Alpaca Expands into Europe with WealthKernel Acquisition and Launch of European Equities Trading

Alpaca, a global leader in brokerage infrastructure APIs, announced the completion of its acquisition of European fintech WealthKernel, marking its expansion into Europe. The company also announced the initial rollout of its API-first equities trading services in Europe, enabling cross-border investing through a single integration.

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WealthKernel will now operate as Alpaca Europe. The acquisition gives Alpaca licensed brokerage and custody infrastructure in the UK and EU, supporting its ability to deliver investment services and expand its wealth management capabilities across the region.

Built on WealthKernel’s regulatory and operational foundation, Alpaca Europe includes UK and EU licenses and local brokerage and custody infrastructure supporting products such as ISAs and SIPPs. Combined with Alpaca’s US-headquartered, licensed and regulated full-stack brokerage infrastructure, it creates a unified infrastructure layer for fintechs and financial institutions building investment products across Europe.

Yoshi Yokokawa, CEO and Co-Founder of Alpaca, said: “Completing the WealthKernel acquisition is a major step in Alpaca’s expansion into Europe. By combining Alpaca’s US-headquartered, fully licensed and self-clearing brokerage infrastructure with our licensed operations in the UK and EU, we’re making it easier for companies to build and scale investment products across regions and reducing the complexity of cross-border investing.”

Karan Shanmugarajah, CEO of WealthKernel, has been appointed CEO of Alpaca Europe and will lead regional operations. The broader WealthKernel team has also joined Alpaca, strengthening its regulatory, operational, and product expertise in the region.

Karan Shanmugarajah said: “This is an exciting step not just for Alpaca, but for the broader European investment ecosystem. By combining local regulatory expertise with global, API-driven infrastructure, we are well positioned to help partners build, launch, and scale investment products across Europe with greater speed and efficiency.”

Separately, Alpaca is launching equities trading across European markets. As of today, Alpaca supports trading on Germany’s Xetra exchange, with Euronext markets and the London Stock Exchange expected to follow. Through a single API integration, partners can offer investing across markets while Alpaca handles execution, custody, and settlement, supported by leading global financial institutions.

Leading European financial institutions are supporting Alpaca’s expansion. BNP Paribas, through its venture arm Opera Tech Ventures, which participated in Alpaca’s recent Series D, commented via Vincent Baillin, Managing Director and Co-Head of Opera Tech Ventures: “We are excited to support Alpaca’s growing presence in Europe and look forward to helping expand access to modern, scalable investment infrastructure across the region.”

Alpaca powers trading infrastructure for hundreds of fintech companies and financial institutions globally. In the US, it has also emerged as a leader in tokenised equities, holding a 94% market share in tokenised US stocks and ETFs.

With a regulated presence in both the US and Europe, and European equities trading now live with further markets to follow, Alpaca is laying the groundwork for a broader global investment platform.

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