Freetrade

Freetrade is a UK based financial technology company which offers a freemium share dealing service. The company was founded in 2016 and launched on iOS in October 2018, an Android version followed in April 2019.[1][2] As of January 2021 the company had more than 500,000 registered users.[3]

Not to be confused with free trade.
Freetrade Ltd
TypePrivate
IndustryFinTech
Founded2016
FoundersAdam Dodds, Davide Fioranelli
HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
Key people
Adam Dodds (CEO)
Viktor Nebehaj (CMO)
Ian Fuller (CTO)
ProductsShare dealing
Websitefreetrade.io

Company

Freetrade was founded in 2016 by Adam Dodds and Davide Fioranelli.[4] Initially financed through equity crowdfunding, its 2019 round was the fastest campaign to reach £1M on crowdfunding platform Crowdcube, doing so in 77 seconds and later crashing the platform due to high demand. Later that year, it would bring aboard venture capitalist Draper Esprit to complete a $15M Series A financing.[5][6][7] Viktor Nebehaj, an early crowdfunding investor, joined the firm as chief marketing officer. Ian Fuller joined as chief technology officer from Snapchat in 2018.[8][2]

In January 2020, the company was accused of fostering a culture of fear after a City A.M. investigation into staff claims of a toxic workplace.[9] Co-founder Adam Dodds responded, saying it has an honest and candid culture that not everyone is comfortable with.[10]

Products

Freetrade offers a commission free trading app on Android and iOS platforms open to users in the United Kingdom. Users may trade equities and ETFs listed in the UK and the US. For US assets, users may hold and trade fractional shares. Portfolios can be held in a tax free ISA account for a flat monthly fee. Freetrade launched its premium product, Freetrade Plus in October 2020, offering an expanded list of tradable securities and order types.[11][12] The product backend is hosted on Google Cloud Platform, Freetrade operate on a serverless computing model.[2]

Freetrade plan to enter the wider European market, beginning with Ireland and the Netherlands.[13] There is a waiting list for the Freetrade SIPP pension product.[14]

In December 2020 Freetrade began offering 3% AER interest on Freetrade Plus account cash balances of up to £4,000.[15]

Reception

Since its launch in October 2018, Freetrade has grown to more than 500,000 registered users as of January 2021.[3] In an early review of the service, Forbes described it as "a challenger stock trading app built for the Instagram age", and commended it on being the first and only challenger stockbroker in the UK, but criticised the poor financial charting, and its then lack of US securities.[16] In a 2019 review for Moneyweek, David Stevenson described the available securities, which by then included both UK and US listed stocks and ETFs, as a "decent slug of the large-cap universe". And while it did not offer the full-service platform such as established competitors Hargreaves Lansdown or AJ Bell, "for those simply looking for regular, low-cost savings I think Freetrade is hard to beat". Stevenson described Freetrade as his favourite fintech.[17] At The Next Web, Matthew Hughes credited Freetrade with "radically [changing] how I manage my money", inciting him to invest more, and increase his knowledge of the markets.[18]

Awards
  • British Bank Awards 2020 - Best Online Trading Platform[19]
  • British Bank Awards 2019 - Best Share Trading Platform[20]
  • Good Money Guide 2019 – People's Choice[21]
  • Consumer Investment Awards 2019 – Best New Investment Service[22]

References
  1. Steve O'Hear (2018-10-02). "Freetrade launches 'zero-fee' investment app". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  2. Caroline Donnelly (2020-04-21). "UK challenger stockbroker Freetrade backs Google Cloud to make investing more inclusive". Computer Weekly. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  3. @freetrade (23 December 2020). "There are now 300,000 Freetraders" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/09797821/filing-history?page=3
  5. Emily Nicolle (2019-06-25). "Freetrade to close £7m in second crowdfunding round". City A.M. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  6. Emily Nicolle (2019-10-31). "City startup Freetrade raises $15m from Revolut backer Draper Esprit". City A.M. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  7. Steve O'Hear (2019-10-31). "Freetrade, the UK challenger stockbroker, completes $15M Series A". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  8. Viktor Nebehaj (2018-01-17). "From Crowdcube investor to Freetrade employee". Crowdcube blog. Retrieved 2020-10-21.
  9. Emily Nicolle (2020-01-29). "Investigation: City fintech Freetrade accused of deliberately fostering 'culture of fear'". City A.M. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  10. "Freetrade - Toxic culture". Glassdoor. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  11. Oliver Smith (2020-10-07). "Freetrade launches its long-awaited Plus subscription with stop losses, limit orders and more". AltFi. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  12. Duncan Leslie (2020-08-06). "Introducing Freetrade Plus". Freetrade blog. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  13. Madison Darbyshire (2020-01-23). "Freetrade stakes claim in Europe's fee-free stock trading markets". Financial Times. Retrieved 2020-10-20.
  14. "Freetrade SIPP". Retrieved 2020-10-20.
  15. "Freetrade adds 3% interest on cash for Plus subscribers". Altfi. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  16. Oliver Smith (2018-10-03). "Freetrade Review: A Challenger Stock Trading App Built For The Instagram Age". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  17. David Stevenson (2019-07-01). "Why Freetrade is my favourite fintech". MoneyWeek. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  18. Matthew Hughes (2019-10-01). "How this stock trading app changed how I save money". The Next Web. Retrieved 2020-10-15.
  19. "2020 Winners". British Bank Awards. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  20. Oliver Smith (2019-03-08). "British Bank Awards see Starling, Monzo, Zopa, Freetrade, Chip and Bud take home gold". AltFi. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  21. Richard Berry (2019-05-10). "Best Providers: 2019 Award Winners Announced". Good Money Guide. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
  22. "Consumer Investment Awards 2019: Your winners revealed". Boring Money. 2019-06-06. Retrieved 2020-10-30.
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