How is one stockbroker different from other?
Stock brokers offer a number of features and you should know what is important for you. You can only select the best online stock broker UK if you are clear about your requirements. So, you should keep in mind certain features while selecting the best online stock broker UK for creating and managing your portfolio.
These are:
Trading costs
It is one of the most important features in trading. You have to pay a fee to the stock broker every time you trade, so it assumes importance as you trade frequently.
The trading costs come under two major categories:
- Fixed fee – It is the fee you pay on each buy or sell trading. It is a fixed fee which is around £10 for each trade
- Percentage fee – Under this fee, you pay a percentage of the amount of trading involved, which varies between 0.5% to 1% per buy or sell
Your benefit will depend on the size of your trades. In case of individual stocks, fixed fee offers the better option.
Costs associated with platforms
A number of best online stock broker UK now charge platform or account management charges, which is typically up to £20 per quarter. For instance, if the platform fee is £20 per quarter and you carried out one trade in a month, then the first two trades are free, which removes the platform fee.
Special features
A large number of best online stock broker UK provide only the execution part of online trading or telephonic service only. Some of the features include:
- Face-to-face discussion regarding investment
- Some best online stock broker UK offer regular investment plans in which money is withdrawn from your bank account automatically for buying pre-set investments
- Some best online stock broker UK offer advisory services, which allow you to call and know regarding investments
- Discretionary services are offered by a number of best online stock broker UK, in which the routine management of the portfolio is done by the broker
- International trading which allows you to trade shares on a foreign stock exchange. Under this type of trading, you can convert funds into other currencies for international trading
- Apart from these, there are best online stock broker UK firms offering trading options such as stop losses or limit orders
How to find the best online stock broker UK?
This is a difficult part as the market is full of so many brokers offering so much. While price is an important factor to find the best online stock broker UK, it is not everything. There are a number of other features that need to be considered before you make a decision. You always have the option of contacting them to know more about their services or clarify something, which will also give you an indication about their customer care services.
