Interactive Investor Platform Fees

efunc

Hi all, if anyone is using Ineractive Investor I have a question about the merits of choosing one plan over another. I opened a SIPP earlier in the year and by default it created a 'Core' Account (I wasn't offered the choice at the time of opening).There is also the Premium account at £39.99 per month, but disregarding that for the time being the details of the Core and Plus acount are given below.

I opened the account with about £200k, but I'm considering transferring some of my liquid assets, ISAs and cash etc in which may be around £800k.The curious thing is that the Core account claims to have a 'Portfolio limit' of £100k so I didn't think they'd put me on it. I recently enquired if my account was capped or not and if I needed to upgrade to 'Plus' but they said there's no cap, and I can invest as much as I want.

That makes the Core account an extraordinary bargain surely, at just £5.99. So my question is, if I not planning to make several trades a day, what compelling reason is there to upgrade? Does anyone have a Plus account and feel it was really necessary? The 5 Free family accounts would be handy, but they're not that free at a £9 monthly premium. I will probably use the ISA and GIA, but those are already included in Core.

Core £5.99 per month Best for investors with less than £100,000 who want to access a wide range of investments and accounts. Portfolio limitup to £100,000 Benefits ISA, Personal Pension (SIPP), and Trading Account Invest with multiple currencies Award-winning research and insights Access to ii Community Managed investments   Trade costs   Funds £3.99 per trade UK and US shares (incl. ETFs & Investment trusts) £3.99 per trade Other international shares £9.99 per trade Foreign exchange 0.75%   Regular investments Free Dividend reinvestments £0.99 per holding

Plus £14.99 per month Best for investors with over £100,000 who want access to lower trade costs and our most popular benefits - for themselves and their family. Portfolio limitNo limit Benefits All the Core plan benefits Free Junior ISAs for all your children 5 x Free family accounts 1 x Free monthly trade Buy and sell funds for just £1.49   Trade costs   Funds £1.49 per trade UK and US shares (incl. ETFs & Investment trusts) £3.99 per trade Other international shares £7.99 per trade Foreign exchange First £50,000 = 0.75% Over £50,000 = 0.25% Regular investments Free Dividend reinvestments £0.99 per holding

vacheron

I used to use Interactive Investor, but recently moved to Freetrade as it is… unsurprisingly…. free. :)

I'm surprised you can invest more than the £100k as the core is specific about that clause, but if it's working, don't rock the boat!

As you say, if you trade more you may get a benefit, but I doubt many people would need it for the extra cost as you'd need to be doing about 3-4 fund only trades per month or large Forex trades to make it worthwhile.

efunc

Thanks for your reply. Yes, it's attractive, but I find the account definitions very confusing. I asked for clarification through their secure messages and received this reply:

"The 'Core' plan you were automatically enrolled onto does not impose a cap on the amount you can invest in your SIPP. You can continue to add funds to your account without restriction. The plan you are on determines the monthly subscription fee and the features available, but it does not limit the amount you can hold or invest in your SIPP."

That contradicts the '

Portfolio limitup to £100,000

shown in the table displayed on their website, but I'm not complaining…!

EthicsGradient

I have the "Plus" account, but I've been with ii for many years, before their current price structure, and it was what they put me on to when this was introduced (having a total well over £100k).

If they're letting you stick on "Core", and you've even been honest enough to enquire about a cap, then I can't see any need for you to upgrade to Plus. I am surprised they already let you stay on it with £200k in your SIPP; don't be surprised if the extra outside the SIPP wakes them up and makes them decide you have to move to Plus. It can still work out good value for amounts like 800k, though it's possible that others from smaller platforms (or a combination of others) could turn out slightly cheaper, depending on your activity and type of holdings.

efunc

Yes, thanks, there is that fear, however their message to me was quite explicit "You can continue to add funds to your account without restriction", so I would have some grounds to complain if they force an upgrade.

Still I may consider keeping my ISA and GIA in Trading 212 which aleady has a small holding. All very curious though.

Sam_666

That is amazingly brave to keep 200k/800k on one midd range platform.
You will get fun when you try trades in excess of 500k(was 100k). Happy days ahead.

"If you continue to exceed the £100,000 limit, we will upgrade you to the Plus plan and you will be notified by secure message again of this change."

Other trading costs

	Charge
UK shares & funds (over £500,000)	£40 (funds are free on Premium plan)

efunc

when/if the system eventually transitions me to Plus, paying £14.99/month (£179.88/year) on approx a £160k—and perhaps eventually approx a £700k portfolio it's still an extraordinary bargain. On a percentage-based platform charging 0.25%–0.45% (like Hargreaves Lansdown or Fidelity), a £700,000 portfolio would incur £1,750 to £3,150+ in platform fees annually, compared to just £179.88 on ii Plus.

Exodi

efunc

 I will probably use the ISA and GIA

I think even if one holds their SIPP with II (which makes sense for most people with £120k+ who are still actively contributing), it still doesn't make much sense to use II for an ISA or GIA over the likes of T212, for example. To use your table:

	Interactive Investor	Trading 212
Funds	£1.49 per trade	£0.00 per trade
UK and US shares (incl. ETFs & ITs)	£3.99 per trade	£0.00 per trade
Other International Shares	£7.99 per trade	£0.00 per trade
Foreign exchange	First £50,000 = 0.75% Over £50,000 = 0.25%	0.15%
Dividend reinvestments	£0.99 per holding	£0.00 per holding

Don't get me wrong, like others, I would prefer to try and keep everything on one platform, but it's really hard to look past II being worse in pretty much every regard in terms of cost, even if the S&S ISA is technically 'free' if you are already paying for the core/plus plan for your SIPP. Obviously II have other non-cost related benefit (e.g. offering mutual funds).

You're free to counter that it is possible to invest for free with II using the regular free trading service, or by using your 1 free credit per month (though note this is per plan, not per account, so I suspect most might use it for their SIPP contribution), though it is frustrating that this is once per month and may mean always investing several weeks later than if you were with Trading 212.

I guess the only fee that is higher on T212 is that they levy a 0.7% charge for depositing via debit card (but no charge with bank transfer (though I don't know why anyone would deliberately do this)).

Obviously there's more platforms than just Trading212, but you get my point.

I think if Trading 212 allowed employer contributions, II would go out of business overnight.

GeoffTF

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82136479#Comment_82136479

That is amazingly brave to keep 200k/800k on one midd range platform.

I do not use II, but I am interested to know why you consider it to be mid-range. Some people have larger sums than that on one platform. I do not believe that is amazingly brave. Your investments should be safe with II.

poseidon1

I am on the plus service which at £14.99 per month is £10 per month less than my previous tariff with them so more than happy.

Hold ISAs, GIA as well as Sipp, so a good deal after migrating a lump of various assets from HL.

Ii offer facilties difficult to find with other major platforms such as access to a selection of foreign currencies that can be held as assets in their own right, as well as being able to buy and retain foreign shares in their domestic currencies and recieve and hold cash dividends in those currencies.

These add on elements are usually only available via traditional LSE stockbrokers/ wealth managers, so I consider accessing this functionality at a cheap price from a DIY platform as good value.

As for T212, do not trust the owners and their service cannot access Oeics which I use extensively for income generating assets.

Section62

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82136583#Comment_82136583

Unless I've made a horrible error, they are part of Aberdeen. Which isn't exactly a high-risk startup?