Place Trade Broker Review

Place Trade is a global full service online broker that offers services to both self-directed traders and clients looking for full guidance from one of their Investment Advisors. They offer all asset classes from equities, ETFs, options, futures, FOREX and fixed income products. They have reasonable commission rates and a powerful trading platform that will meet active traders demands with tons of robust tools and sophisticated features.

There aren’t too many firms out there that offer global access to other markets through one trading account but PlaceTrade has set themselves apart from most of the other brokers this way.  They allow trade assets to be denominated in multiple currencies, 24/7 access to market data to stay connected to global markets and a powerful platform that is available in over 14 languages. Having access to global markets gives traders access to more opportunities and versatility in what they want to trade.

For most account types there is a $5,000 minimum account balance unless you are under the age of 26 which will then be reduced to $3,000. They do have an inactivity fee that is $10 if you are in a traditional brokerage account and haven’t produced any commissions for that month. If you did over $10 in commissions then you won’t be charged a fee but say you only did $5 in commissions then you would only be charged the difference.

Commission & Fees

Place Trade has a great commission schedule with equities starting at just $0.01 per share with a minimum of $1.50 per order and a maximum per order being 1% of the trade value. So for example if you trade 100 shares it will be $1.50 but if you trade a 1,000 shares of a stock priced at $25 per share the commission would be the lesser of 1% of the trade value or $0.01 per share. With 1% being $250 and $0.01 being $10, you would pay the lesser amount of $10 for the trade. What’s nice about this commission structure is if you trade a stock that’s cheaper, like $0.75 per share, then you would pay the lesser 1% value of the trade at $7.50 compared to $10 for a thousand shares. Options only cost $0.75 per contact with a minimum of $1.50 per trade with mutual funds costing $19,95.

Trading Platform & Tools

Place Trade offers a very powerful trading platform called the Place Trader WorkStation. It has all the bells and whistles with robust charting features that is fully customizable with direct market access, streaming charts and data, market news, alerts, level 2, time and sales and real time account data. They also have quick click trading that allows you to enter trades to sell or buy with the click of a button for fast execution with out all the typing of order parameters. This platform is powerful, intuitive and user friendly and I recommend utilizing if you’re a Place Trade client. Their other platform is web-based and even though it is less powerful than their downloadable version, it is still one of the better web-based platforms. It has a user-friendly interface and rich graphics with plenty of tools to utilize in your trading. The charting is more basic but is usable. I would recommend using this platform for the less active trader.

With this trading platform Place Trade has received 4.8 out of 5 stars from Barron’s for Trading Experience and Technology. This goes to show you that the platform is top of the line and now they offer a demo account so you can take it for a test drive trying out all the different features and tools without risking any capital. They even have algorithms set up to trade based off your style and risk parameters. For example, one of the algos they offer is called Accumulate/Distribute that is designed to all traders to take on larger size trades without making a big impact on the market by placing smaller sized orders at random prices over time. This is a great tool to utilize if you trade large size and want to get the best prices possible. They also have one for scaling in and out of trades based on predetermined profit targets and stop losses that are sent out automatically when you enter a trade.

Final Thoughts

Place Trade has proven itself as a top tier broker for both casual and active traders. Their commissions are reasonable and their trading platform is top of the line with all the bells and whistles. I definitely recommend checking this broker out whether you’re just starting out or are a professional trader looking for a new home. Their customer service was great while I went through the process of opening an account and were very transparent in their fees and services with me. I had a great experience with Place Trade and is why they are getting such a high rating.

As always if you have any questions or comments regarding Place Trade, please leave us a message below!