Trade Republic Hides Spread and Taxes from Crypto Traders
Trade Republic, Germany's largest neobroker, has introduced wallet transfers to its cryptocurrency trading platform. The change was quietly implemented on November 14, 2025, allowing customers to send and receive crypto-assets directly from their wallets. However, the company still refuses to disclose the spread, which is the main cost of trading cryptocurrencies on the platform.
The customer agreement, a 396,000 character document, does not mention the word 'spread' anywhere, making it difficult for users to compare costs across providers. The company's public price overview lists six line items, but none of them mention cryptocurrencies by name. A spread figure only appears inside the app immediately before an order is placed.
Trade Republic uses BitGo Europe GmbH as its custodian partner, which holds the bulk of customer assets in cold storage. However, the customer agreement does not explicitly mention BitGo, instead referring to 'MiCAR-regulated sub-custodians' that may be delegated custody responsibilities. This means that Trade Republic could potentially change its custodian partner without amending the contract language signed by customers.
The company's fees for cryptocurrency trading are unclear, with no dedicated crypto fee line existing in its public materials. The spread is the largest cost component, but it is only visible inside the app at the time of ordering. Custody itself carries no fee, and staking incurs no additional charge either.