September 17, 2024, 8:22 am | Read time: 7 minutes
Neobrokers have opened up investing in shares to new sections of the population. Average earners, young people, and the simply curious are taking part in trading financial products as a matter of course. This is made possible by easy access via a cell phone app and low fees. TECHBOOK takes a look at the costs – and at a new EU law that could change everything.
The US company Robinhood, founded in 2013, is regarded as the archetype of neobrokers. Its name, inspired by the legendary English rebel Robin Hood, who took from the rich to give to the poor, is emblematic of its mission. What had previously only been the preserve of the wealthy was now accessible to everyone: The goal was to simplify investing through a broker app that could easily be downloaded onto a smartphone. Robinhood’s ongoing success validates its approach. This is why the neobroker business model has long been established internationally.
Overview
The German neobroker investment landscape, featuring Scalable Capital, Trade Republic, JustTrade, Smartbroker, and others, has become quite extensive. There are also international neobrokers active on the German market, such as eToro, LYNX, and others. A closer examination of the neobroker field, especially in terms of costs, is worthwhile.
Neobroker comparison – what to look out for
Custody account fee
Regarding custody account fees, most neobrokers typically offer this service free of charge. However, sometimes special conditions are attached to the free offer. For example, brokers such as Flatex, Comdirect, DKB, Interactive Brokers, GLS S-Broker, Commerzbank, Pax-Bank, or eToro may occasionally suspend the free offer. For instance, fees may apply if you are not actively trading, if your deposit volume falls below a certain threshold, or if you wish to trade special financial products like ADRs (American Depository Receipts) or GDRs (Global Depository Receipts). Only the Prime offer from Scalable Capital always has regular custody account fees. Here, a monthly fee of at least 2.99 euros is incurred.
Scalable Capital’s standard version, along with Trade Republic, Finanzen.net ZERO, Traders Place, Smartbroker, Just Trade, and other competitors, offer completely free custody accounts.
Order costs
Free order costs are the exception rather than the rule. Finanzen.net ZERO, Traders Place, Smartbroker, Flatex, and Scalable Capital Prime offer free orders under certain conditions, typically tied to a minimum order volume. Otherwise, order costs generally range from 90 cents to 10 euros. Sometimes, this fixed fee applies in addition to a certain percentage of the order volume, or the order costs even relate exclusively to the share of the volume. Depending on the broker, percentages between 0.05 and 1 percent are common.
If available, XETRA orders are often accompanied by separate fees. XETRA is the abbreviation for exchange electronic trading and is associated with the European market leader among trading centers, the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. For these orders, neobrokers may charge up to 12.50 euros or 1.5 percent of the order volume. The latter can mean much more than just 12.50 euros under certain circumstances.
Savings plans
ETF and share savings plans are offered free of charge by a large number of neobrokers. However, additional costs, which are sometimes not readily apparent, are often incurred. These are, for example, the spread between the asking price and the bid price, i.e., the buy and sell price for shares. In ETF savings plans that include Bitcoin or Ethereum shares, customers may also face crypto fees. The range of savings plans offered by Scalable Capital and Trade Republic is particularly noteworthy.
Special features and service
Beyond costs, individual brokers may or may not include certain services and features as part of their package. These include for example, entries in the share register or assistance with withholding tax when trading abroad. They also include the number of trading venues, automatic distributions, free participation in general meetings of public limited companies, the possibility of margin trading to leverage traded assets, interest, free current accounts, 24/7 customer service, etc. Depending on one’s interests, these factors can be as significant as the cost considerations.
Derivatives, crypto, bonds and funds
Nearly all neobrokers now offer cryptocurrencies. However, it is rare to actually gain physical possession of Bitcoin and the like. Instead, investors typically acquire shares in ETNs (exchange-traded notes). Likewise, bonds and funds are available from nearly all brokers.
This brings us to derivatives, which warrant separate consideration. These include options, futures, and so-called CFDs (contract for difference). Derivatives are a little-known but very attractive asset class. They can be used as so-called hedges, for example, to protect shares against falling prices. They are also favored by traders for the variety of interesting strategies that can be employed, even with modest portfolios. Special caution is advised here, as the greatest risk arises not from the product itself but from legislative changes.
Loss offsetting restriction – a farce
The new version of Section 20 (6) sentence 5 of the Annual Tax Act in 2020 has since turned loss offsetting for private investors in the area of derivatives into an adventure in logic. A change may be prompted by the case of an investor who, after deducting losses of EUR 60,000, is expected to pay taxes on a profit of EUR 23,000. As early as December 2023, the Rhineland-Palatinate Fiscal Court expressed significant doubts about the constitutionality of the loss-offsetting restriction for forward transactions.
The Federal Fiscal Court followed suit in June 2024. In this case, the highest German tax court concluded that the limitation on loss offsetting for forward transactions is incompatible with the German Basic Law after thorough examination. Nonetheless, it may take many years for the Federal Constitutional Court to rule on the constitutionality in a principal case. Meanwhile, the BFH’s decision will act as a guideline. Affected private investors must file appeals against their tax assessments until the Federal Constitutional Court makes a final decision. Given this complex backdrop, is a renaissance in trading CFDs and other derivatives in Germany truly possible?
CFD brokers
Until a supreme court ruling by the BVG, derivatives will have a hard time for private investors. Investors in Germany must be aware of the risks that the law has created. With certain strategies that offset high losses with even higher profits through leverage, the legally permitted annual loss of 20,000 euros in derivatives can accumulate within a single trading day. Investors from Austria and Switzerland in the DACH region can consider CFD brokers among the neobrokers without the same legal constraints. eToro and Flatex are particularly noteworthy in this context.
80-year company history German manufacturer of TV technology insolvent
Production, transportation, payments, … How much does cash cost?
End of December Well-known online payment method to be discontinued! What customers need to know
Payment for order flow and the EU
Another law, purportedly aimed at investor protection, will further complicate the burgeoning relationship between neobrokers and private investors. At the very least, this relationship will become more costly.
To understand what this is all about, you first need to know how neobrokers make low prices possible for investors. This secret is known as PFOF, or payment for order flow. It is the core of the neobrokers’ business model. And it works like this: The investor places an order for a share through their neobroker’s smartphone app. The neobroker has contracts with various stock exchanges or so-called market makers. If the neobroker purchases the ordered share, a fee is received. This compensation supplants the fee typically charged to the investor. So far, so simple. However, the reality is more complex.
Owing to potential transparency issues concerning the spread between the bid and ask prices, this practice is slated to be banned across the EU. Consequently, private investors will need to cover the neobroker’s compensation with their own fees. The law has been enacted and will take effect in 2026. It is yet to be determined how the neobroker business model will adapt and endure.
None of the references and information mentioned in the text should be considered as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell securities (Section 85 WpHG).