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Best US stock brokerage companies for Chinese, Taiwan and Hong Kong citizens in 2012
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- Stocks and ETFs: $7
- Stocks and ETFs broker assisted: $27
- Stocks and ETFs interactive voice response (IVR) telephone system: $17
- Options: $7 plus $1.25 per contract
- Mutual Funds: 2,800+ free mutual funds, $17 for others
- CDs, OTC Secondary Corporates, OTC Secondary Municipals, U.S. Treasury Bills, Notes, Bonds and STRIPS, New Corporate Offerings: subject to a markup or markdown
- Listed Corporate Bonds: $35 fee plus $3 per bond (minimum investment $1,000)
- Unit Investment Trusts (UIT): $50 liquidation fee
- Foreign Stocks Transferring In or Out: $60 per transaction
- Investment products: stocks, options, mutual funds, CDs, munis, U.S. Treasury, Canadian and foreign stocks, ETFs
- Minimum to open Scottrade account: $500 for a cash account, $2,000 for a margin account
- All Scottrade fees
- No inactivity, account maintenance or hidden fees
- No-fee IRAs
- One of the highest customer satisfaction ratings according to JD Power and Associates
- 500+ local branches
- Great support for beginner investors with massive amount of educational resources
- Online user community
- Banking services: savings, CDs, money market and checking accounts (visa check card and first order of checks is free)
- No ACAT fee
- Only $500 minimum to open account
- Free real-time streaming quotes and charts
- Free dividend reinvestment for mutual funds (but not for stocks)
- Additional 0.5% of the principal value commission for stocks under $1
- No electronic withdrawals (but can use debit card or checks)
Scottrade offers its services to Chinese, Taiwan and Hong Kong citizens and it even has a chinese version if its website.
Scottrade is one of the veterans of the discount stock trading and it is a solid, well-established firm with
flat rate trading commissions. We ranked it as one of the
Top Brokerage Firms in 2012.
Scottrade keeps customers happy by not charging any unnecessary fees: IRA fees, maintenance and account
inactivity fees. It is also a leader in customer service and investor satisfaction according to JD Power and Associates.
Scottrade is an excellent choice for beginner investors, those who invest in mutual funds, and
long-term, "buy and hold" investors (mainly because of no account inactivity charges).
Because Scottrade is a stable, seasoned stock brokerage firm with a very good reputation, it is also
a natural choice for people nervous about trusting their money to newer companies but not wanting to pay
$10+ for trades and multiple fees at other big brokers.
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- Stocks and ETFs: $9.99 if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 if 150+ trades per quarter
- Options: $9.99 plus $0.75/contract if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 plus $0.75/contract if 150+ trades per quarter
- Mutual Funds: $19.99
- Futures contracts: $2.99 per contract, per side + fees
- Investment products: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, futures, options, ETFs
- Minimum to open Etrade account: $2,000 for margin account. For securities accounts (except retirement accounts), an account minimum deposit of
either at least $500 in cash or a deposit of securities is required within 60 days of account opening for the account to remain active. There is no initial minimum deposit requirement for retirement, custodial, or employee stock plan accounts. Accounts not meeting the minimum deposit requirement will be closed after 60 days.
- All Etrade fees
- Very good trading tools
- No IRA account fees, no minimums with electronic statements and confirms
- Minimum to open: $1,000 for cash account, $2,000 for margin account
- Banking products: checking, savings, money market accounts, CDs and credit cards
- No surcharges on large orders, penny stocks and extended hours trading
- Great research amenities
- High commissions on all investment products
- High margin rates
- Customer service complaints
ETrade also offers brokerage services to Chinese, Taiwan and Hong Kong citizens and it has chinese version if its website.
With Etrade, active traders could get lower commissions than those who rarely trade. For clients making up to 150 trades per quarter,
stock and ETF commission is $9.99 per trade. For anyone making over 150 trades per quarter commission drops to $7.99 per trade.
Options commission is $9.99 plus $0.75 (up to 150 trades) and $7.99 plus $0.75 (over 150 trades).
No account maintenance and inactivity fees make Etrade a good option for buy-and-hold investors.
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