How to Buy & Sell Stocks Around the Globe.... Without Leaving Home

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1 How to Buy & Sell Stocks Around the Globe... Without Leaving Home

2 How to Buy and Sell Stocks Around the Globe Without Leaving Home By Jeff D. Opdyke YOUR decision on which broker to choose when you start trading in foreign markets should center on three important variables: cost, breadth and access. 1. Cost: Fees for trading overseas run from standard, lower-cost online commissions to $100 per trade. 2. Breadth: Some firms offer trading in a relatively small number of major markets, while others provide access to a score or more of markets, including several developing economies. 3. Access: Do you demand online trading? Or, do you want to call to place your orders? No firm offers both the lowest cost and access to the greatest number of countries via online trading. So, you have to weigh the different variables to determine what is most important to your needs as an investor. The best advice is to find a broker that offers access to the greatest number of foreign markets, (at least 15 or 20) and charges the smallest commission (about $35 per trade or less). If a broker meets these basic criteria, you re not overpaying to trade and you have access to many markets and that access is important because you never know where the next great overseas opportunity will emerge. Each of us has to determine which type of account best fits our individual investment needs. And once you get comfortable with trading from home, you might decide you want to head overseas directly. This process is exceedingly simple and safe. Finding Your Offshore Stock Broker(s) Start your search by investigating brokers in a country where you would like to make investments, a place that you can use as your base for multi-country investments. Go to the homepage of a foreign stock exchange of your choice. (See list below). At the exchange of your choice find the web link for listed local brokers/market makers. That will give you a list of firms that trade securities for institutions and individuals in that local market. Next, search Google.com for each firm s website. Then use the firm s Contact Us link to send an asking if they will accept U.S. investors as clients. You don t need to send your financial life-story or your theory on owning assets in Mongolia. 1

3 Just say: I am a U.S. investor and want to invest in shares in (name your country of choice). Can I open an account at (name of firm you re contacting)? If so, please forward the necessary applications. That will do the trick. You ll either receive Sorry, no can do, or Welcome to (name your country of choice)! Proof Positive The biggest challenge is collecting the forms and paperwork in support of your application. Most overseas brokerage firms want proof of citizenship (a notarized copy of your passport) and proof of actual residence (a notarized copy of a recent utility bill in your name). Unless both parties have a digital webcam, the agent opening the account can t look you in the face. So they want proof that you are who you say you are and that you really live where you say you live. This proof isn t hard to come by either, though an American notary public might not grasp why anyone would want to notarize a utility bill. Next step: Sent the required documents by international FedEx or USPS Express Mail. Usually within a few days you ll get an confirming that your account is open and ready to go. That s your cue to hit your local bank and wire money into your new trading account according to the instructions provided. Overseas brokerage firms usually have no minimum amount investment requirement. You can wire as much or as little cash as you like. Obviously, wire enough money to purchase whatever shares you will want to buy. Following these steps, you can generally expect to start trading within 10 to 14 days. Once you have your account open, you can just let the money sit idle in your account when not trading. You can simply use the account as a place to stash your cash in another currency. What s great about this is that the broker will convert your U.S. dollars to the local currency at the so-called Interbank Rate, the best exchange rates in the world, so there are no usurious currency-conversion fees. The best firms offer multiple currency options, including the local currency, as well as key currencies in the region, such as the euro, U.K. pound sterling and Norwegian kroner in Europe or the yen, Aussie, Singapore and Hong Kong dollars in Asia. In the meantime, because your account is denominated in local currency, you will still benefit financially when the U.S. dollar inevitably weakens. Trading at Home While you have the option of going to an overseas brokerage firm, there are increasingly more domestic firms in the U.S. that will allow you to trade overseas. For the most part, you can forget about the big-name Wall Street brokerage firms. Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley and the like will not trade in overseas markets for individual investors unless those clients are, generally speaking, putting $50,000 to $100,000 to work per trade. Instead, if you want to start building your global portfolio by owning shares in the local markets, you should consider the firms listed below. These are brokerage houses that not only cater to individual investors, but they offer trading directly on foreign stock exchanges, either online or with a phone call: Evertrade: the St. Louis brokerage unit of the Jacksonville, Fla.-based Everbank ( E*Trade: the discount online brokerage firm ( 2

4 Fidelity: the online brokerage, mutual funds and retirement-services giant ( Interactive Brokers: an online brokerage firm ( Charles Schwab: the original discount trading firm ( Each of these firms offers varying degrees of access to overseas markets, and each has its pros and cons. Again, like when choosing an overseas broker, you must consider cost, breadth, and access. The challenge is that no firm offers both the lowest cost and access to the greatest number of countries via online trading. That would be too easy. As such, you have to weigh the different variables to determine what is most important to you. Now You re Ready to Make Your First Trade At this point, the next step is up to you. You have to determine which of these accounts whether at home or abroad best fits your investment needs. Once you decide, contact that firm and get the process going. That s it. That s how easy it is to get your wealth outside of the U.S. dollar. You can do so from a domestic brokerage firm, where you never have to leave the comfort of your own home; or you can open a brokerage account directly in a foreign country (also very easy) so you have more access to all the opportunities that exist overseas. Either way, you have a great many chances to put your wealth to work in the world s major equity markets. In doing so, you will be protecting your wealth against the long-term decline of the U.S. dollar. And now you have a number of options to access those global markets either through a U.S. brokerage firm or through an international account. Go forth now and open an account a world of profits awaits! Until next time, stay Sovereign Jeff D. Opdyke Editor, Sovereign Investor 3

5 Major Stock Exchanges January 23, 2015 Economy Stock Exchange Location United States Europe NYSE Euronext (US & Europe) New York City United States Europe NASDAQ OMX (US & North Europe) New York City Japan Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo United Kingdom London Stock Exchange London China Shanghai Stock Exchange Shanghai Hong Kong Hong Kong Stock Exchange Hong Kong Canada Toronto Stock Exchange Toronto Brazil BM&F Bovespa São Paulo Australia Australian Securities Exchange Sydney Germany Deutsche Börse Frankfurt Switzerland SIX Swiss Exchange Zurich China Shenzhen Stock Exchange Shenzen Spain BME Spanish Exchanges Madrid India Bombay Stock Exchange Mumbai South Korea Korea Exchange Seoul India National Stock Exchange of India Mumbai Russia MICEX-RTS Moscow South Africa JSE Limited Johannesburg 4

6 The Sovereign Society 55 NE 5th Avenue, Suite 200 Delray Beach, FL USA USA Toll Free Tel.: Website: Legal Notice: This work is based on what we ve learned as financial journalists. It may contain errors and you should not base investment decisions solely on what you read here. It s your money and your responsibility. Nothing herein should be considered personalized investment advice. Although our employees may answer general customer service questions, they are not licensed to address your particular investment situation. Our track record is based on hypothetical results and may not reflect the same results as actual trades. Likewise, past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Certain investments such as futures, options, and currency trading carry large potential rewards but also large potential risk. Don t trade in these markets with money you can t afford to lose. Sovereign Offshore Services LLC expressly forbids its writers from having a financial interest in their own securities or commodities recommendations to readers. Such recommendations may be traded, however, by other editors, Sovereign Offshore Services LLC, its affiliated entities, employees, and agents, but only after waiting 24 hours after an internet broadcast or 72 hours after a publication only circulated through the mail. Please note that due to our commercial relationship with EverBank, we may receive compensation if you choose to invest in any of their offerings. (c) 2015 Sovereign Offshore Services LLC. All Rights Reserved; protected by copyright laws of the United States and international treaties. This Report may only be used pursuant to the subscription agreement. Any reproduction, copying, or redistribution, (electronic or otherwise) in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited without the express written permission of Sovereign Offshore Services, LLC. 55 NE 5th Avenue, Suite 200, Delray Beach FL

How to Buy and Sell Stocks Around the Globe Without Leaving Home

How to Buy and Sell Stocks Around the Globe Without Leaving Home How to Buy and Sell Stocks Around the Globe Without Leaving Home By Jeff D. Opdyke ARE you ready to go global with your greenbacks? Until