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One of the most popular investment platforms in the US, Webull, has finally made it to our shores.
“Legit or not?” you’re probably asking. Well, Webull is a registered digital brokerage here and is regulated by the MAS. It’s also got 25 million users around the globe and is a partner of the NASDAQ stock exchange.
It also has a whole bunch of awards under its belt, like Best Investor Community by Stockbroker.com and Best Investment App at the 2021 Benzinga Global Fintech Awards. Safe to say it’s not some fly-by-night company then.
Webull Singapore offers one-stop access to both the US and HK stock markets, the two most important markets in the world. It’s also said to have some investor-friendly features such as 0 commissions*, fractional shares and powerful trading tools.
So let’s take a closer look at Webull to decide if this new entrant can give our existing brokerages a run for their money.
1. A “true” 0 commission* brokerage
Commission-free trades? Meh. Plenty of brokers dangle so-called “0 commissions*” to acquire new customers. But we know that many require us to jump through hoops to unlock this benefit, while others sneakily charge other fees along the way.
Webull appears to be a “true” 0 commission* brokerage with no minimum requirements or limits on commission-free trades. Nor does it charge platform fees, membership fees or settlement fees. As these fees erode your returns, all these “zeroes” are good news for investors.
View Webull’s fee schedule here.
2. Bonus features for options traders
Options trading is a highly risky kind of investing where you’re not buying or selling stock (part of the company), but a contract around the price of this asset. Essentially, you’re betting on whether its price will rise or fall, aka speculation.
It’s not for beginners, but if you’re a seasoned investor and ready to explore options trading, Webull has educational resources to get you started.
Existing options traders will be happy to learn that Webull’s 0 commission* also applies here. Webull charges no contract fees, commission fees*, assignment fees, exercise fees or even a minimum deposit. No wonder Investopedia ranked it Best Broker for Low-Cost Options Trading.
The app is packed with tools for experienced traders, including real-time data (Options Price Reporting Authority (OPRA) and Cboe Streaming Market Indices (CSMI)) and multiple order types (LIMIT, MARKET, STOP, STOP LIMIT).
3. You can trade fractional shares
Beginner investors without that much cash to invest can feel put off by the prices of high-profile US stocks like Apple, Alphabet (Google), Meta (Facebook), Tesla and Amazon. The price of a single share can start from US$100, and in some cases, like Tesla, going up to US$270 (and this is after the recent stock split, when it used to be ~US$900 a pop).
Fractional shares are a relatively new solution to this problem. It basically allows you to own a portion of a share: for example, you are able to invest US$20 and get one-fifth of a US$100 share. This reduces the amount of money you need to start trading, but you’ll still get into the market!
Right now, fractional shares are not very common in Singapore. So if this investing style appeals to you, note that Webull allows you to own a fractional share for as little as US$5*, again with no fees or commissions*.
4. Financing interest rate as low as 0%* for margin trading
Margin trading is a nice term for “investing with borrowed money”, but in this case, the brokerage is the one lending you the money.
You typically need to put up a portion of the total amount. For example, with a margin of 10% or 10:1, you need to put in $10 cash to trade $100 (the broker lends you $90). This strategy can potentially 10X your returns, but it could just as easily magnify your losses by 10X.
If you can stomach the high-risk nature of margin trading, one important factor to consider is the cost of borrowing. Brokers typically charge interest for whatever they lend. For Webull, interest rates can be as low as 0%* for USD and HKD margin trading.
5. Full extended hours trading
After-hours trading refers to investing outside of official opening hours. Yup, it’s a thing.
For example, most of the activity on the US stock markets happens during their hours: 9.30am to 4pm US time. But a smaller amount of trading happens pre-market hours (4am to 9.30am) and post-market hours (4pm to 6pm).
Why? Because sometimes big news happens after-hours, and you want to react fast. As a result, after-hours markets can be quite volatile, which is catnip for active traders.
Most brokerages do not offer after-hours trading, however. Some do offer “extended hours”, but it might not span the entire after-hours period. Webull is one of the very few brokers that allow the full extended hours, i.e. 4am to 9.30am and 4pm to 6pm US time.
All the “must-haves” of a digital brokerage
Above are the 5 most unique features of Webull Singapore relative to the brokerages already available here. But this new-in-Singapore brokerage also comes with all the features you’d want out of a good investing platform, including:
- Powerful tools: The amount of data on the stock market can be overwhelming. Webull’s intuitive charting tools can help you cut through the clutter and zoom in on investing opportunities.
- Free real-time quotes*: Day traders capitalise on price fluctuations, which can happen in minutes, so accurate real-time quotes are important. Webull displays the official NASDAQ TotalView and National Best Bid and Offer (NBBO) data to help investors stay up-to-date.
- Round-the-clock in-app help: Convenient and timely customer service is critical for most investors, especially for those managing complex, time-sensitive trades. Webull offers 24/7 in-app support as well as FAQs for self-service enquiries.
With its intuitive user interface, fractional shares and zero fees*, it’s easy to see why Webull is so popular in the US among newbie investors. It also seems to have some great features for those who want to dabble in options trading at minimum cost.
To sum it up, Webull is a solid brokerage choice for those who primarily invest in the US stock market, with access to the Hong Kong market as a bonus. Just note that there is no access to the Singapore Exchange (yet!).
Want to give Webull a shot? Sign up, fund and trade with your account by 30 Sep 2022 to get up to US$130 of TSLA.
Receive an additional referral reward of USD80 worth of AAPL fractional shares for every successful referral*. That’s not all! Climb the Webull leaderboard and stand a chance to win an Apple gift bundle or iPhone 14 Pro*.
*Terms and Conditions apply. For detailed terms and conditions and full disclaimer, please refer to Webull’s website at https://www.webull.com.sg/. This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.