Review: Top stock trading apps in Nigeria

Investment is a very good way to grow your income but it can be intimidating to people who don’t have a clue what they’re doing. The good news is that fintech startups are bringing investing solutions that encourage micro-investments.

All of these apps are great for beginners, and they make it easy for those just starting to invest or someone looking to play a stock-picking game for fun.

You can do just about anything on your phone

How much money do I need to get started?

Shockingly little. Thanks to fintech startups that have made wealth management accessible to anyone with a smartphone, you can kick-start an investment portfolio with as little amount as possible.

Here are the top fintech apps that you can use to buy U.S stocks as a Nigerian.

READ: Top ten apps Nigerian professionals should have on their phones

Invest Bamboo

Bamboo gives unrestricted access to over 3,000 stocks listed on the Nigerian stock exchange and U.S. stock exchanges, right from your mobile phone. The minimum trading amount on Bamboo is $20. The Bamboo app also possesses a neat feature that allows anyone to gift stocks to another person.

Pros

• Bamboo protects you by ensuring all your trades and positions are insured by the SIPC (Securities Investor Protection Corporation) and FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) up to $500,000.
• You can freely buy and sell US stocks knowing that your money is safe.
• Excellent customer service in case you encounter any challenge
• Nice user interface
• Bamboo charges a 1.5% commission when you buy and sell stocks on the U.S. stock markets.

Cons

• No price alert feature to alert user to changes in certain stocks that they are watching
• Bamboo is not available on the web yet,
• Longer withdrawal processing time
• Offers only dollar wallet
• Downtime mostly during market opening

Invest bamboo is available on iOS and on Android and has over 100,000 downloads on play store

READ: Many Nigerians are trooping into foreign stock markets

Trove

Trove is a digital investment platform that lets you invest in U.S, Chinese, and Nigerian stocks, bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and other securities with as little as 1000 NGN or $10, directly from your smartphone or computer. You can buy any publicly traded equity, bond or foreign assets as a one-off investment using a debit card or bank transfer. You can Also sell your assets right from the app & have the funds deposited into your account.

Pros

• Trove charges a 1% commission when you buy or sell stocks above $200. Anything below $200 is a flat $2 charge
• Good customer service
• invest in American, Chinese and Nigerian stocks, bonds and ETFs with as little as ₦1,000.
• Trove has offers both Naira and Dollar wallets. Naira wallets are used for investing in local Nigerian stocks while the dollar wallets are used for investing in foreign stocks
• Trove allows trading in cryptocurrency
• Shortest withdrawal window
• Wonderful user interface, easy to navigate

Cons

• App is slow during open markets
• Account verification can take longer time

With Trove, you can learn to invest in a plethora of financial assets. The Trove app is available on the Play Store for Android uses and App Store for iOS users. Trove has 10,000+ downloads on play store

Rise

Rise is a global asset manager built into your phone. They offer a simple way of providing people living in Nigeria with dollar-denominated investments in the US and other markets to enable them to earn returns that make investing worth it. Invest in dollars from just $10 and secure your long-term future.

With as low as $10, you can start investing in United States stocks from the Rise app. Risevest is newbie-friendly for anyone who is just starting out with investing. They offer 3 asset types; Fixed Asset, Real Estate Asset and Stock Asset

Pros

• Rise connects you with experts who provide guidance in your investing journey and help you feel more confident in your investment decisions
• Nice user interface
• Risevest provides a prepared portfolio to just invest in
• Wonderful community experience with their Telegram group

Cons

• Longer withdrawal time
• The feature does not give room for autonomy in constructing your own portfolio

Risevest charges a management fee for managing your assets. And it typically cost between 1.5% and 2% of the total assets under management (AUM) and returns

The Rise app is available on Android and iOS and has over 100,000 downloads on playstore

Chaka

Chaka is another digital investment platform that offers first-class access to stocks listed on the Nigerian & U.S stock exchanges as well as global blue-chip companies from over 40+ countries. You can start trading foreign stocks with Chaka from as low as $10 or N1000.

Pros

• You can invest in both Nigerian and global stocks
• Chaka has a minimum deposit fee of ₦1000 for local stocks and $10 for Global stocks
• Faster withdrawal time
• Chaka charges a 1% commission when you buy or sell stocks above $200. Anything below $200 is a flat $2 charge

Cons

• App crashes most times
• Slow customer service and automated feedback

The Chaka app is available on Play Store for Android users has over 100,000 downloads on play store

Bottom Line

All the apps listed above are hugely popular however, Bamboo and Rise appear to be more popular among the users we surveyed.

No matter what type of investor you are, these platforms have different asset offerings that are tailored to your needs and your choice will solely depend on your risk appetite.