How to choose the best investment platform in Singapore

What is an investment platform?

An investment platform is a digital space where you can buy and sell equity in a publicly listed company or fund. You can monitor your investment on the platform to keep track of the performance of your portfolio. With us, you can buy and hold shares and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by opening an investment account on our IG Markets app.

What is an IG Markets account?

IG Markets is our mobile investment app that enables you to trade across global markets. With an IG Markets account, you can trade shares and ETFs across major markets without paying any commissions or platform fees.¹ Plus, you can invest in fractional shares from only S$1.

How to choose an investment platform

Before you choose an investment platform, you need to consider a variety of factors. With some platforms having similar aspects, it’s important to compare factors such as:

• Types of investments
• Platform security and support
• Risk management
• Tools
• Costs and charges
• Customer service

Types of investments

Platforms with several asset types and a wide range of available markets are typically more attractive to investors. With us, you’ll choose between investing in local and international shares and ETFs. Here’s what sets us apart:

• Shares: we offer thousands of shares to invest in across global markets – including US, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. You’ll also have access to fractional shares (US only) from just S$1.

• ETFs: get diverse exposure to a wide range of markets via one point of entry using ETFs. You can invest in thousands of ETF markets on our platform that include different sectors, indices, bonds, commodities and more.
  

Platform security and support

We prioritise the security of your investments with:

• Regulation by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and backed by IG’s financial expertise over 50 years.
• 24/7 customer support with AI-powered assistance anytime, plus local Singapore-based support during local market hours.

Risk management

When investing with us, you’ll need to commit the full value of your position upfront to get exposure. This poses a risk of loss if your holding loses value, making it important to manage your risk.

Despite investing carrying limited risk in comparison to trading, the risk management tools available on a platform are important to investors who want to mitigate potential losses.

Some of the types of risks you can consider include:

• Market risk
• Interest rate risk
• Liquidity risk
• Inflation risk
• Exchange rate risk
• Currency risk

There are other factors that can change your level of risk such as your risk appetite. Investors who are risk averse tend to get exposure with limited probability for loss, but lower returns. Conversely, risk seekers look for opportunities that have higher risk as they expect higher returns.

Tools

We provide investors with comprehensive educational resources and tools to assist them on every step of their journey. These can inform the type of investment you choose, and even mitigate possible losses.

Here are some of the tools you can explore to inform your decision making:

• IG Academy - where you can find extensive educational content to help you sharpen your skills and knowledge
• Charts - track price movements of any asset available and customise the view to suit your preferences
• Indicators - choose from a selection of ways to find patterns in price action based on historical performance2
• Alerts - set up automatic notifications for when certain price levels are reached in markets you’re interested in
• News updates - stay up to date with developments relevant to your investments and assets you’re interested in

Costs and charges

Every investment platform has a fee that they charge for services rendered. But the amounts charged differ depending on the platform. You should always consider the fees and charges of a platform before you sign up, as this will impact your overall outlay and any investment returns you make.

There are other factors that can impact costs, such as the frequency of your investments. With us, you’ll pay no commissions and no platform fees using the IG Markets app.

Customer service

The competence of the customer department and availability of support at all hours of the day can provide added value to any investment platform. With us, you’ll have access to expert client services at the click of a button, with 24/7 AI-powered support at any time, plus local Singapore-based support during Singapore Exchange (SGX) market hours to assist with all your queries.

Best investment platform for you

When looking for the best investment platform for you, it’s vital to consider factors that are relevant to the product offering, including benefits and customer service by the provider. With us, you’d use our IG Markets app to access these benefits:

• Access thousands of shares and ETFs across global markets
• Invest flexibly with fractional shares (US only) from only S$1
• Trade without commission and platform fees on all major markets
• A simplified interface and real-time insights making investing a breeze for all levels. 
• Round-the-clock support for all your investment needs  

How to start investing with us

With us, you would start investing by following these simple steps:

• Download the IG Markets app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store
• Answer a few questions about your investment knowledge. This will ensure you get the best experience on our platform
• Get verification. We’ll usually be able to verify you immediately
• Fund your account and start investing. Deposit money into your account and start investing. We require a minimum deposit of S$20. You can withdraw your money for free, whenever you like

Investment need-to-knows

Before you start investing, there’s some fundamental information that you need to understand to help you make informed decisions. Below are some of the questions that are commonly asked about the basics of investing.

• When should I start investing?
• How much should I invest?
• How long should I invest for?

When should I start investing?

You can determine when the right time is for you to start investing based on your financial situation. It’s important to cover your bases to ensure that you have a solid understanding of how investing works and the risks involved.

Doing your due diligence can help you align your investment decisions with your needs, goals and risk tolerance. By backing your investment choices with thorough research, you lessen the probability of unfavourable outcomes, ² but profits are still not guaranteed.

Part of your research should include factors such as technical and fundamental analysis, market conditions and a comparison of investment providers.

How much should I invest?

You should only invest what you can afford. While there’s potential for profits, especially in the long run, it’s worth noting that you could lose a significant amount of your capital.

Stocks, for example, can lose all their value through bankruptcy. While this is unlikely, it’s important to bear in mind that it’s possible. In such a case, you’d lose the entire amount you paid for the shares of the stock in question.

In general, you should only invest money you don’t need to access for at least five years. Many people will look to build up emergency funds, and a risk-free savings account before they start investing.

How long should I invest for?

The length of your investment depends on your financial goals and risk appetite. If you have a short-term horizon of days, weeks or months, you’d pick a market and speculate on it. Investors buy and hold shares and ETFs for years or decades with hopes that the stocks appreciate exponentially over time.

For example, let’s say you invest in the S&P 500 index and your initial outlay is S$10,000. According to our expert analysts, the average stock market return for S&P 500 was 14.8% from 2012 through to 2021.

If you invested in that period for the first year, your average return would amount to S$1480 (14.8% of 10,000 = 1480). Due to compound returns, you’d get 14.8% of your new total (S$10,000 + S$1480) £11,480 to make (14.8% of S$11,480) S$1,699.04 in your second year.

The relative risk in the market tends to lessen over time (eg average returns on major index ETFs have less variance over 10+ year period), proving that it could be better to get exposure over a longer term period. Note that it’s always prudent to only invest money you don’t need to touch for at least a few years to fully reap the benefits of compound returns.

FAQs

Footnotes

¹ When investing with us you’ll do so via an IG Markets account, which offers no commission and no platform fees.
² Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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