Lightyear

Lightyear is a European investing platform offering stocks, ETFs, and money market funds across US, UK, and EU markets. Its core value is low-cost, transparent pricing: no commission on most trades, no FX markups on major currency pairs, and a multi-currency account (EUR, GBP, USD, HUF) that lets users avoid conversion fees. The platform also provides Vaults, a cash management feature investing in AAA-rated money market funds from BlackRock and J.P. Morgan, aiming to generate higher returns on idle cash.

The market pain point Lightyear addresses is the high fees and hidden costs common at traditional brokers and banks, which erode long-term returns. By simplifying the product and pricing, it targets buy-and-hold investors who want a clean, mobile-first experience without complex tools or aggressive marketing.

In the past six months (Feb–Aug 2026), Lightyear expanded its offering with direct cryptocurrency trading for EU users (excluding the UK and Hungary), covering 12 major coins. The app also received accessibility improvements and minor enhancements to its instrument details screen. However, users should note that Lightyear is not a bank: cash is not covered by deposit protection schemes, and the EU investor protection is limited to €20,000. The company is privately held and does not publish a public credit rating, which adds counterparty risk compared with larger, bank-owned competitors.