finance
monthly
Personal Finance. Money. Investing.
Contribute
Newsletter
Corporate

Best Stock Trading Apps Today Across The World

More and more ordinary Canadians are now seeking to escape the rat race by diversifying their income streams.

Posted: 18th October 2021 by
Finance Monthly
Share this article

 In this article, we’re going to take a close look at the rise of Canadian trading apps and see how they can help you grow your portfolio and free yourself from wage tyranny.

Paychecks? 

I’ll let you in on a life-changing secret, the kind that they never teach you at school. No matter what job you get (with very few exceptions), you will never get rich whilst working for a paycheck. No never. Seriously, I know high profile corporate lawyers who were quickly left ruined and living in basements after a nasty divorce or simply after losing a lucrative job. If you really want to get out of the rat race, be comfortable and never worry about paying the gas bill again, then you absolutely need to diversify your income streams.

The more sources of money you have coming in, the safer you are. Without a doubt, the best way to do this is by trading stocks and shares. But it all sounds a bit complicated, right? It can be, but thanks to technological innovations and a whole plethora of cutting edge trading apps, it's getting easier than ever.

Buy! Buy! Sell! Sell!

When most of us visualise the stock market, we think of frenzied trading floors, giant screens showing who is up and who is down, ringing telephones and cries of “buy, buy! Sell! Sell!”.  If it sounds stressful, it's because it is. Corporate burnout in the Wall Street stock exchange is at pandemic levels. But it does not need to be like this. Remember that the whole point of the stock market is that it is open to everybody including you. Whether you are Warren Buffet looking to invest $10 million of loose change, or a humble bartender looking for someplace to invest $100 in tips, you can now get a piece of the stock market from the comfort of your own pocket.

Stock Trading Apps

Stock Trading Apps are smart/iPhone apps that allow you to watch, monitor, study and take part in the Stock Trade market in real-time. You simply install the app on your phone, set up your account, fund it, and off you go. You can buy and sell stocks and shares, you can trade and you can cash out at any time you like.

The rise in Stock Trading Mobile apps has been both meteoric and absolutely inevitable. The appeal of a stock trading phone app is obvious. Whereas once upon a time you needed a desk, multiple computer screens, a set of braces and possibly a casual cocaine habit to get on the stock market, now all you need is a phone - the stock market is now accessible for everybody. This means participants can trade in an environment, and in a way in which they feel comfortable. Best of all, they can do it in their spare time whether that's sitting on the train home from work, waiting for a coffee, or sneaking a quick toilet break (imagine coming back from the bathroom $100k richer than when you went in eh?).

A lot of apps have also aimed themselves as user friendly such as allowing “practice runs”  where basically you can play the real stock market using “monopoly” money until you get a feel for it. Other investment apps like e-Toro, allows you to simply “mimic” top traders - if they make a trade, so do you (albeit with a smaller amount) so you don’t have to do any of the hard work or thinking yourself.

But what are the implications of this?

Well, the opening up of the stock market to the masses has caused some notable consequences. Some commentators have even suggested that the 2020 Wall Market bubble that seemed to ignore the financial crisis caused by the COVID pandemic, was partially a result of furloughed workers sitting at home spending their time and money investing in the stock market! Cynics (and dare I say snobs) have even alleged that these “amateur” participants are dangerously meddling in the sanctity of the market.

A high profile consequence was the Gamestop debacle which made global headlines. To recall, a Reddit based community of DIY stock app aficionados using the Robinhood Trading App collectively decided to invest in the (previously underperforming) Gamestop Company sending the share price skyrocketing in a bubble that was sure to burst. This prompted the Wall Street regulator to step in and sanction the Robinhood platform on the grounds that it had facilitated market manipulation and forced Robinhood to apologise and revisit its business model. Of course, the counterargument is that this kind of “manipulation” is exactly what professional Wall Street traders have been doing every day for the last 100 years with no reprimand.

Apps like Robinhood, have also seriously dented the earnings of Stock Brokers and Financial Advisors as more and more of their clients realise that they no longer need to pay a middleman. This is serious business. According to the Financial Times, retail trading including mobile trading (that's ordinary folk with extraordinary phones) now accounts for as much stock market trading as mutual funds and hedge funds combined.

Regulatory Realities

In theory, the internet exists outside of geography and cyberspace knows no borders. But in practice, financial markets around the world are tightly regulated. Every platform has to be registered in somebody's jurisdiction and abide by their market rules and every user, (wherever they are based) is also subject to the financial regulations of whichever country their bank account or credit is registered in. For this reason, DIY investors in Iran will find they are locked out of trading apps as their country is totally and completely financially blacklisted. On the other hand, citizens of the US, the EU and the UK will find that their financial services friendly governments have made it insanely easy for them to get involved with few questions asked. As long as you can prove how you are funding your account, and personally undertake to declare any earnings for tax purposes, you can get trading on investing apps in minutes. Whilst the Canadian financial services authority is not quite as open as those in the UK and the US, they are still liberal enough to allow pretty much anybody to get involved with minimal hassle.

The Best Trading Apps In Canada

Canada Flag

As promised, we are going to take a quick look at some of the best trading apps in Canada.

 Wealthsimple Trade

Wealtsimple trade has proven itself as Canada’s favourite trading app. You can open an account with $0 (though you will need to fund it to trade) and they charge a $0 commission on trades. Typically users can expect to save $9.99 per trade compared to brokerages and the app interface is quite easy to use once you have gotten to grips with it.

Questrade

Questrade bills itself as being for the “experienced and the beginner alike” but the $1000 minimum deposit says otherwise. Still, their commissions range from $4.99 - $9.99 so they are competitive and they do offer a range to a whole load of corporate stocks.

Qtrade

Qtrade is popular with credit unions. They are not quite as established as Wealthsimpe and their fees are a bit higher. They also sting you with a $25 quarterly “maintenance” fee (i.e. account rent) which is a big deal for small, dime and nickel traders. So why use them? Well, their customer support is excellent.

About Finance Monthly

Universal Media logo
Finance Monthly is a comprehensive website tailored for individuals seeking insights into the world of consumer finance and money management. It offers news, commentary, and in-depth analysis on topics crucial to personal financial management and decision-making. Whether you're interested in budgeting, investing, or understanding market trends, Finance Monthly provides valuable information to help you navigate the financial aspects of everyday life.
© 2024 Finance Monthly - All Rights Reserved.
News Illustration

Get our free monthly FM email

Subscribe to Finance Monthly and Get the Latest Finance News, Opinion and Insight Direct to you every month.
chevron-right-circle linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram