Suggested sticky - broker review thread

Recondite49

I've seen various threads recommending one broker or another.

At least in Ireland the top three which seem to be touted are Saxo, Davy Select and TD Direct Investing.

I was going to suggest we have a thread dedicated to reviewing brokers as I saw for instance despite the good rates many posters seem to feel TD's website is buggy and share transfers take a long time.

Saxo also seem to require a very large minimum investment (10,000 plus).

Perhaps if we had a thread to discuss our experiences of various Irish brokers and to recommend new ones, it might be helpful for people getting started?

Mort5000

+1

ToxicPaddy

I'll have a check with the CMods and see if this is a runner.

Will let you know as soon as I hear anything.

Tox

odd1

Shelbourne Markets are to be taken over by ETX Capital.

Farotz

+1

Recondite49

ToxicPaddy wrote: »

I'll have a check with the CMods and see if this is a runner.

Will let you know as soon as I hear anything.

Tox

Hi Tox,

Thanks so much for looking into this. I'm going to try and open an account with TD Waterhouse and am happy to share my experiences with them either way, provided you've no objection.

Recondite49

Further to my last post, I have completed the online application with TD Direct Investing and was given an application form to fill in.

The form was very quick and simple to fill out. I was asked to take it along to a bank to be endorsed along with a copy of my passport and a bank statement/utility bill to be stamped as verified copies too.

I went to my bank today with a photocopy of my passport and bank statement, printed from their website and they did all the necessaries within five minutes.

TD Direct Investing give two options once the paperwork is complete. You can either send to a freepost address in the UK which will take around ten days to arrive. Alternatively you can pay the postage costs to their offices in Leeds and get it there that much faster - I chose the latter.

In theory once your application has been processed, TD then contact you with your account number. I'm assuming they post you your password for the website too.

So far I haven't been asked to pay any deposit, though as memory serves it's a minimum of 100 Euro.

Will keep you all posted as and when new developments occur but so far, so good.

Recondite49

Hi guys,

Thought I'd give you a brief update.

I was contacted by TD Direct Investing around a week after making my application by post.

The letter I received said that my application had been declined due to credit checks that had been run on my account.

I figured this had to do with my time as a University students where I ran up a load of debt and began looking into alternatives (although I was still a little peeved that poor people who had decided to try to become thrifty weren't being allowed to do so!).

I was contacted a few days later by phone by a very polite young man from TD Direct saying that my account opening had been refused in error - apparently their money laundering team had been a bit overzealous.

I was told that my paperwork verifying my identity and address were in order but I would need to apply online again, which I did then called them back. The money laundering department had been apprised of the situation and I was told I'd receive an e-mail confirming the account was open within 24 hours - that was two weeks ago.

I haven't chased the matter up as I have managed to open an account with the Belgian bank Keytrade, who seem to offer a better deal in terms of fees but would be interested to follow this through just for the sake of everyone else considering their options.

dRNk SAnTA

Great suggestion.

A comparison like this might be very useful - although it would be much shorter because most of these brokers don't accept Irish customers!

Monevator - Compare the UK’s cheapest online brokers

FURET

I've set up a Saxo account but have yet to deposit funds. One caveat: I'm based in the middle east so the process I went through might differ from yours.

The first point is that I want both myself and my wife to access the account. The Saxo representative recommended a joint account: Cost of activation 20,000 dollars. I can afford it, but a more bearable option would be to open the account in one name and give the spouse power of attorney.

Second point is that all Saxo accounts have a Danish IBAN. For some people this will make transfers to Saxo account quite costly.

Third point is that funds deposited to a Saxo account must come from an account whose name is the same as that of the Saxo account. Again, this means you can't use an exchange kiosk to deposit money to Saxo. Even CurrencyFair might not be accepted (though I am querying this). Edit: CurrencyFair is accepted as long as the sent amount equals the amount that arrives (if that makes sense).

Fourth point relates to the form W-8BEN, which I believe must be filled out by the account holder and sent to Saxo so as to avoid US 30% withholding tax. Saxo representatives I've spoken to seem completely clueless about this form.

I'm also struggling to decide whether to set my base currency as dollar or euro (or maybe both?) and Saxo aren't really able to advise.

How are other people finding them?

freeze4real

Hi guys,

Whats a good broker for fx, etf, commodities, shares etc.

I have 5000eur+.

Charting is an issue. I'd prefer a broker that has cheap trades or commission, easy access to funds etc.

Recondite49

freeze4real wrote: »

Hi guys,

Whats a good broker for fx, etf, commodities, shares etc.

I have 5000eur+.

Charting is an issue. I'd prefer a broker that has cheap trades or commission, easy access to funds etc.

Hi buddy,

Currently I am brokering through KeyTrade bank, they're based in Belgium. Just under 15 Euros commission on buying shares which I think is reasonable.

Feel free to read through the thread too!