I was a little bit surprised to see that the ISA account (Ā£3 per month) is not free whereas the GIA is. Is there any rationale for making it that way? I would have assumed that most people would want to have an ISA open so no taxes are paid instead of having the GIA one (appreciate that you still have your annual allowance so for the small investor, it made not make a difference at all)
Quick edit:
Thanks for all the replies, but I think the point I am making is that while it is true that everybody wants to have an ISA, banks are offering it for free when they want to open an account with them, whether thatās a HTB ISA, LISA, etc therefore the question here is whether people would actually pay for an stocks and shares ISA account when they can get it from other stock brokers or free. Are we losing that piece of the market?
Surely youāve just answered your own question. Most people would prefer to trade with a tax wrapper. And Ā£3/month is a fair amount to pay considering the how much you can grow your savings by.
Also, the ISA can give investors peace of mind. Even if you donāt exceed the capital gains tax-free allowance, thereās still the disposal proceeds limit in place, and exceeding that requires you to report capital gains even if your gains are below the tax-free ceiling.
Thanks for all the replies, but I think the point I am making is that while it is true that everybody wants to have an ISA, banks are offering it for free when they want to open an account with them, whether thatās a HTB ISA, LISA, etc therefore the question here is whether people would actually pay for an stocks and shares ISA account when they can get it from other stock brokers or free. Are we losing that piece of the market?
A cash ISA and S&S ISA are completely differentā¦ you get minimal interest from a cash ISA with a banks. If you signed up for a S&S ISA with a bank, youād be paying a lot more to buy and sell sharesā¦
Think this is a topic thats been brought up time and time again in that we get people want something for free, hell who doesnt? However like many on here including myself have pointed outā¦its Ā£3.
If that breaks the bank for you per month (not day, or week) then I think a person needs to evaluate what they consider " a loss" per month.
As pointed out above what you get for the Ā£3 more than makes up for it. Also in terms of the market, right now I have a Plus account, so my ISA is getting me better interest than any of the current free ISAs my bank offers.
If you hold 10k in an ISA with Freetrade youāre effectively paying a 0.36% fee every year for the privilege of unlimited free trades, a slick app and safe in the knowledge that you are using a platform that will likely be #1 in Europe for many years to come.
That āfeeā obviously decreases as your portfolio increases too.
That or a free ISA elsewhere and either pay a stupid amount per trade or get shafted on the spread?
Yet another thread from someone who doesnāt see the bigger picture. If FT gave EVERYTHING for free, how would they make any money. The company would soon collapse and that helps no-one.
If you canāt afford to pay Ā£3 a month for an ISA, then perhaps you shouldnāt be investing in the stock market.
If you are not making enough profit to cover the Ā£3 fee, then I should point out that you wonāt be getting anywhere close to the Capital Gains Tax limit either. So you should really be using the free GIA instead.
