Pepperstone has grown from a Melbourne‑based forex broker into a global CFD powerhouse operating across Australia, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Middle East and Africa. The privately owned company is known for tight spreads, fast execution and a strong technology stack. To maintain licences in multiple jurisdictions—such as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Cyprus’ Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)—Pepperstone must adhere to stringent compliance requirements and appoint senior managers responsible for governance, anti‑money laundering and regulatory reporting. Against this backdrop, a high‑profile departure from its Cyprus unit in October 2025 underscores both the pressures of compliance roles and the organisational changes underway at the broker.
FX News Group reported that Roula Panagiotou, Head of Compliance at Pepperstone’s CySEC‑licensed subsidiary Pepperstone EU Limited, has left the company. Panagiotou joined Pepperstone in 2021 after holding partnership and affiliate management roles at rival brokers Tickmill and XM.com. On social media, she described her tenure at Pepperstone as an “incredible journey,” thanking colleagues for professional and personal growth and saying she was “deeply grateful to everyone who has supported, challenged, and inspired me along the way”. She added that she was ready to start a new chapter, signaling a move to another firm within the financial services sector. Her exit leaves a vacancy in a critical function responsible for ensuring Pepperstone’s compliance with CySEC rules on client asset segregation, reporting, advertising and anti‑money‑laundering controls.
Panagiotou’s departure follows other changes in Pepperstone’s senior ranks. In February 2025, long‑time executive Stavros Vassiliades also left the firm. Vassiliades joined Pepperstone’s Cyprus office in 2020 as Compliance Manager and Anti‑Money‑Laundering Compliance Officer and became Executive Director of Pepperstone EU in 2022. He posted on social media that he was grateful for the “incredible 5‑year journey” and was excited about a new career challenge. These back‑to‑back departures suggest that Pepperstone may be restructuring its European governance or responding to evolving regulatory expectations. Compliance officers in the EU often face heavy workloads due to the complexity of MiFID II, anti‑money‑laundering directives and cross‑border licensing, which can lead to burnout or career changes.
The compliance shake‑up coincides with wider management shifts. In August 2025, Pepperstone promoted Tom Williams to Chief Operating Officer and Rob Bowen to Chief Commercial Officer, delineating responsibilities between operations and commercial functions. CEO Tamas Szabo explained that Williams would oversee daily operations and risk, while Bowen would manage marketing, sales and partnerships. A month later, the broker hired former Vantage and IG Group executive Geraldine Goh as Chief Marketing Officer. Goh said she was excited to join a brand associated with Aston Martin’s Formula 1 team and emphasised her aim to grow the brand in Asia and the Middle East. These appointments reflect Pepperstone’s ambition to professionalise its leadership team and sharpen its strategic focus.
Pepperstone has simultaneously invested heavily in marketing and product innovation. In January 2025, the broker became the official trading partner of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula 1 team, aligning the brand with high performance and innovation. In February 2025, it expanded its suite of 24‑hour US share CFDs, adding 79 new stocks so that clients can trade names like Tesla, Nvidia and Alphabet outside of regular market hours. Research head Chris Weston noted that much of a stock’s price action happens overnight, so giving clients access to after‑hours trading allows them to react to earnings and macro news more effectively. In October 2025, Pepperstone partnered with Swiss fintech Swiset to integrate a competition engine and community module, enabling introducing brokers to host branded trading competitions that encourage engagement and retention. Such innovations show that Pepperstone is positioning itself as a technology‑driven broker catering to a global, digitally savvy client base.
The Cyprus unit is central to Pepperstone’s European strategy. Since the UK’s exit from the EU, many brokers have established entities in Cyprus to access the European Economic Area. CySEC licences require robust corporate governance, annual audits, stringent capital adequacy and transparent client communication. The compliance head is responsible for ensuring that marketing materials are fair and not misleading, that client funds are properly segregated and that suspicious transactions are reported. Panagiotou’s resignation, therefore, puts pressure on Pepperstone to recruit a qualified successor quickly to avoid regulatory scrutiny. At the same time, the company must ensure knowledge transfer and continuity so that internal policies remain effective.
Pepperstone’s broader performance appears stable. The broker’s UK subsidiary reported £13 million in revenue and £9.9 million in net profit for the fiscal year ending June 2024, similar to the previous year. It added 212 new trading symbols and held £27 million of client funds in segregated accounts. The group continues to pay dividends to shareholders while expanding its product suite, indicating financial health. Nevertheless, the departure of key compliance personnel could raise questions about the sustainability of rapid expansion. Regulators and clients alike may watch closely to see whether Pepperstone strengthens its governance framework or appoints experienced professionals to fill the gap.
From a reputational standpoint, the company will want to ensure that high‑profile sponsorships and marketing campaigns are not undermined by compliance missteps. Its partnership with Aston Martin F1, for example, associates the brand with precision and speed; any regulatory breaches could create cognitive dissonance for consumers. The same applies to new community initiatives like trading competitions, which must be structured fairly and transparently to avoid allegations of gamification or excessive risk‑taking. A strong compliance culture is therefore not only a regulatory requirement but a key component of the brand promise.
In conclusion, Roula Panagiotou’s exit as head of compliance at Pepperstone EU highlights the churn that can occur in highly regulated industries. While the reasons for her departure remain personal, the timing—coming on the heels of other leadership changes—suggests that Pepperstone is recalibrating its governance as it pursues aggressive growth. To maintain trust with regulators and clients, the broker will need to reinforce its compliance teams, continue investing in technology and ensure that marketing and product innovations are matched by robust controls. Ultimately, how Pepperstone manages this transition will signal its maturity as a global financial services player.
