5 Best Investment Brokerage Promotions (2022): Free Apple Shares & More

Investment brokerages and robo advisors are a dime a dozen these days. For us as potential customers, that’s good news, as it means they’re now fighting tooth and nail for a slice of the pie and doling out some sweet, sweet sign-up promotions. We say, let the fur fly.

Here’s a compilation of some of the best investment brokerage promotions at the moment.

5 best investment brokerage promotions (2022)

Online brokerage	Sign up promotion	Valid till
Tiger Brokers	1 free Grab share, zero commissions for US stocks for 180 days, access to Reuters market research videos for 30 days, access to real-time market data with the NYSE AcraBook	1 Jul 2022
Moomoo by FUTU	1-year $0 platform fee for US stocks, commission-free trading for US stocks, $10 stock cash coupon, $30 fund cash coupon, access to Lv. 2 real-time US market data	30 Jun 2022
uSMART SG	Free US and SG market live price, S$15 cash voucher, Free Investment Master Course by uSMART Market Strategist OR 3 BITO shares	31 May 2022
Syfe	S$60 in cash credits (US$44 equivalent)	31 May 2022
IG	S$188 bonus deposit	30 Jun 2022

1. Tiger Brokers — free Grab share & more

Tiger Airways may have gone broke, but trading platform Tiger Brokers (no relation to the former) is still alive, well, and doling out 1 free Grab (GRAB) share, zero commissions for US stocks for 180 days, access to Reuters market research videos for 30 days, and access to real-time market data with the NYSE AcraBook to new customers.

When you fund your account, you will also unlock more rewards. This includes a free Tesla (TSLA), Twitter (TWTR), AMC (AMC), Apple (AAPL), or 10 SGX (S68.SI) shares and S$5 stock voucher.

Here are the details:

• Promotion period ends 1 July 2022
• Deposit at least S$2,000 in a single transfer during the promotion to join a sure-win draw to win a Tesla, Twitter, AMC, Apple share, or 10 SGX shares.
• Commission-free trades are given upon account approval and are applicable to US stocks, HK stocks, Singapore stocks and Singapore futures.

2. Moomoo by FUTU — No platform fee & more

Moomoo switches up its welcome promo from time to time. From Apple (AAPL) shares to Haidilao shares, they’ve done it all. Unfortunately at the moment, new customers don’t get any free shares until you deposit at least $2,700 into your account.

There’s still something for new customers though! Sign-up for an account and get 1-year $0 platform fee for US stocks, commission-free trading for US stocks, S$10 stock cash coupon, S$30 fund cash coupon, and access to Lv. 2 real-time US market data.

Here are the details:

• Promotion period ends 30 June 2022.
• 180 days of commission-free trades for US stocks.
• To receive a free Tesla (TSLA), Apple (AAPL), Facebook (FB), Roblox Corp (RBLX) or Nio Inc (NIO) share, deposit at least S$2,700 within 30 days of account opening.
• S$10 stock cash coupon, S$30 fund cash coupon will be reflected in your “Coupons” page

3. uSMART SG — 3 BITO.US shares & more 

uSMART SG, like most other brokerages, is no longer giving out free shares just for signing up. If you sign up with them, you get free US and SG market live price, and S$15 cash voucher. On top of that, uSMART users who make the very first deposit ( amounting to at least S$2,000 to their account will receive either free “live” investment master course by uSMART Market Strategist or 3 BITO.US shares.

Here are the details:

• Valid until 31 May 2022.
• For new accounts opened during promotional period.
• Regulatory and exchange fees still apply.

4. Syfe — S$60 cash credit 

If you’re just singing up for a Syfe Trade account without actually depositing any cash into it, skip this part and move onto the next exchange. You’re only entitled to Syfe’s welcome promotion if you’re new to Syfe Trade and deposit a minimum of $1,000 and execute your first trade. Only if you do all of that, you’ll receive S$60 in cash credit.

Here are the details:

• Promotion period ends 31 May 2022.
• Account must be funded with at least $1,000.
• To qualify, new customers must complete the necessary within 30 days of account creation in order to earn cash credits.
• Cash credits will be credited in USD. Hence, you will receive USD$44.

5. IG – S$188 bonus deposit 

CFD trading platform IG is doling out free money when you open an account with them. They’re offering a welcome cash gift of s$188 for new customers.

That said, CFD trading is not for the faint-hearted and/or investing beginners. It’s a highly complex type of trading that uses leverage, which can magnify your losses as well as profits. So make sure you know what you’re getting into first. You also have to make a one-time deposit of $5,000 or more and make a trade to qualify for the reward.

Here are the details:

• Promotional period until 30 June 2022.
• To qualify for $188 bonus deposit, make a one-time deposit of at least S$5,000 and transact 1 trade.
• Cash gift and cash bonus will be credited to your account within 21 working days of 30 June 2022.

Final note: Free Apple shares are nice & all, but…

Sign-up promotions should not be your only criteria when picking an investment platform!

The afterglow from freebies wears off fast, and in the long-run, you’ll want to stick with a platform that offers you perks such as the following:

• Attractive fees – When comparing fees, you should look not only at the actual fee (eg. % of your trade) but also the minimum fee per trade.
• A user-friendly platform – Look for an intuitive, user-friendly, bug-free platform that won’t make you tear out your hair. Also check if the platform has an easy-to-use mobile version so you can trade on your phone.
• CDP vs custodian account – The former requires you to take an extra step to open an account, but lets you keep the stocks in your own name. Also makes it easier to trade using more than one platform, as all your stocks go into the same account. Meanwhile, custodian accounts let the broker keep the stocks on your behalf.

Want to learn more? Here’s a more detailed guide on how to choose an investment brokerage.

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