# Webull

Webull Corporation, often stylized as simply Webull, is a US-based financial services holding company headquarted in St. Petersburg, Florida. It provides an electronic trading platform of the same name. The platform is accessible via its mobile app and through desktop.
Webull was founded in 2016 by Wang Anquan and began operations under Hunan Fumi Information Technology, a Chinese holding company. Wang hired Anthony Denier as CEO of the U.S. Webull brokerage that same year. Hunan Fumi Information Technology received backing from Xiaomi, Shunwei Capital, and other private equity investors in China.
In May 2017, Webull Financial LLC was established and, in January 2018, the Delaware-based LLC became a broker-dealer registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, FINRA, and all 53 states and territories within the United States. In 2019, Webull Corporation was incorporated in the Cayman Islands to be the ultimate parent company of all Webull entities. In 2022, Webull further reorganized to move Hunan Fumi Information Technology outside of the group.
Webull has received criticism from U.S. lawmakers and states attorneys general over its ties to Chinese companies. In 2024, a coalition of state attorneys general launched a probe into Webull over user privacy issues and concerns about the company's links to Chinese Communist Party (CCP) interests.

## History
### Foundation and early history (2017-2021)

On May 24, 2017, Webull Financial LLC was established as a Delaware limited liability company by Wang Anquan, a former employee of Alibaba Group. In 2019, Webull's U.S. CEO Denier stated that Webull was “both a U.S. and Chinese company” in an interview.
In May 2020, the company received SEC approval to launch a robo-advisor on its platform. By August 2020, the platform had over 11 million registered users, and in October 2020, it had 750,000 daily active users. In November 2020, Webull began supporting cryptocurrency transactions.
On January 28, 2021, Webull halted buy orders for stocks affected by the GameStop short squeeze. On that day, Webull recorded its highest-ever number of active daily users at 952,000. That week, approximately 1.2 million people downloaded the Webull mobile app.

### Sports deals and IPO negotiations (2021-present)

In September 2021, the Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty entered into a global multi-year agreement with Webull and the company became the official jersey patch partner for the Nets. Terms of the agreement for the jersey patch weren't announced, but people familiar with the agreement told CNBC that it is a multi-year pact that pays the Nets roughly $30 million per year.
In June 2021, Webull began talks of an initial public offering to raise up to $400 million. On February 28, 2024, Webull announced that it had signed an agreement to publicly list on the Nasdaq through a special-purpose acquisition company deal with SK Growth Opportunities Corporation (NASDAQ: SKGR).

## Controversies

Webull has received controversy owing to its ties to Chinese companies, with Anthony Denier, Webull's U.S. CEO, describing Webull as "both a U.S. and Chinese company" in 2019.

### 2023 FINRA fine

In 2023, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) fined Webull $3 million over the company's response to customer's complaints as well as its failure to conduct due diligence when allowing users to trade options.

### Lawmaker scrutiny

The Wall Street Journal reported that a number of U.S. lawmakers, including Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, have expressed concerns about Webull in congressional hearings and letters to regulators. In 2022, Tuberville led a bipartisan coalition of U.S. senators in introducing legislation to prevent Webull and other Chinese-owned companies from owning crypto exchange platforms. In December 2024, the United States House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party raised concerns over Webull's ownership structure and operation ties to China.

### 2024 U.S. state attorneys general probe

In 2024, attorneys general from 14 U.S. states launched a probe into Webull centered on data privacy concerns and its potential ties to the Chinese Communist Party. In June 2024, the state of Tennessee banned Webull on all government-issued devices.

## Userbase

The company has stated it has approximately 20 million users worldwide as of 2024. Anthony Denier, the company's CEO, claimed that Webull's userbase attracted more advanced and experienced investors than competing platforms, such as Robinhood.