Commsec Review

Review

The Australian-based Commsec brokerage has been in business for over 20 years.  The full name of this brokerage company is Commonwealth Securities Limited and is a subsidiary of Commonwealth Bank of Australia.  Since this firm is a branch of one of Australia’s four main banks, locals tend to be trusting of the company, proving that brand recognition is one of the keys to their success. The main activity of this brokerage is share trading, otherwise known as stock trading.

Although their main activity is Australian stock trading, Commsec also offers traders the opportunity to trade stocks on the international market, either individually or as part of a fund, as well as CFDs (Contract for Difference) and ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds).  Clients of Commsec can trade warrants and fixed income securities as well.  Exchange Traded Options are offered by Commsec in addition to these other products, allowing clients to both buy and sell Call Options or Put Options.   

Account Types

Each type of trading has its own account option.  Commsec Share Trading Accounts are for buying and selling Australian shares.  Customers can use either a cash account or a Commonwealth Direct Investment Account to fund these trades and their website says that a deposit is not needed in order to place orders.  Share Trading Accounts can be used to invest in the Australian stock market, Exchange Traded Funds, warrants, MINI trading warrants, partially paid securities and company options. 

A Commsec Margin Lending Account provides access to borrowed funds and customers can use those funds easily through their mobile app.  Commsec Options Accounts enable customers to trade options as easily as they trade stocks.  This type of account is meant to be used in conjunction with other Commsec accounts.

Commsec CFD Accounts give traders the ability to trade more than 7,000 different CFDs.  Trades with this type of account start as low as $10.   There are many different markets that those who open a Commsec CFD account can invest in such as Australian shares CFDs, international share CFDs, global indexes, forward indices (futures), commodities and foreign exchange (Forex).  This a pretty comprehensive type of trading account but of course, Commsec customers can have all of their different types of trading accounts and move funds between them.  Last, but not least is the International Share Trading Account which is meant for customers who would like to trade on any of the more than 25 international markets that Commsec International customers have access to. 

There is a detailed list of each account type and trade type and the fees associated with them on the Commsec website in the rates & fees section.  Commsec does offer their free educational services to anyone browsing their website, in addition to a community of Commsec customers who can educate each other.  The website has several market reports for your perusal as well. 

Customer service is readily available in several different forms to Commsec customers.  Twitter, email and telephone and an online form are all accessible 8AM to 7PM Sydney time. 

Commsec seems like a reliable, extensive trading service that most Australians would trust.  We did see some online complaints about how their customers were treated, so as always, do your homework before investing. 

Back to Top

User Reviews

Did you have a good experience with this broker? A bad one? Tell our team and traders worldwide about your experience in our User Reviews tab. Your email address will not be posted.

Please make sure your comments are appropriate and that they do not promote services or products, political parties, campaign material or ballot propositions. Comments that contain abusive, vulgar, offensive, threatening or harassing language, or personal attacks of any kind will be deleted. Comments including inappropriate, irrelevant or promotional links will also be removed.

Back to Top