FlowBank Review

As a relative newcomer to the Swiss online brokerage scene. FlowBank clients benefit from the advantages that come with holding a Swiss bank account, and its brokerage services provide access to more advertised assets than any online broker that we’ve reviewed thus far.

That said, FlowBank’s short history and since does not have additional regulatory licenses (beyond its Swiss FINMA license) bring down its overall Trust Score.

FlowBank pros & cons

Pros

• One of the only brokers dealing with the swiss clients.

• Excellent choice for investing in local Swiss regional exchanges and financial markets

• Offers fractional stocks on 10 popular U.S. companies.

• Provides forex, CFDs, and other derivatives such as exchange-traded securities.

• Offers in-house platforms alongside access to the full MetaTrader platform .

• FlowBank clients are protected with up to $100,000 in deposit insurance from esisuisse.

• integrated trading signals.

• The FlowBank app is designed for beginner investors

Cons

• FlowBank is a relatively new broker with a limited operating history.

• The FlowBank Pro app for mobile lacks.

• FlowBank’s limited educational materials.

• Charts have a limited historical data range.

• FlowBank charges a quarterly custody fee which ranges from 10 to 50 CHF.

• The FlowBank Pro platform’s design doesn't yet compete with more modern platforms.

Investment Products

A true multi-asset broker,has 4,751 CFDs, 53 forex pairs, 48 crypto derivatives, 2,131 funds and OTC products, 15,926 shares, 936 futures, and a whopping 382,433 options when counting all available options contracts and expiries at various strike prices.

Excluding options, FlowBank offers 26,118 assets – that number alone is still more than the total symbols offered by most brokers.

Fees

FlowBank’s Platinum account – which requires a minimum deposit of 100,000 CHF deposit – advertises a minimum (not average) spread of 0.5 pips. Though this minimum spread is the same as what’s offered with FlowBank’s Classic account, the Platinum account boasts commission rates that are 50% lower (when trading shares and options).

Active Traders: Rebates are also available for high-volume forex traders with at least $50 million in turnover.

Custody fees: Traders will pay a small quarterly custody fee ranging from 10 CHF to a maximum of 50 CHF (based on a rate of 0.10% of assets, plus VAT).

Traders tend to pay a premium to hold an account with a Swiss Bank that has brokerage capabilities, and FlowBank is no exception.

Share pricing: It’s here where FlowBank’s pricing really shines, allowing traders to trade securities and invest in local Swiss exchanges on a commission-free basis.

Market data subscriptions: Fees per venue for real-time data can vary at FlowBank, ranging from as low as $1 per month when subscribing to NYSE AMEX or NASDAQ data, to as much as $125 per month for ICE EU Commodities.