Online Trading Platforms6-min read

What Are Online Trading Platforms?

The internet has, without a doubt, been one of the most revolutionary inventions in history with modern financial markets being just one aspect of the way it has completely overhauled society as a whole. Thanks to the availability of online trading platforms, a huge amount of money is generated and spent daily in the crypto and stock market. Trading stocks and crypto wouldn’t have been possible with the ease and convenience it is conducted with today if online platforms as we know them never hit the retail market.

As an aspiring investor yourself, the type of trading platform you plan to use will directly affect your abilities and access to any asset class such as commodities, stocks, bonds and even crypto. In this guide, we will be discussing the definition of trading platforms, the best online trading platforms, and how to choose them depending on the market you want to tap into the most.

With the help of online trading platforms, investors can place trades through financial intermediaries and keep an eye on their accounts. Research indicates that between 2022 and 2031, the value of the online trading platform market will increase from its current $8.9 billion to $18.4 billion, expanding at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.8%.

CEX.IO

CEX.IO is a cryptocurrency exchange offering a variety of features suitable for both beginners and experienced traders. Advanced trading tools, including Stop Limit, Trailing Stop, and One Cancel Other orders, cater to users looking for more control over their trades. The platform also provides charting tools, trading history, and multiple order types to support informed decision-making.

For traders on the go, CEX.IO offers a mobile app and API support for automated trading, ensuring accessibility and convenience. With spot trading commissions starting as low as 0.25%, the platform remains cost-competitive. Additionally, users can access over 200 cryptocurrency marketplaces through its feature-rich mobile application, making it a versatile choice for various trading needs.

What Is an Online Broker?

In the 1980s, one needed to spend hours talking through the phone to buy and sell stocks. The brick-and-mortar stock markets of yesterday, such as Wall Street itself, required clients to interface directly with human stock brokers in order to invest. If you’ve had any experience with a modern day customer service, you can probably imagine how that experience went for the vast majority of them. It probably won’t take to much to guess how inconvenient it was for both the sellers and the purchasers to manually have to deal with the process.

Luckily enough, that’s not the case in 2022, as you can easily place orders and buy and sell different assets in the stock market using a device and internet connection. An online broker is an intermediary enabling investors to sell and buy securities and other assets on a trading platform. As for how they operate, said brokers usually has a parent trading platform where assets are bought and sold.

It is important to note that the brokerage industry is heavily regulated as many commissions ensure and even require user safety to be the main priority for legal compliance. Remember this regulatory regime also applies if you are using online brokers that are reputable and reliable.

With an online broker, you are not confined or limited to one asset; many assets can be bought or sold using the best online trading platforms.

Why You Should Invest

There are many reasons why you need to consider putting a chunk of your money into assets like stocks and bonds.

The primary reason for investing in assets is to get higher returns and counter inflation.

Using the best online trading platforms only helps to amplify the profits you can make from investing in great assets. Experts have concluded that the average annual stock market returns since 1926 have been around 10%.

In an environment with hyperinflation, earning passively through investments such as stocks, bonds, and securities will help reduce the effects of inflation. Inflation has only worsened after the Covid-19 pandemic and the current wave of geopolitical turmoil. The dollar and many other major currencies have fallen and reduced in value.

A good investor would prefer to earn double-digit returns through investments than allow inflation to reduce the value of their money.

A Beginner’s Guide to Investing Through an Online Broker

● You should note that investing also comes with losses. There’s a need to be cautious.
● Choosing an online broker depends on your wants and the features you need.
● The registration process might slightly differ with different brokerage platforms.
● Once you fund your account, you can start trading immediately.

There are many things to consider when you are choosing the best online trading platforms to use.

First, you need to figure out the type of investor you are; whether you want to be actively involved in the market or just a passive investor.

Also, if you are a beginner, use the best trading platforms for beginners. The same thing applies if you are an expert.

Once you figure this out, you need to consider the features an online brokerage brand offers.

It would help to choose an online broker with research and educational resources. As a beginner, this is often overlooked but will help you grow as an investor.

Other things to consider regarding features are:
● Portfolio construction and management tools.
● Pricing and commission structures.
● Ease of navigation.
● Security.

Opening and funding accounts before trading online brokers are straightforward, although they may slightly differ between two brokerage companies.

You must initiate a deposit using any available payment options to fund your online stock trading account.

For a beginner, this may sound complex, but it simply means that you have to link your bank account to your brokerage account to trade assets.

Depending on your broker, withdrawing your money from an online broker will require you to sell your assets and then withdraw the money to your bank account. It usually takes days for the amount of money you withdrew from your online broker to reflect on your bank account.

What Makes a Good Investment

There are things which often differentiate a bad asset from a good, and they include:

● An asset is considered a good investment when its parent company is profitable.
● Before buying an asset, ensure that the company has verified sales growth.
● Experts say that companies whose assets perform the best have excellent services or products.
● An asset should be considered a good investment if its parent company is a leader in their niche.
● If an asset is high in demand, there are higher chances that it would be a good investment.

As a beginner, it is essential to note that even with the best online trading platforms, there are no assets that are always perfect. The stock market can be volatile so an asset may change in price from time to time.

It is recommended that diversifying one’s portfolio might help to spread losses whenever it occurs.

What Are the Signs of a Reputable And Responsible Broker?

The best trading platforms for beginners and experts have features that make them reputable. Positive reviews are often the primary way of determining if an online broker is reputable or not. Reading the feedback of past users from unbiased review sites will help you determine if an online trading platform is good or not.

A rigid Know Your Customer (KYC) process is another way to determine how reputable a broker is. With a KYC, a brokerage firm can know the identity of its users. Legal factors should not be overlooked when searching for a reliable brokerage firm. A reliable and responsible brokerage firm should be registered and licensed by the appropriate commissions and authorities.

Transparency and a transparent pricing structure should also be looked at. In recent times, it has been discovered that scammy brokerage firms have hidden costs imposed on their users.

Vetting Our Recommended Brokers

The online trading platforms and brokers that we listed above have been rigorously checked before putting them out as recommendations.

We opened accounts with each brokerage firm and tested all their features before recommending them to the public. We also carried out actions such as withdrawal and depositing and reviewed their terms and conditions before recommending them. Our review site ensures we consider users’ complaints and feedback before recommending a broker.

As an investor, you must read reviews of brokerage firms before making any investment. Review sites like ours will give you unbiased opinions about the best online trading platforms.

Our Methodology

We consider many things before recommending an online broker to our audience. Costs, trading technology, educational materials, portfolio analysis and management, platform experience, customer service, and security are among the things we consider before recommending a broker.

Red Flags: Traits of an Untrustworthy Broker

Because of the vast trading industry, many scammers pose as brokerage firms to defraud people of their money.

So before signing up on a brokerage firm, these things make an online broker unreliable.

● No KYC
A major red flag unreliable online brokers have is that they do not care to get to know their customers.

● Bad reviews
Untrustworthy brokers usually have bad reviews, differentiating them from the best online trading platforms.

● Lack of transparency
Bad brokers are not transparent. They are often known to have hidden fees snuck into their services in small print and other black hat tactics.

Unreliable Brokers

At CoinBharat, we take the time to extensively verify all brokers that we review. Over the course of six months, we open accounts with them and test them out on legal compliance, deposit and withdrawal terms, payment processing methods, the levels of encryption employed in keeping user data secure, as well as the level of efficiency and courtesy of their Customer Support teams. We also aggregate reviews among new and experienced traders alike in order to find any issues which we might have missed during our six-month verification period.

Whilst most reviewed brokers do pass our rigorous tests, others fall short in certain areas. Whilst some negatively review brokers are legitimate and maintain a reputation in the crypto and stock trading world, we also asses them on the extent to which they have regionalised their platforms to suit the Indian market, in particular. Unfortunately, even some renown brokers with a substantial global following have failed to recognise the opportunities posed by the Indian market (where crypto ownership has grown up to 421% in preceding years) and – as such – we cannot recommend them to our readers.

Discontinued Brokers

Over time, especially in times of volatile markets and unprecedented market challenges, some brokers, even established ones the likes of Paxful, could find themselves temporarily or permanently suspending their services. Whilst Paxful has consistently scored high in our vetting process on legal compliance, usability, payment processing methods, as well as overall feedback from new and seasoned investors alike, the company has announced the looming suspension of their activities. Paxful had enjoyed considerable popularity among crypto traders, boasting trade volumes of over $4 billion since launching in 2015 and a community of over 10 million users.

Taxation on Brokered Assets: Traditional and Crypto

When you profit from trading traditional assets such as stocks, they are subjected to tax gain taxes. Note that if your asset grows in value, it will not be taxed until its sale is finalised and documented.

On the other hand, crypto assets are also taxed, just like traditional assets. The IRS considers cryptocurrencies as property, and the law requires crypto traders to pay some taxes whenever they make a profit.

Investing Responsibly

It is crucial to invest wisely and responsibly; be prepared to invest what you can afford to lose, as the market can be volatile.

Also, ensure you are versatile and diverse with your investment to avoid massive losses when an asset loses value.

Conclusion

Above, we have provided you with everything you need to know about trading platforms, the best trading platforms for beginners and experts, and many others.

Takeaways

● Brokerage firms are essential for online trading to occur.
● Libertex, Admiral Markets, and Saxobank are examples of the best online trading platforms.
● Binance, Libertex, and Paxful are among the best crypto trading platforms.
● An online broker allows you to trade assets in the comfort of your home.
● Certain qualities show a reliable online broker.

Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions.