Trade who? Tradu trading platform review

How we rated Tradu's investment features

Tradu is a relatively new trading platform which launched in the UK at the end of 2023. A large focus for the brokerage is to provide a low-cost service for traders looking to take positions in a range of markets. However, the stock trading part of the platform comes with low fees, a decent range of stocks – all US – and some free tools.

What is the Tradu app?

Designed with active traders in mind, Tradu launched in the UK in late 2023 and is part of Stratos Group International – a subsidiary of Jefferies Financial Group (JEF), a US company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Expert test: I tried out Tradu's trading platform and app

George Sweeney

Deputy editor

The Tradu app is pretty cool, it's got a bit of a futuristic Blade Runner vibe to it, which makes it standout to most other trading platforms. It's well designed and I found it easy to deposit funds and make an investment. The only annoying thing is that the minimum deposit for Google Pay is £10, but a higher £50 if using a card.

Another slight peeve is that the app seems to disconnect after just a few moments of inactivity, even when left open. Overall though, I like the interface, there's loads of great research info and the process of making a trade is as slick as you'd like (and realtively cheap with a £1 minimum commission).

This is an area where Tradu scores well, and although it offers US stocks only, the fees are low enough to compete with some of the best trading platforms in the UK.

Investors with an interest in US stocks will be the ones possibly captivated by Tradu’s offering. There’s no platform fee to open and hold an account and you’ll pay a commission of just £0.01 per share (£1 minimum), which beats plenty of UK competitors. But keep in mind, when investing in US stocks, you’ll also have to pay a 0.25% foreign exchange (FX) fee for converting your pounds.

As you’d expect, there are no withdrawal fees – unless you’re withdrawing to an account that doesn’t accept BACS payments. If this is the case, there’s a £15 charge for a UK non-BACS account or £30 if the account is outside the UK.

The other thing to note is the inactivity fee. If you hold an account for over 12 months but don’t make any trades or hold any open positions, you’ll face a steep £50 fee. If you’re regularly using Tradu, this won’t be an issue. But our recommendation is that if you use it for a while and then move for whatever reason, it’s probably worth just closing your account – you can always reopen again at a later date if you want to come back.

Tradu investment choice and stocks

For real assets, Tradu focuses purely on US equities, which is a limitation unless all you want it for is investing in the US of A. Unfortunately, the only other options are the tradable assets like indices, forex, commodities and stock contracts for difference (CFDs), which all involve derivatives and are highly risky methods of trading that we’d recommend steering clear of.

The lack of other real asset types, particularly exchange-traded funds (ETFs) isn’t ideal, but Tradu could still act as your go-to broker for investing in US stocks.

You can deposit from just £10 (using Google Pay) if you want to buy fractional shares, however Tradu states some stocks aren’t available to purchase as fractions and there’s no easy way to see what’s not included unless you pick a stock. Also, there’s a higher minimum deposit of £50 if you use a debit or credit card.

What does Tradu offer that other platforms don't?

George Sweeney

Deputy editor

At the moment, Tradu isn't particularly unique in its offering for investors. If you're looking to trade US stocks, platforms like Robinhood and Webull offer a similar service. The real aim of Tradu is to appeal to short-term traders rather than long-term investors.

However, one benefit of using the Tradu platform (compared to other, similar options) is that you get to access its trading and stock research tools which could provide you with some useful insights that you may not get elsewhere. It may also be the case that investors prefer the layout and interface of Tradu compared to other platforms.

Is Tradu safe and legit?

Tradu is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). However, one major downside with Tradu is that FSCS protection is a little bit murky.

On its website, Tradu states that any client money (your money) is protected by FSCS protection up to £85,000. However, any funds you deposit into your stock trading account are not covered or protected.

This means you get protection only for initial money deposited, but as soon as it’s put into your stock trading account (even as cash) you lose the protection. Whereas with most other platforms, the FSCS protection will cover your deposits, wherever they’re held on the platform.

One tip to keep in mind is that you shouldn’t really need to keep loads of cash in your investment account (especially if it’s not paying you any interest). Instead, consider keeping it better protected in an easy access savings account or cash ISA that pays some decent interest.

The fact that Tradu is part of a publicly traded company in the US offers an extra level of transparency. Although as always when you invest, your capital is at risk.

Tradu account types and products

Unfortunately, Tradu offers UK investors access only to a general investment account (GIA). This is fairly common practice among international companies launching platforms in the UK – Robinhood and Webull also don’t offer an ISA – and is definitely a downside compared to most UK-based share trading platforms.

So, you’ll need to look elsewhere if you want to make the most of UK tax-efficient “wrappers” like a stocks and shares ISA for investments, a self-invested personal pension (SIPP) for your retirement, a lifetime ISA (LISA), or a junior ISA (JISA)/junior SIPP to invest on behalf of your kids.

With a Tradu account, you can invest as much as you like. However, you should be aware that if your US stock portfolio grows, any potential gains may be subject to UK tax.

In the 2024/2025 tax year, you have a capital gains tax (CGT) allowance of £3,000 – any profit over this amount could mean handing over some of those hard-won investing gains to the taxman.

Similarly, if you hold any stocks or shares that pay dividends, anything over £500 could also be taxed. These allowances can change each tax year and tax is subject to your individual situation.

You should also brush up on US tax rules. When you sign up and submit your W-8BEN, you make a declaration that you’re not a US tax resident, so you don’t need to file a tax return there. However, dividends from US stocks will automatically be subject to a 15% withholding tax (WHT) – Tradu will handle this on your behalf.

Is Tradu easy to use?

This is a category where Tradu scores highly, but there are a few caveats. You can get hold of the support team through in-app messaging, email or phone. And when you sign up, you’ll get a welcome call from a personal account manager who can be your real-person point of contact, which is a nice touch.

On the UK App Store, Tradu scores an impressive 5 out of 5, but this is only from just 5 reviews. Google Play customer reviews for Tradu also love the app with a 5 out of 5, from a (somewhat) higher number of over 280 reviews (as of June 2024).

Trustpilot reviews for Tradu also come in at an impressive 4.5 out 5 “excellent” from over 29 reviews (as of June 2024).

Tradu tools, resources and features

Tradu offers investors and traders some useful resources and tools that are free to use on the platform such as:

• TipRanks. A stock research tool that provides you with actionable data for popular stocks to save you time and confusing headaches when researching.
• Stock screener. To help you sort and filter stocks based on analysts’ reports.
• Analyst research tool. For in-depth insights from analysts.
• dxFeed. An integrated “dxFeed” tool to give you up-to-date information and a dynamic list of top moving stocks.
• Order types. Different trading order types let you automate trades.

You’ll also get access to some learning materials in the form of written guides, but to be honest these resources are fairly basic, and dare I say rubbish when compared to what some other platforms offer. So, Tradu may not be the best place for complete beginners considering there’s no demo account to practise either.

The only other thing that’s missing is social features or a community forum to interact with other investors and share ideas.

Who might Tradu suit?