FNG Exclusive… FNG has learned that Retail FX and CFD broker eToro’s longtime Head of Global Sponsorships Dylan Holman has left the company and moved to McLaren Racing. At McLaren he will have the title of Head of Primary Partner, responsible for initiating partnerships with sponsors for the popular racing outfit.

Dylan Holman, based in London, had been with eToro for seven years, and under his leadership eToro became the most active sponsor of sports teams and leagues among the Retail FX/CFD broker crowd. Armed with an estimated mid eight-figures-per-year sponsorship budget, Dylan negotiated and activated 25+ global sponsorship properties ranging from teams in the Premier League, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue1 football leagues to the eToro Rugby Championships (Rugby Australia).

eToro IPO

However eToro has had its wings clipped somewhat in recent months, following a failed eToro IPO attempt via merger with a NASDAQ listed SPAC (special purpose acquisition company), which would have brought several hundred million dollars of fresh capital into the company. Leading up to the (planned) IPO eToro more than doubled its marketing spend between 2020 and 2021, growing it from $229 million (in 2020) to $524 million in 2021. That, among other things, led to a net loss of $265 million in 2021 for eToro, with its SPAC-IPO related expenses piling up to the tune of about $75 million.

However after the IPO was pulled eToro initiated layoffs amounting to about 6% of its total workforce, and intimated that it would be taking “a more balanced approach… between growth and profitability.”

Interestingly, McLaren has previously been involved with a number of FX sector sponsors including Vantage and FxPro – but not eToro.