online brokers for international shares

I have a commsec account for shares on the ASX. Unfortunately, they will not allow me to trade international shares as I am unable to open an International trading account as I do not live in Australia. Can anyone suggest an alternative. i wish to keep this simple. Perhaps I just use a full broker in NZ that charges 1% brokerage.

I had an etrade account, then they stopped supporting NZ/AU clients and closed it. Then I got a Schwab one and they've just announced stopping support for NZ/AU too. The options are dwindling...

Thanks Entrep, so how do investors buy US stock with paying a fortune.

One option I use is CFD's with IG Markets ... it is a leveraged product though ... but it does give you everything on the NYSE, NASDAQ. Probably more for day traders perhaps but is cheap and easy to use

Bear

bear, as I am a long term investor I do not want to invest in CFD's. I would be very interested if investors just use full brokers to buy stock like visa, apple. Is 1 % brokerage acceptable. I do want to keep things simple. Online brokers give great access to the nzx and asx but how to get access to other markets is becoming a complex problem.

I have come across www.halifax.co.nz in nz. Has anyone got comments on their broking services?

Interactive Brokers - https://www.interactivebrokers.com.au/ - is a good option for the US. Min $10k USD capital requirement though.

levin123 can investors from NZ open an account?

Yes............

thanks smpl at last a solution. Do they have custodial? an out of interest is halifax the same company?

Not that I am aware.

Something about Halifax is dodgy, I got cold called by them which means someone sold my personal details.

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Originally Posted by smpl

Not that I am aware.

Something about Halifax is dodgy, I got cold called by them which means someone sold my personal details.

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I think Halifax uses Interactive Brokers under the covers. No need to involve them just go direct to IB.

I'm euro-centric:


http://www.saxobank.com/

http://int.tddirectinvesting.com/

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Originally Posted by smpl

Not that I am aware.

Something about Halifax is dodgy, I got cold called by them which means someone sold my personal details.

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I had a look at the Halifax website. Based on the website, I wouldn't touch them with a long pole.

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Originally Posted by GTM 3442

I'm euro-centric:


http://www.saxobank.com/

http://int.tddirectinvesting.com/

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i have used tdinvesting for 15 years (Internaxx when we joined). As an investor rather than trader I have to watch the fees and always have one activity per quarter. Have one EURO fund on high yield that pays the fees anyway. Great to deal with and bank seems sound. Does many many markets. Leaves The NZ options way way way back in the shadows.

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Originally Posted by BeeBop

i have used tdinvesting for 15 years (Internaxx when we joined). As an investor rather than trader I have to watch the fees and always have one activity per quarter. Have one EURO fund on high yield that pays the fees anyway. Great to deal with and bank seems sound. Does many many markets. Leaves The NZ options way way way back in the shadows.

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Yeah, I ignore the trading things, and use them as a gateway to the world and as custodians. Agreed on the "4 trades a year" caveat.

They are very cheap custodians compared to many if not most of the NZ options.

Plus they are covered by the Luxembourg/EU bank guarantee schemes, for cash in the accounts not securities in custody, obviously.

They're part of TD Bank of Canada, who keep popping up in the "World's 50 safest banks" tables.

Access to Morningstar research at a global level is useful, too.

thanks for that
so for someone who does 3-5 trades a year which is the safest, easiest to use from NZ. I find the info on the sites not that user friendly
https://www.interactivebrokers.com.au/
http://www.saxobank.com/
http://int.tddirectinvesting.com/

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Originally Posted by voltage

thanks for that
so for someone who does 3-5 trades a year which is the safest, easiest to use from NZ. I find the info on the sites not that user friendly
https://www.interactivebrokers.com.au/
http://www.saxobank.com/
http://int.tddirectinvesting.com/

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Hi Voltage. I am looking for a broker (I'm mainly investing in US focused ETFs) and have looked into Halifaxonline.co.nz. They are a white label broker using Interactive Brokers platform. Their commissions are low and there are no fees apart from their currency conversion rate which is the spot price + 1%.
I cannot decide between them or Saxo (who charge fees incl. an annual 1.2% account fee). Which broker did you go with in the end? I like you will trade infrequently, max 5-10 x a year.
I'm also aware of the US estate tax limit threshold of US$60k, so I look to purchase US domiciled ETFs up to US$60K and the rest as non-US domiciled ETFs.
Some on this thread say they don't like the look of Halifax - did that also put you off?

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Originally Posted by GTM 3442

I had a look at the Halifax website. Based on the website, I wouldn't touch them with a long pole.

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Hi GTM3442. I am looking for a broker (mainly for US focused ETFs) and Halifax seem to offer what I am looking for i.e. IB's platform and access to many markets, low commissions and no fees for my few annual trades.
Is being a white label for IB something that one should be wary of? I am new to this so any helpful advice would be much appreciated. What is it about them that puts you off?

The fact that they were reselling somebody else's service, and I prefer to avoid ticketclippers where I can.

And that there was minimal information available without providing more personal detail than I see as necessary.

I think it's academic now anyway? halifax.co.nz takes me to somewhere called "uniregistry" which will sell me the domain name.

GTM3442 thanks for the reply.
The website is halifaxonline.co.nz and they told me they have a white label partnership with Interactive Brokers.
Yes the lack of website info irked me too so I had to get emailed confirmation from them that there are no other inactivity, minimum account, exit fees etc (except they add +1% onto the spot price when making currency conversions), other than the low commissions listed on the website.
Where else would they scalp the ticket that I need to be aware of (as I said I am new to this so any tips greatly received!).

Hi MSJ
I decided in the end to purchase the ETFs on the ASX via commsec to keep things simple. Any individual US holdings purchased in future will be also by by commsec via there international side. This will be infrequent trades so I will not complain paying .6% brokerage on an infrequent basis.

Thanks for the recommendation Voltage! I shall check out Commsec too. Beware, I may return with questions..:D

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Originally Posted by MSJ

Hi GTM3442. I am looking for a broker (mainly for US focused ETFs) and Halifax seem to offer what I am looking for i.e. IB's platform and access to many markets, low commissions and no fees for my few annual trades.
Is being a white label for IB something that one should be wary of? I am new to this so any helpful advice would be much appreciated. What is it about them that puts you off?

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One other thing - having looked at the website, I was struck by the fact that they dealt in everything. Shares, CFDs, forex, options, whatever.

I don't think that that's sustainable for an independent New Zealand-based outfit. So I figured they were a reseller for someone.

I remember the mess a couple of years back when the Swiss unpegged the franc from the euro. Lots of people wiped out, lots of brokers wiped out.

Which made me wonder what would happen when this crowd got wiped out. What exactly were the custody arrangements?

I thought to myself "Are their pockets likely to be deep enough to cope with something like that?"

The answer being "no", I wondered what would go down the toilet in such a case, and decided it might well be me. And I'm not agile enough to cope well with s-bends.

Very helpful, thanks GTM. I think I have made up my mind now about who to go with. This due diligence malarky has taken quite a while but it's all worth it. Be wary of S-bends!

Following is a New Zealand owned one. However, I don’t have any experience with them except some initial contact.

https://www.omf.co.nz/about-us

It is wise to do some home work on cost involved, customer service, integrity, reliability etc before selecting any broker.

http://www.investopedia.com/articles/00/112100.asp

10 Tips For Choosing An Online Broker

Please share your experience with brokers to identify some best brokers in NZ.

Hi Marketwinner. Thanks very much for the tips. They have a good website which gives me all the info I would look for without having to probe further.

From my perspective, I think the next few years are going to be a roller coaster..Europe tumbling, war rumblings, Govt debts defaulting. There will be a banking crisis so I've decided to go for a well established, well-encrypted, award winning US based broker, as my focus at this stage is mainly to have US holdings.

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Originally Posted by MSJ

Hi Marketwinner. Thanks very much for the tips. They have a good website which gives me all the info I would look for without having to probe further.

From my perspective, I think the next few years are going to be a roller coaster..Europe tumbling, war rumblings, Govt debts defaulting. There will be a banking crisis so I've decided to go for a well established, well-encrypted, award winning US based broker, as my focus at this stage is mainly to have US holdings.

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Hi MSJ

That means you are going to adjust your portfolio according to coming roller coaster. I also have plan for any roller coaster. It may be wise to include more defensive stocks (great businesses only) during second half of 2017 and in 2018.My future portfolio will reduce highly risky areas and will include less risky areas. Even during period of war or recession there will be demand for certain products and services.

If I don’t mind can you name your award winning broker in the USA? Everybody has their own taste or interest. My mantra is I will stay with simple business, markets, commodities, stocks or commodities that I can understand and brokers that I can understand. For example it is easy to understand USD than NZD, AUD or CAD.


Other thing is in any roller coaster; there will be opportunity for some and misfortune for some. If anybody wants to invest in the banking or finance sector, they will have to choose strong financial stocks.

Always, there will be some predictions. But they never come true.

Even Forsyth Barr has some link with foreign brokers. How about direct broking? Which broker provides the best services for UK market?

Interactive Brokers is my pick.

Index investing rather than direct stock picking is more for me. My mantra (prediction) is follow Martin Armstrong :) - he made it easy for me to understand the bigger picture. Capital will flow to the States for the next few years, so I aim to follow the trend.

Direct Broking as was, now is ANZ Securities? They advised via email they cannot allow me access to US exchanges.
I don't plan to really invest in the UK market, but IB has access if I need. If you are resident in the UK I know Hargreaves Lansdowne has a v good rep.

Who is your favourite broker?

I prefer individual stocks because I like to do research. It also gives great return in the mid and long term. Index investing is also not that bad when compare with some others. It is also compatible with long term investing goals.

I don’t have any favorite broker yet. I like few at the moment: Forsyth Barr and ASB Securities. I am looking for somebody different to others. I expect strong USD in 2018.

I haven't read any writing of Martin Armstrong yet. I like to study bigger picture before anything else.

I recently discovered that ASB Securities pays zero interest in their cash management account (required) unless you have a $250K balance.
Call me stupid but I didn't discover that until I went in there to tally interest payments for taxes.

Scrolling through the thread looks like these are two of the better options.
Comparison between http://int.tddirectinvesting.com/ and https://www.interactivebrokers.com.au/

There are a few key factors I'm looking at in setting up an account with an online broker.
Minimum holdings and minimum activity? Which has cheaper brokerage fees? Any other fees involved? Do they provide any research? Do they both give access to European and US markets?

I've used ASB for years and years to play the UK market. now I understand (from them) they may stop supporting the UK and US markets. bugger

I'm interested in what brokers others are using to buy/sell in US and UK, and how well they have performed. I'm an investor, not trading regularly, maybe a dozen trades a year, and I can live with e.g. 1% brokerage. I would like someone who offers the service, is safe and reliable.

Can anyone share some stories about who they currently use? Eg, CommSec (who I use in Aust), Directbroking, FirstNZ? Anyone who uses TDinvesting )(mentioned above) how are they performing for you?

jg8512, options are limited from NZ. I use Craigs who charge 1% brokerage and custodial is $50 per stock but expensive. Very safe and simple. I also have a commsec account for ASX stock and you can but international shares at 0.3% brokerage. Safe and simple. Firstnz has purchased directbroking and it will be interesting to see what they will be offering soon as far as purchasing US and UK shares.

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Originally Posted by voltage

jg8512, options are limited from NZ. I use Craigs who charge 1% brokerage and custodial is $50 per stock but expensive. Very safe and simple. I also have a commsec account for ASX stock and you can but international shares at 0.3% brokerage. Safe and simple. Firstnz has purchased directbroking and it will be interesting to see what they will be offering soon as far as purchasing US and UK shares.

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thanks very much voltage. Really appreciate your thoughts. Craigs is more expensive than ASB - not surprising I guess as they are a "full-service" broker. You sound similar to me in that you are happy to pay a bit more for the ability to trade US/UK with someone you trust. Is the Craigs $50 custodial a one-off fee, or charged per year?

I hold mostly UK, and little US, but Commsec have only a USD foreign currency account for all offshore trading so you have to settle all trades in USD. So I worry I'll be constantly having to exchange GBP - USD- GBP to sell and buy on LSE! I will have another look at Commsec - but that single currency having to be USD puts me off. I use Commsec for ASX.

Since my post yesterday, I had a look at internaxx. I'm quite intrigued by internaxx. They will charge 15 Euro per trade +0.1% of value, which is pretty good. There is also a quarterly account fee - 25 euro per qtr (if you trade once per qtr, which I can do with low minimum brokerage), and they allow you to have multiple currencies on your account with no fee. They also allow you to access multiple markets, and have been around quite a while (which I find reasurring) and Luxembourg offers deposit protection (reassuring again). I remember the access brokerage failure!

I also found this useful site for evaluating online brokers: https://brokerchooser.com/
their review of internaxx is here: https://brokerchooser.com/broker-rev...ternaxx-review

jg8512 custodial is $50 per stock per year. Advantage is, you can always phone someone to discuss purchases, get reports but this comes at a price.

I have used internaxx.com for 16 years (was TDinveat for a few years in between). Fee arrangement has changed a bit over the time but service is good and overall cost is low. Love the fact that I can buy and sell in many markets and hold many currencies....cash transfers between EU account are free too - but take a few days.

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Originally Posted by voltage

jg8512 custodial is $50 per stock per year. Advantage is, you can always phone someone to discuss purchases, get reports but this comes at a price.

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thanks Voltage.

If I hold 12-15 stocks (average) ... that's a $600-$750 each and every year, plus the cost of actually buying and selling. I will look elsewhere!

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Originally Posted by BeeBop

I have used internaxx.com for 16 years (was TDinveat for a few years in between). Fee arrangement has changed a bit over the time but service is good and overall cost is low. Love the fact that I can buy and sell in many markets and hold many currencies....cash transfers between EU account are free too - but take a few days.

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thanks BeeBop. useful to have that perspective from experience.
PS. I had a look at Interactive Brokers too ... they are even cheaper, and have lower inactivity fees too. but you have to pay for market data (which I think is optional).

why is this so difficult to fine a cheaper way to purchase overseas stock that is relatively simple

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Originally Posted by voltage

why is this so difficult to fine a cheaper way to purchase overseas stock that is relatively simple

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I'm with Tdameritrade paying US$6.95/trade, Have been using them for over 10 years and had never any issues getting money in or out.

I think it may have all to do with Money Laundering etc. I think others have posted previously, that quite a few overseas brokers that use to take all comers now are very selective, fine if you are already with them, but if not well...

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Originally Posted by Jay

I think it may have all to do with Money Laundering etc. I think others have posted previously, that quite a few overseas brokers that use to take all comers now are very selective, fine if you are already with them, but if not well...

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Oh yeah I didn't read through the whole thread. I know it from my days of online Poker how difficult the US made it to get money out of the country. I consider myself lucky that I have had accounts with online wallets, brokers etc before this law came into play.

Hi Jay and Silu
is getting money out of a US broker (like interactive brokers) actually hard?. Looking at their website they say one free withdrawal a month, and given what you need to do to prove identity to open an account, I wasn't anticipating any issues getting money back home. Afterall you are transferring from your US broker account back to your NZ account?

Also, I've been playing around on the interactive brokers free demo. I'm a bit surprised it doesn't know some of the UK stocks I hold though. Anyone had a problem with Interactive not covering smaller UK companies??

Sorry jg. don't know, don't have an account with one of these brokers, there is another thread(s) around discussing this if I recall

https://www.sharetrader.co.nz/showth...ght=US+brokers
https://www.sharetrader.co.nz/showth...ght=US+brokers

https://www.sharetrader.co.nz/showth...ght=US+brokers

There is 3 to have a read, I just searched us brokers

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Originally Posted by jg8512

thanks BeeBop. useful to have that perspective from experience.
PS. I had a look at Interactive Brokers too ... they are even cheaper, and have lower inactivity fees too. but you have to pay for market data (which I think is optional).

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i don’t use the market data provided by internaxx. Of course I would like cheaper fees (these don’t seem materially cheaper on my folio at all) but I fear that the cost of changing platforms would not be worth doing, additionally, I have found internaxx to be responsive and good....but yes, interactive brokers actually look very good.

thanks BeeBop
Interactive Brokers (IB) definitely look a lot cheaper.

re: service levels. Yesterday I asked the same question of both Internaxx and IB. It was a genuine question - whether they allowed trading of all AIM shares. I have some niche little holdings and I'd like to be able to add / sell them when I move brokers.
I got a very fast response from Internaxx - yes. I also emailed a third player - Hargreaves Lansdown - who replied within a couple of hours. But 24 hours later, I'm still waiting for IB to reply.

So I think my decision is coming down (perhaps unsurprisingly) to better service vs lower prices. I must be a tight-arse as I'm leaning toward IB (assuming they can trade all AIM).

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Originally Posted by jg8512

thanks BeeBop
Interactive Brokers (IB) definitely look a lot cheaper.

re: service levels. Yesterday I asked the same question of both Internaxx and IB. It was a genuine question - whether they allowed trading of all AIM shares. I have some niche little holdings and I'd like to be able to add / sell them when I move brokers.
I got a very fast response from Internaxx - yes. I also emailed a third player - Hargreaves Lansdown - who replied within a couple of hours. But 24 hours later, I'm still waiting for IB to reply.

So I think my decision is coming down (perhaps unsurprisingly) to better service vs lower prices. I must be a tight-arse as I'm leaning toward IB (assuming they can trade all AIM).

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FWIW - I do quite a few AIM listed shares and have had no problems with Internal...although, I find it better to by 'at market' as some take days to fill due to low liquidity (e.g. EMR that struggles to trade some days as a lot of the shares are owner held). Had an issue buying SLI (standard life property investment trust) on the LSE three weeks ago, so phoned internaxx. There was a website problem so they filled it for me at their cost (i.e. paid online brokerage)...had a pleasant chat about life also!

Sometimes being a tightarse helps you focus on every cent - even if the cost is not material. However, recently, I have loosened my tightness somewhat to get better quality e.g choice of airline and flight times!

Best of investing to you.

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Originally Posted by jg8512

Hi Jay and Silu
is getting money out of a US broker (like interactive brokers) actually hard?. Looking at their website they say one free withdrawal a month, and given what you need to do to prove identity to open an account, I wasn't anticipating any issues getting money back home. Afterall you are transferring from your US broker account back to your NZ account?

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I've used IB for a number of years. Mostly money only goes in but yes it is easy to get money out again. If you have an Oz bank account too (I use NAB and NABTrade) then IB can be used to transfer funds into AUD and across to NAB etc.

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Originally Posted by kiwico

Mostly money only goes in but yes it is easy to get money out again.

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Why?

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Originally Posted by kiwico

If you have an Oz bank account too (I use NAB and NABTrade) then IB can be used to transfer funds into AUD and across to NAB etc.

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Or NZ bank.

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Originally Posted by smpl

Why?



Or NZ bank.

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thanks kiwico. nice feedback.

Hi Smpl, I took kiwico's answers to be that he/she was earning and increasing his/her investment levels in the US. Hence, money mostly going into IB. I don't think IB allow you to have a NZD denominated account, but you can have AUD, BGP, USD denominated ones etc. So, unless you want them to do the currency exchange from NZD for you, its best to give them AUD (or USD, etc). OR, Simpl, are you saying that you use IB and just send them NZD?

PS. IB have still not replied to my question (re: trading in all UK AIM stocks) and I have applied for an internaxx account.

They offer many more denominated accounts than what you list.

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Originally Posted by jg8512

thanks kiwico. nice feedback.

Hi Smpl, I took kiwico's answers to be that he/she was earning and increasing his/her investment levels in the US. Hence, money mostly going into IB. I don't think IB allow you to have a NZD denominated account, but you can have AUD, BGP, USD denominated ones etc. So, unless you want them to do the currency exchange from NZD for you, its best to give them AUD (or USD, etc). OR, Simpl, are you saying that you use IB and just send them NZD?

PS. IB have still not replied to my question (re: trading in all UK AIM stocks) and I have applied for an internaxx account.

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I hope you account opening process is smooth.

BeeBop

Just signed up for the Hatch beta, looks good. www.hatchinvest.nz

madmat could you explain what this is and any specifics. This information is not available on the website. thanks

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Originally Posted by voltage

madmat could you explain what this is and any specifics. This information is not available on the website. thanks

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Hi, basically it allows you to purchase a number of shares on the US market. The interface is great so far but the platform is still in beta

From their FAQ

"Hatch is a digital financial platform whose first product gives Kiwis access to the US share markets. We give savvy Kiwi investors the opportunity to buy full shares and fractional shares in over 2700 of the world’s best known companies and more than 450 index, industry, dividend, and style-based Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)."

Fees are pretty reasonable too

"Brokerage fees:

When you buy or sell shares or ETFs from your Hatch account, you pay a brokerage fee that we split with our US broking partner, Drive Wealth:

• To buy or sell a fraction of a share: $3 USD
• To buy or sell one or more shares: $0.02 USD a share
  There's an $8 USD minimum fee, so up until you buy 400 shares, you'll be paying a flat rate of $8 USD on every order. "

"Exchange fees:

An 0.8%* fee is included in the exchange rate you see in Hatch. Our fee is lower than what most banks charge (which is usually about 1%). We split this fee with our FX partner World First. It works like this:

• Base exchange rate (Interbank rate): 1 NZD = 0.67 USD
• Hatch rate: 1 NZD = 0.662 USD (0.67 - 0.008)
• Bank rate (estimated): 1 NZD = 0.660 USD (0.67 - 0.01) "

Thanks madmat. There is more info now on their site. My question is how secure is your ownership of the shares under custodial. Otherwise cheap good access to US markets.

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Originally Posted by voltage

Thanks madmat. There is more info now on their site. My question is how secure is your ownership of the shares under custodial. Otherwise cheap good access to US markets.

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Yeah that is a good question. I shall ask as there FAQ only says "Do I own my shares? Yes, but your name is not on the share certificate. For safety and convenience, your name is not on the share certificate.

The certificate will show that the shares are held "in the custodian name for the benefit of Hatch customers". This is a common practice called “In street name”. ICBC FS custodies your shares and DriveWealth manages the books and records of the shares."

in the herald today; https://www.nzherald.co.nz/personal-...ectid=12130743
any comments would be appreciated

I am very impressed. What a great way to buy US shares and ETFs from New Zealand, so simple and cheap.

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Originally Posted by voltage

I am very impressed. What a great way to buy US shares and ETFs from New Zealand, so simple and cheap.

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Is anyone actually using Hatch Invest....?

I have deposited a small amount and made a purchase to get a feel for the interface and tools in general. It's extremely basic as far as I can see - pretty much a minimum viable product (you can for example only place orders "at market", and the charting functionality is very, very limited).

However, enrolment and money transfer very easy and it's a very inexpensive way to access the US markets - I just hope they are going to add more functionality....

Yea I am in the same boat. Have deposited a very small amount also and bought a couple stocks, just to get a feel of it.

They are taking any and all feedback onboard for ways to improve their product. Join the 'Hatch Investors Club' on Facebook, where people are posting their feedback and ideas for improvements and staff are also interacting here. Staff have stated that they are currently working on improvements.

Hopefully when economies of scale improve, the FX fee will come down, and hopefully the commission fees. Would love to get down to $0 commissions like Robinhood. This would no doubt make the deposits (and their FX fee revenue) increase tenfold.

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Originally Posted by johndoe123

Yea I am in the same boat. Have deposited a very small amount also and bought a couple stocks, just to get a feel of it.

They are taking any and all feedback onboard for ways to improve their product. Join the 'Hatch Investors Club' on Facebook, where people are posting their feedback and ideas for improvements and staff are also interacting here. Staff have stated that they are currently working on improvements.

Hopefully when economies of scale improve, the FX fee will come down, and hopefully the commission fees. Would love to get down to $0 commissions like Robinhood. This would no doubt make the deposits (and their FX fee revenue) increase tenfold.

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Thanks for that - good to hear they are approachable... Being slightly paranoid, I don't use facebook so instead I'll write up an email to them when I get a chance...

Been a great experience with Hatch so far.

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Originally Posted by BigBob

Is anyone actually using Hatch Invest....?

I have deposited a small amount and made a purchase to get a feel for the interface and tools in general. It's extremely basic as far as I can see - pretty much a minimum viable product (you can for example only place orders "at market", and the charting functionality is very, very limited).

However, enrolment and money transfer very easy and it's a very inexpensive way to access the US markets - I just hope they are going to add more functionality....

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For small players with purchases of say $1,000 it makes a lot of sense. Buying and selling at market is not an issue considering the savings on the bro. But you are right, if you are a big player or you want functionality they do not offer that. But they do offer fractional shares etc so I can now get a stake of Berkshire Hathaway for instance or even some millennial with limited funds could buy a piece of Amazon or Google, although their prices are starting to become affordable as the market falls. I have put a small amount of $ with Hatch, like the concept very much.

I have a small trial deposit.
So far so good, seems efficient
Waiting for an entry ...

the halifax nz parent went into administration... anyone has more information regarding this? all my asx stocks are with them... arrrr....

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Originally Posted by babymonster

the halifax nz parent went into administration... anyone has more information regarding this? all my asx stocks are with them... arrrr....

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Doesn't look good. You should be able to transfer your shares though?

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/...ectid=12166975

I was going to deposit some cash recently, but thankfully I couldn't access my account as it had been unfunded.

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Originally Posted by babymonster

the halifax nz parent went into administration... anyone has more information regarding this? all my asx stocks are with them... arrrr....

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are the cash accounts segregatted ? they used to chase me couple yrs back but i neww all the people involved with the company have been with many similar companies gone bust

Just spoke to a source, apparently segregated and insured(obviously all frozen at the moment though), gutted and didn't see it coming, only found out yesterday.

That means shares should be ok? Just take times to sort it out?

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Originally Posted by tipsy

Just spoke to a source, apparently segregated and insured(obviously all frozen at the moment though), gutted and didn't see it coming, only found out yesterday.

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I'm 100% cash (in US$) with Halifax, anyone have an idea where my account stands?

I started reading the Hatch T&C, found a few things a little offputting,would appreciate some feedback on the reality

1) they don't seem to offer much assurance re FX rates on transfer, (sort of "well it may happen today, then again it may not, and you'll take what we give you") perhaps making arbitrage money; can anyone comment?

2) the US broker they use Drivewealth, talks about "Sweeping" your cash management account and using your unused cash for money market speculation, which you may or may not benefit from, they seem vague on that; anyone have any feedback on whether or not that affects their cash management fund availability?

I must admit their unwillingness to make commitments on those aspects does worry me.

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Originally Posted by DonQ

I started reading the Hatch T&C, found a few things a little offputting,would appreciate some feedback on the reality

1) they don't seem to offer much assurance re FX rates on transfer, (sort of "well it may happen today, then again it may not, and you'll take what we give you") perhaps making arbitrage money; can anyone comment?

2) the US broker they use Drivewealth, talks about "Sweeping" your cash management account and using your unused cash for money market speculation, which you may or may not benefit from, they seem vague on that; anyone have any feedback on whether or not that affects their cash management fund availability?

I must admit their unwillingness to make commitments on those aspects does worry me.

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not vague to me. they invest unused funds for there benefit mostly in the cashsweep facility.
i would be more interested to know if hatch guarantees these funds if drivewealth loses money from there cash sweeping.
drivewealth terms say they dont guarantee any funds but have insurance.
you would need to ask hatch if they just act as a middle man and really your doing business with drivewealth. if so hatch is just a ticket clipping operation

I'm giving Hatch a go. They seem ultimately owned by Kiwibank / NZ Govt so am sure we will be OK.

Anyone else have more insights?

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Originally Posted by Entrep

I'm giving Hatch a go. They seem ultimately owned by Kiwibank / NZ Govt so am sure we will be OK.

Anyone else have more insights?

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they sure look interesting. I'm signed up but haven't committed funds yet.
Sadly I have virtually no exposure to the US markets and the next few months seems like a good time to alter that, except of course the exchange rate is poor.
I was just reading some Craigs output and they are big fans of the US economy Iit was the only geographical sector they were actually positive on.
But I will be pretty cautious , competing with Wall Street wont be easy.

there is always Craigs, if you're happy to pay handsomely for the privilege I guess.
A couple of years ago it was getting harder to go offshore.... no one wanted to do it because of all the hassle - its quite amazing to me how Hatch seem to have taken all the pain away. Maybe they bought Maxigesic from AFT

hi, i believe Stake are opening in NZ next week - access to US markets

As an update to this I've opened an Interactive Brokers account for my family trust in about 4 business days total

I've been using them for 10 years + without an hitch. Mentioned it a number of times on this forum.

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Originally Posted by smpl

I've been using them for 10 years + without an hitch. Mentioned it a number of times on this forum.

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Same here. Been a happy user for some time. They also also have great exchange rates so I tend to use them for transferring NZD into AUD for my NABtrade account.

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Originally Posted by kiwico

Same here. Been a happy user for some time. They also also have great exchange rates so I tend to use them for transferring NZD into AUD for my NABtrade account.

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Better than TransferWise?

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Originally Posted by Entrep

Better than TransferWise?

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As you can place a limit order, yes.

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Originally Posted by NOCASH

Stake is a good platform just joined.

https://hellostake.com/referral-prog...er=tuckyews289 Both of us will get a free stock :)

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Just tried signing up but it's asking me for another referral/access code

These platforms make their money on FX conversion fees right?

I see today that Sharesies appear to be working towards adding US Shares..

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Originally Posted by nztx

I see today that Sharesies appear to be working towards adding US Shares..

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I could never understand the workings of Sharesies on how they manage their US ETFs on the FIF taxation issue. How are they addressing the 5% FDR on an annual basis and how would that apply to clients that may frequently buy and sell US based shares?

Look at the case of buying NZ based managed funds that simply buy the US Vanguard ETF. When you go through a NZ broker, you have their set fees and commissions but the worse is the annual mgt fees by the NZ fund managers for merely just buying the Vanguard ETF. In comparison, I a person that has a US brokerage account, buys the same US Vanguard ETF and pays Vanguard's ultra low avg mgt of 0.08% per year. Are NZ based brokers and managed funds charging a huge fee for the administration to track FIF / FDR for all their clients?

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Originally Posted by SBQ

I could never understand the workings of Sharesies on how they manage their US ETFs on the FIF taxation issue. How are they addressing the 5% FDR on an annual basis and how would that apply to clients that may frequently buy and sell US based shares?

Look at the case of buying NZ based managed funds that simply buy the US Vanguard ETF. When you go through a NZ broker, you have their set fees and commissions but the worse is the annual mgt fees by the NZ fund managers for merely just buying the Vanguard ETF. In comparison, I a person that has a US brokerage account, buys the same US Vanguard ETF and pays Vanguard's ultra low avg mgt of 0.08% per year. Are NZ based brokers and managed funds charging a huge fee for the administration to track FIF / FDR for all their clients?

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Early days yet to they launch - will have to see what they are doing to address each of areas, with US Shares
& how competitive they are on what they intend offering

US Shares are bound to be popular in places

Personally I've stayed away from ETF's even on NZX - probably have to invest some time
looking at these in the future

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Originally Posted by SBQ

Are NZ based brokers and managed funds charging a huge fee for the administration to track FIF / FDR for all their clients?

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They may be charging huge fees (no comments from me) but I doubt they are tracking FIF for their clients. Hey someone tell me if I'm wrong but they will leave all tax matters for the client to deal with. Which is of course the advantage of PIEs where you are all good.

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Originally Posted by Laughing Buddha

Feel free to use my referral link for Stake: https://hellostake.com/referral-prog...rer=shuhuac343
Access code: NZFounderRIx1
We can both get a free stock! (Nike, Dropbox or GoPro)

I have started to use Stake and it is much cheaper than Hatch and easy to use. In Stake you can do unlimited free trades, commission free! All US Stocks and ETFs seem to be there. Would recommend :)

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Thank you!

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Originally Posted by peat

They may be charging huge fees (no comments from me) but I doubt they are tracking FIF for their clients. Hey someone tell me if I'm wrong but they will leave all tax matters for the client to deal with. Which is of course the advantage of PIEs where you are all good.

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I don't know myself. Can any Sharesies clients add that when they buy say their ETF such as their USF US500 fund, that Sharesies issues them a tax receipt so the client can file their tax return? If not, then there needs to be some transparency under FIF. If you look at IRD's website, they have all sorts of complications under FIF such as 'quick sale calculations' for those that frequently trade in the year. Surely, the managed funds and PIE funds are under the same FIF rule when they buy & sell foreign shares. Would the individual that buys US shares directly (upcoming in Sharesies promotion) be under the same paperwork and hassles? Again, need to be transparent.

Traditional NZ brokers like MacQuaires, Forsyth Barr, etc. issue tax statements. They are also charging high management fees on account value to reflect this. So the client pays high commissions for buying or selling, + pays a % on top for the total value of their assets invested. This is by far a huge difference to US brokers where most have gone a $0 based commission for share trades, and they certainly don't charge a monthly account fee on the total assets involved. If the clients are serious about trades and want additional investment news about the markets, they can pay a subscription fee.

Tiger Trade anyone?
https://www.tigerbrokers.nz/
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU20...y+11+June+2020
I've never heard of them

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Originally Posted by NZT

hi, i believe Stake are opening in NZ next week - access to US markets

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You already have Hatch. They're both just DriveWealth technology customers.

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Originally Posted by kiora

Tiger Trade anyone?
https://www.tigerbrokers.nz/
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU20...y+11+June+2020
I've never heard of them

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Interesting thanks for posting.

They are listed on the NASDAQ and have some big backers, Xiaomi, Jim Rogers and Interactive brokers.

Allow purchases in HK for only 0.029% commission and a HKD15 platform fee which is a nice option to have.

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Originally Posted by kiora

Tiger Trade anyone?
https://www.tigerbrokers.nz/
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU20...y+11+June+2020
I've never heard of them

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I opened an account to try out however it is clearly designed for the Chinese market as some of the interface was in Chinese or broken English which i'm not very comfortable in using although they do have a very quick and helpful English speaking email and phone support from their office in Auckland.

The lady on the phone also mentioned that they are working to bring NZX and ASX trading onto the platform later this year which was interesting.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/mon...own-the-shares
"They tended to be long-term investors interested in adding to their stakes, not selling after short-term price rises, she said.

The other companies in Hatch’s top five most invested companies last month were Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Chinese electric vehicle company Nio.

The most popular themes of Hatch investors were clean energy, robotics, e-commerce, technology and cannabis.

But while some true believers like Clarke might be tempted to take a big risk and put all their eggs in one basket, Lunman said the average Hatch investor only invested about 10 per cent of their investible wealth through the platform."