Trading 212 - Review of the Online Broker (2022)

Broker Comparison – Who is the best? In this article we introduce Trading 212.

About Trading 212

The online broker Trading 212 is a British fintech company with headquarters in London. Trading 212 is the tradename of Trading 212 UK Ltd. and Trading 212 Ltd.

The provider is distinguided by its modern app, which can be used to trade shares as well as foreign exchange and commodities.

Furthermore, Trading 212 is the first provider of commission-free stock trading in Great Britain. By now, the online broker has already recorded over 14 million downloads of its mobile trading app, which is one of the most popular investment apps worldwide.

Regulation and Deposit Insurance

If you are looking for an online broker, the first thing to look for should always be the regulation or deposit insurance of the respective provider.

Trading 212 UK Ltd.´s regulation is ensured by the British financial regulator FCA (Financial Conduct Authority). Since the FCA is known for its strict requirements, this definitely speaks for the seriousness of the online broker.

To guarantee the security of customer deposits, the provider keeps them in segregated accounts.

In addition, customer funds are hedged by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) as well as the Investors Compensation Fund (ICF).

In the event of insolvency, these deposits are hedged to a maximum of GBP 85,000.

Previous Media Reports about the Online Broker

On the Trading 212 website you will find some excerpts of media reports from renowned websites and magazines about the online broker. The provider was mentioned, for example, in an article by the famous Forbes magazine or the British newspaper Financial Times.

Furthermore, there are positive reports about Trading 212 by The Telegraph and Proactive Investors.

If you are interested, the individual articles and reports can be accessed on the Trading 212 website.

Additionally, the online broker has held first place in the trading apps category in the UK since 2016. In Germany, Trading 212 also achieved first place in this category in 2017.

Deposit and Withdrawal at Trading 212

Before we take a closer look at the range of services offered by the online broker, let us first take a brief look at the deposit and withdrawal options at Trading 212.

The provider offers its customers a variety of different options:

Bank transfer
Credit and debit card payments
Skrill
Giropay
Direct eBanking
Google Pay, Apple Pay
iDEAL

However, direct cash payments to the bank account of Trading 212 are not accepted.

While credit/debit card deposits only take around 10 minutes to process, bank transfer deposits can take up to two days. Withdrawals usually take 2-3 business days.

The online broker does not charge any fees for deposits or withdrawals.

What tradable instruments can one choose from at Trading 212?

The next step is to discuss the range of tradable instruments at Trading 212. Since every investor has individual trading preferences, the selection of tradable assets plays a significant role.

The online broker basically separates what it offers into two groups:

On the one hand, there is Trading 212 Invest, which enables the trading of shares and ETFs. On the other hand, with Trading 212 CFD, the online broker provides trading in CFDs on stocks, forex, commodities, indices and cryptocurrencies.

Trading 212 Invest – Trading Stocks and ETFs

As previously mentioned, Trading 212 Invest includes trading in real stocks and ETFs. The online broker presents its customers more than 3,000 global stocks and ETFs to choose from. In addition, there is also the option to purchase partial shares from large corporations such as Google, Amazon and Apple starting at just 1 euro, in order to diversify your own portfolio with even a small financial investment.

Another advantage is the fact that no currency conversion fees are charged for trading.

Trading 212 Invest – Trading with CFDs

As previously mentioned, the range of tradable CFDs comprises various underlyings. By now, there are more than 1,800 different instruments available.

Forex
The first thing to discuss in this context, is the trading of currency pairs. Trading 212 offers its customers competitive margins and more than 150 different currency pairs can be traded.

Shares
A large number of stocks such as Lloyds, Apple and Tesla Motors can also be traded as CFDs at Trading 212.

Commodities
Many traders also use commodities to expand their portfolios and thereby spread the risks. In addition to the classic resources such as gold, oil and silver, there are also a number of other base stocks to choose from.

Indices
And last but not least, with Trading 212 more than 30 indices of main and niche markets can be traded.

What trading platform does the online broker provide?

Unlike many other online brokers, Trading 212 does not offer its customers a comprehensive trading platform to (such as the MetaTrader trading platform). Instead, Trading 212 customers trade on its own platform called Trading 212 Pro. One considerable advantage of this specifically developed software is that the online broker can improve the trading platform and fix errors at any time.

Customers can use the trading platform directly via the browser and access their trading account. Since it is not necessary to download any software, users can trade on all devices with Internet access to Trading 212 Pro.

The trading interface is well designed and offers a wide range of functions. In addition, as previously mentioned, the trading platform is also available as an app for mobile devices. Currently, the app has been downloaded more than 14 million times from the App Store or Android.

What kind of orders can be executed with Trading 212?

Subsequently, the order types that are available at Trading 212 will be briefly listed. Pending orders can be used, but are not limited to, in the following forms:

Stop Loss-Order
Limit-Order
Entry-Stop-Order

Basically, stop-loss, take-profit and trailing-stop orders can only be guaranteed within the trading hours. Outside of these times, due to possible gaps, execution can be made at a different price.

Limit-/ stop and OCO orders can not be guaranteed if the volatility or liquidity of the relevant market is too pronounced.

The Trading Conditions at Trading 212

One aspect that always plays a central role in evaluating the services offered by an online broker is the trading conditions. For this reason, in the following we will take a closer look at the trading conditions at Trading 212 for trading in shares and ETFs on the one hand and for trading in CFDs on the other.

Trading 212 Invest – Trading Conditions

The minimum deposit for a Trading 212 Invest account is basically only 1 euro, only for bank transfers is minimum 10 euro. As previously mentioned, no fees are charged for deposits and withdrawals. The minimum withdrawal amount is also set at only 1 euro.

Now we come to the actual trading conditions: A special feature here is that traders do not have to pay any commission for trading at Trading 212. Traders also do not have to pay any fees for leaving a position open until the next day. Leveraged trading is not available.

As a customer, you only pay the spread of the respective trading instruments at Trading 212.

Trading 212 CFD – Trading Conditions

The trading conditions for the Trading 212 CFD account are slightly different. In order to trade CFDs, a minimum amount of 10 euros is required for both deposits and withdrawals. However, there are also no fees for deposits or withdrawals.

Nevertheless, there are some other fees to consider when trading CFDs. Although the online broker does not charge any commissions for these either, depending on the instrument traded, a corresponding swap fee can be charged for leaving a position open until the next day.

Unlike to trading shares and ETFs, CFDs carry a currency conversion fee of 0.5%.

The spreads charged for the individual underlying instruments can also be viewed individually for each trading instrument on the Trading 212 website. The online broker does not charge any inactivity fees.

Lastly, a brief overview of the margin requirements for the respective trading instruments will be presented.

Forex:

for major currency pairs – 3.33%
for minor currency pairs – 5%

Commodities:

Gold – 5%
Other Commodities – 10%

Shares: 20%

Indices:

major indices – 5%
minor indices – 10%

These Tools are Provided by Trading 212

In order to make trading easier for its customers, the online broker provides them with several tools on its website. These will be briefly pointed out in the following.

News

First of all, Trading 212 publishes current and relevant financial news on its website. Traders can utilize this news to react quickly and take appropriate actions in their own portfolio.

Economic Calendar

Also, the customers of the online broker can access an economic calendar at all times. The provider makes various current events available, sorted by country, and in the course of the event also gives an assessment of the degree of influence on trading of the respective report.

Analyses

In addition, Trading 212 also provides regular analyses of the various trading instruments on its website. In the daily analyses, the activities of these instruments (e.g. daily DAX analysis, daily EUR/USD analysis, etc.) are examined and evaluated daily.

Training and further Education Opportunities

For many investors – especially for those new to trading – a separate area for training and education is also a very interesting feature. Trading 212 therefore also offers a rather extensive range of opportunities for additional training.

In addition to a number of detailed articles on the fundamental basics of trading, the online broker also offers its customers helpful information on technical analysis and the most important economic indicators.

Furthermore there are a number of video tutorials on various topics which the clients of Trading 212 can watch at any time. And last but not least, there are also seminars that take place from time to time, for which you can register on the online brokers website on set dates.

Advertising Campaign at Trading 212

A special feature of Trading 212 is the advertising campaign, which customers of the online broker can benefit from. As a user of a live account with the online broker, you have a corresponding referral link through which you can invite other interested traders.

If you acquire a new customer for Trading 212 through a referral, you will receive a free randomly selected share with a value of up to 100 euros as a reward. As a customer you can obtain up to twenty free shares this way.

The demo account at Trading 212

At Trading 212 there is also the option to use a demo account. This is particularly suitable for those traders who want to try out the online broker and its platforms without financial risks. The demo version provides exactly this by offering trading under real conditions with a virtual credit balance.

For interested investors, regardless of their previous experience, the demo account is therefore a helpful way to get to know the platforms and different trading instruments and to try out their own trading strategies.

Customer Service at Trading 212

Customer service always plays an important role in the search for a suitable online broker. The providers service team offers live support and is available for its customers around the clock. If problems or questions come up, the service team can easily be contacted at any time by phone or live chat. The support team at Trading 212 is generally reliable, competent and customer-friendly.

Previous Experiences with the Online Broker

At the end of this article, we will briefly review our experience with the online broker on the internet. Even though the provider, compared to some other competitors, has not been on the market that long, there is already a multitude of reviews, which are ultimately largely positive.

In addition to the fair trading conditions and the wide range of underlyings, Trading 212 also shines with competent and reliable support. And the trading app is very popular with most customers, too. As a regulated and reputable online broker, Trading 212 is definitely a good option for all investors who are currently looking for a provider.

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