Top-Rated Trading Apps in South Africa for Beginners 2023

For novice investors, the ideal way to begin trading stocks is through a regulated broker. Doing this will guarantee you're trading on an established platform with reliable fees and commissions that are clearly disclosed.

When selecting a South African stock broker, look for one that provides FSCA regulatory protection. These brokers accept beginner traders, have low minimum deposits, and provide excellent trading platforms.

Fidelity Investments

Established in 1946, Fidelity Investments is one of the top U.S. brokerage firms alongside Charles Schwab and E-Trade. With more than 57,000 associates around the world, this global firm serves 40 million customers.

The company provides a broad selection of account types for individual and business investors. These include traditional and rollover individual retirement accounts, Roth IRAs, self-employed 401(k)s, as well as many other accounts designed specifically with charitable giving, trusts, and disabled family members in mind.

Its mobile app provides convenient access to accounts, trade securities, pay bills and receive personalized news about your holdings. Furthermore, it offers a host of educational resources and tools designed to make investing more informed than ever.

Research is an integral component of any successful trading strategy, and Fidelity offers an impressive suite of research tools and services to aid you. Its stock research center allows you to filter by category, pattern or sector with just a few clicks. Plus, Fidelity provides expert picks and market data so you can decide which assets are worth investing in.

With its comprehensive screeners, you can check stocks, ETFs and mutual funds for volatility, social sentiment and other technical indicators. Plus, you have the capacity to create up to 50 orders simultaneously and manage your risk with conditional orders.

Fidelity offers an impressive suite of research tools, as well as education and coaching services for both novices and experts alike. This includes webinars, articles, videos, courses and coaching.

Customer service is available around the clock through chat, email and telephone. Typically, you'll get a response from a representative within 24 hours; however, there may be some wait before speaking to someone live - some customers have reported waiting more than an hour for a response.

Fidelity offers a free trial of its Active Trader Pro trading platform to new traders. This is ideal as it gives you access to charting tools and signals with just a few clicks, though some of these features may only be available to traders with high trade volume.

Robinhood

Robinhood is an online stock trading platform that offers commission-free trades to investors. The app has become especially popular with younger generations of investors due to its straightforward user interface that makes it straightforward even for novices to use.

The app is accessible on mobile devices and features a web client that enables traders to trade globally. Since 2013, its user base has grown dramatically - now boasting over 13 million registered investors.

Robinhood's platform lacks many of the research and educational resources offered by more comprehensive brokerages, but the company is working to change this. In 2020, Robinhood unveiled new features like analyst ratings and lists of top movers to enhance its research offerings.

Additionally, it includes news stories and videos from sources like Wall Street Journal, Reuters, and Cheddar. Furthermore, investors receive push notifications alerting them to significant market events.

Robinhood offers several cryptocurrencies you can trade commission-free, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Unfortunately, the company does not provide a crypto wallet that allows users to store and transfer their digital assets across other platforms.

Despite this drawback, the company has managed to become one of the most widely used online stock brokerages in the US. Its user-friendly interface and competitive fees attract new investors; however, it's essential for investors to remember that active trading involves substantial risk and may result in financial losses.

Robinhood's business model is built upon three primary revenue streams: interest earned on cash balances, selling of order information to high-speed traders and margin lending - wherein it loans stocks or other investments to customers who wish to short them in exchange for a fee. This practice has caught the attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is currently investigating Robinhood's tactics.

For $5 per month, the company offers a premium "Gold" service which provides additional advantages such as real-time streaming quotes, advanced charting, and stock buying and selling capabilities. These tools may be beneficial to long-term investors looking to benefit from market volatility.

Charles Schwab

Charles Schwab is one of the top online discount brokers with various account types and commission-free stock and ETF trades available. Additionally, their mobile app boasts an intuitive design with plenty of features that make it easy to use.

Beginners will enjoy this service, but more experienced investors can benefit from StreetSmart Edge platform's advanced trading tools and features. This platform enables custom screeners and watchlists, access fundamental and technical analysis tools, as well as advanced charting options.

This platform supports most tradable investments, such as mutual funds, ETFs, index funds, bonds and options. It provides real-time market updates and allows you to customize your watchlists, charts and trade alerts accordingly.

Beginners have access to a range of account types, such as IRAs, 529 education accounts and small business accounts. There are no minimum balance requirements or monthly maintenance fees. Plus, you can transfer money between your accounts using ACH transfers, check deposits or mobile deposit.

Furthermore, it's one of the few online brokers who offers unlimited ATM fee reimbursements worldwide - an advantageous feature for investors who travel frequently and must pay per ATM visit.

The trading app also gives you the convenience of managing your portfolio on-the-go with its built-in portfolio manager. Create a personalized portfolio based on financial goals and time horizon, which is especially helpful for individuals who want to ensure they're always investing in the right stocks.

Another advantageous feature is the capacity to trade fractional shares of stocks, which can be an excellent way to diversify your portfolio. You also have access to options and futures trading, which could provide lucrative investments in certain markets.

Charles Schwab is an established investment firm with more than 30 million customers. It pioneered the low-cost brokerage model and offers a comprehensive selection of no-commission fee accounts as well as various investment vehicles and account types.

StreetSmart Edge and StreetSmart Central trading platforms are ideal for experienced investors, while the company's website provides a wealth of research resources for novice traders. For instance, it has a letter-grade rating system which indicates how well certain securities or options will perform over time. Furthermore, local workshops provide valuable learning opportunities on specific topics and strategies.