Tiger Brokers Review (2024): Low fee stock trading platform

TL;DR

• Tiger Brokers allows you to invest in stocks across many markets, including US, Singapore and Hong Kong, as well as options, ETFs, REITs, funds, and futures.
• Advantages of Tiger Brokers include low fees, access to multiple markets, trading of fractional shares, and easy-to-use mobile app
• Disadvantages of Tiger Brokers include inactivity fee for SGX sub-accounts
• Fees for Singapore stocks: 0.03% commission fee, minimum S$0.99; 0.03% platform fee, minimum S$1
• Fees for US stocks: US$0.005 per share commission fee, minimum US$0.99; US$0.005 per share platform fee, minimum US$1 

What is Tiger Brokers?

Tiger Brokers is an online stock trading platform that gives investors in Singapore access to numerous investment options with competitive commission fees.

Headquartered in Beijing and operated by Up Fintech Holdings, Tiger Brokers serves over 2 million users worldwide. Up Fintech Holdings trades on NASDAQ under the ticker TIGR. 

Is it is a suitable platform for investors who are looking convenient way to invest? Let us find out

What users may like about Tiger Brokers

#1 Low commission fees and access to multiple markets

Tiger Brokers offers users with competitive commission fees that rival other popular online brokers in Singapore.

For a complete guide to their fees for stock transactions, do refer to the table below:

Let’s say you want to buy 2 lots of DBS stock (SGX: D05), which each lot representing 100 shares of DBS.  With a share price of S$30, this means a trade value of S$6000 (S$30 x 200).

The total commissions will be 0.06% (0.03% commission fee + 0.03% platform fee) of S$3,600, which will be S$3.60.

There are also no additional fees:

• No minimum balance of deposit required
• No deposit or withdrawal fees
• No inactivity or account maintenance fees for users who trade US stocks

#2 - Access to multiple markets and products

Furthermore, Tiger Brokers also grants users access to a wide range of products from various markets, including US, Hong Kong, Singapore, China A-shares, and Australia.

You can also access various funds through Tiger Fund Mall and Tiger Vault. 

Tiger Brokers also offer trading in fractional shares. 

You may be wondering, how does this work?

Well, the market does not actually trade in fractional shares, only whole shares.

For example, when you buy 1.2 shares of AAPL, the brokerage is actually buying 2 shares and crediting your account with 1.2 shares.

They simply hold the remaining portion of the share to fill other fractional orders with.

However, users should bear in mind that trading with fractional shares can potentially incur higher transaction fees.

#3 Easy-to-use application

The Tiger Trade app is relatively easy to use. 

There is a great deal of customisation which allows users to decide the level of detail they want to see in their interface.

For this reason, Tiger Brokers might just be a good choice for beginner investors that want a simple interface for online brokerages.

There is an option to toggle between Pro or Lite view for: (i) symbol page (ii) order page (iii) discover tab (iv) portfolio page.

This comes down to your own personal preference but we like the way Tiger Brokers has provided this feature to cater to different types of users.

Users can also enjoy a custom-tailored home tab, by toggling between various widgets they want to see.

Additionally, the quotes and charting interface can also be adjusted to suit your liking.

Lastly, users have the freedom to customise their trade settings, which is something that might be particularly helpful for experienced traders.

What users may not like about Tiger Brokers

#1 Custody fees for inactive accounts

Tiger Brokers sent out an email to all users in August 2022 informing them of a custody fee that would be introduced.

This would apply to accounts that have traded on the SGX previously and did not make any SGX trades in the present quarter. A S$2 + GST fee would thus be levied quarterly.

However, it is worth mentioning that S$2 per quarter is still comparatively cheaper than various CDP-linked accounts on other platforms.

You may also consider closing the SGX sub-account if you do not wish to trade SGX stocks on the platform any further, thereby avoiding further inactivity fees.

Tiger Brokers vs moomoo SG: Which has lower commissions?

You may be wondering what are the different commissions between Tiger Brokers and other platforms like moomoo SG.

For the trading of US stocks, moomoo SG has a lower total fee of just US$0.99 per order as it is offering zero commissions forever.

For the trading of Singapore stocks, both moomoo SG and Tiger Brokers have total fees of 0.06% of trade value, with a minimum cost per trade of just below S$2. 

Webull does not offer trading in Singapore stocks. 

It might be worth noting that Tiger Brokers is having an ongoing promotion where it is offering zero commissions across a few markets for a limited period of time. 

If we include the promotion, moomoo will have a lower total fees for trading US stocks.

Both Tiger and moomoo will have almost similar total fees for trading Singapore stocks.

Tiger Brokers is currently offering a competitive fee of USD 0.65 per contract for US options, with no minimum fee. You can find out more about the promotion here.

Is Tiger Brokers Trustworthy? Is Tiger Brokers legal in Singapore?

You might be wondering, is Tiger Brokers trustworthy?

Tiger Brokers is licensed with and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

Entities who have been granted a capital markets services licence would already have been assessed by MAS and are also required to comply with regulatory requirements.

By meeting these regulatory requirements, Tiger Brokers would have met a certain level of standards on ensuring the safety of your assets.

What would Beansprout do?

Tiger Brokers is a decent choice for beginner investors, allowing new investors to get started with online trading without much fuss. 

It has a user-friendly platform, charges relatively low trading commissions, and offers access to most markets that you might interested to trade in.

However, investors who do not trade Singapore stocks actively may want to be aware of the custody fee that is charged on inactive accounts. 

Sign up for a Tiger Brokers account via Beansprout and receive welcome rewards below: