership with technology and brokerage services provider Alpaca.
OPTO was launched by CMC Markets in 2018 as a media brand for trading.
However, the app itself has evolved into providing a mixture of content and analytics tools.
Now the app lets you access different thematic investment opportunities, via individual stocks and ETFs.
The company is also hiring for engineering and product development roles for the application.
The descriptions for those roles, along with information on the company’s website, suggests they are going for a ‘robo advisor’ style product.
OPTO’s website says it makes money from its AUM and via sponsored content. However, it’s also plausible they could end up making a revenue sharing agreement with Alpaca, who can generate money via payment for order flow.
CMC did have an entity in the US over 15 years ago but shut it down after extremely onerous capital requirements came into play.