The Halifax Share Dealing account lets you invest in a handful of overseas markets in addition to the usual range of UK stocks, bonds and funds. The international service is a bit too limited to appeal to investors who want to invest globally, but could be a useful solution for those who want to add some major US and European shares to their portfolio.
Halifax also offers the iWeb brand with different fees – including a significantly cheaper trading fee of £5 per transaction rather than £9.50 – but exactly the same service. iWeb charges an account-opening fee, unlike Halifax, but will probably still work out cheaper in most cases.
However, dealing and account fees aren’t your only cost – like most stockbrokers that will only let you settle and hold cash in sterling, you will also pay a currency commission on the exchange rate used to calculate the sterling price each time you trade. Halifax charges a 1.25% margin, which is less than some rivals, but other options such as AJ Bell Youinvest, Hargreaves Lansdown, Interactive Brokers and Saxo Markets have lower FX costs.
| Online trading | Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, UK, USA |
| Telephone trading | As above |
| Typical online | £9.50 |
| Online details | £9.50 |
| Typical telephone | £25 |
| Telephone details | £25 |
| Account fees and inactivity fees | Customer administration fee: £36 per year (covers dealing accounts and Isas);
SIPP: £22.5 per quarter for accounts under £50,000, £45 per quarter for accounts over £50,000 |
| Custody charges for stocks | None |
| Dividend charges | None |
| Corporate action charges | None |
| Currency conversion charges | 1.25% |
| Hold cash in foreign currencies | No |
| Currencies allowed | GBP |
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