The 2025 annual results of Compagnie Financière Tradition (CFT), announced on Monday evening, point to another strong year: revenue rose, profits surged, and the share price rallied.

But a closer reading of the annual report reveals a more striking development. The Lausanne-based broker has grown materially while reducing staff — in a business still largely driven by human brokers and transaction flow.

Productivity: Closing in on 1 million per broker

CFT increased revenue including joint ventures to 1.2 billion francs (as finews already reported, article in German), up 11.4 percent at constant exchange rates. Profitability expanded faster: EBITDA rose nearly 25 percent to 209.9 million francs, while net profit attributable to shareholders climbed more than 22 percent to 134.2 million francs.

At the same time, headcount fell from 2,605 to 2,470 employees, a decline of roughly 5 percent. The effect is visible in one key metric: productivity per broker rose to 929,000 francs, continuing a multi-year upward trend.

Operating leverage

Margins expanded sharply. EBITDA margin increased to 17.4 percent from 15.6 percent, while operating profit rose 35 percent. Return on equity reached 27.6 percent.

The model is straightforward: CFT earns commissions by matching buyers and sellers without taking balance-sheet risk. Rising volumes translate directly into earnings, with limited cost expansion.

Volatility as a tailwind

The 2025 environment supported that dynamic. Diverging monetary policies, persistent inflation concerns and geopolitical tensions drove activity in interest rate and foreign exchange markets — two of the group’s core areas.

«This divergence in monetary policies created significant arbitrage opportunities and increased flows,» the company notes.

Technology reshaping the model

Beyond the cyclical tailwind, part of the performance is increasingly driven by less cyclical factors. CFT continues to expand electronic and hybrid trading, while its data unit, TraditionData, is gaining importance.

Both areas offer higher margins and scalability. The direction is clear: from interdealer broker toward a broader market infrastructure provider combining execution, liquidity access and data.

A broker turning into infrastructure

With more than 7,500 institutional clients and a presence in over 30 countries, CFT occupies a central position in global over-the-counter markets, spanning rates, foreign exchange, credit, equities and commodities.

The market is taking note. The share price rose more than 55 percent in 2025, significantly outperforming Swiss indices — as the company becomes more efficient and increasingly scalable.